Deceased Estates Lawyers in Johannesburg
Estate Administration, Reporting and Inheritance
A parent dies in Johannesburg and the money stops moving: the bank freezes the accounts at death, the bond and rates keep running, and an inheritance sits locked behind the Master’s requisitions. Every month of drift costs the estate interest, duty and patience, while the family waits.
We administer deceased estates for families across the wider Johannesburg metro under the Administration of Estates Act 66 of 1965, reporting to the Master’s Johannesburg office, from our Sandton office in Sandhurst.
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How Estate Administration Actually Runs
The Administration of Estates Act 66 of 1965 sets a sequence, and it is the same sequence whether the deceased lived in the CBD, the southern suburbs or the far north of the metro. Executors who skip steps do not speed the estate up; they freeze it.
Every Johannesburg deceased estate runs through the same machinery:
- death notice to the Master within 14 days
- the will lodged and accepted
- letters of executorship or authority
- the estate’s account opened and assets gathered
- the liquidation and distribution account
- inspection, discharge and distribution
The estate is reported to the Master of the High Court, whose Johannesburg office administers estates across the metro, with the death notice and original will within 14 days of death. Estates above R250,000 receive letters of executorship; smaller estates may proceed on a letter of authority under section 18(3) without full administration.
The executor gathers the assets, pays the debts, and drafts the liquidation and distribution account, which the Master endorses and which then lies open for inspection for 21 days before distribution. Straightforward estates commonly take six to nine months; contested or complex ones run well past a year. Anyone promising a month is promising what the Act does not allow.
What a Deceased Estates Attorney Does
For the family: reporting the estate correctly and on time, securing the letters of executorship, protecting the estate’s bank account and property from the moment of death, and answering the Master’s requisitions without a month lost to each.
For beneficiaries: explaining what the account says, pressing a silent executor to account, intervening where an executor is unfit, and ensuring inheritance reaches the people the will, or the Intestate Succession Act where there is no will, says it must.
The estate’s clock starts at death. The 14 days start with it.
The Process, Step by Step
From death notice to distributed inheritance.
Report the estate
The death notice, original will and inventory go to the Master’s Johannesburg office within 14 days of death. Late or defective reporting is the single biggest source of delay.
Letters of executorship
The Master issues letters of executorship for estates above R250,000, commonly a few weeks to some months after a complete lodgement, or a letter of authority for smaller estates.
Open the account and gather assets
The estate’s bank account is opened; bank balances, shares, policies, vehicles and property are transferred into the estate; income and debts are traced. Typically one to three months.
Draft the liquidation and distribution account
Assets, liabilities, the executor’s fee and each beneficiary’s share are set out in the account for the Master’s endorsement. Tax clearance and valuations run in parallel.
Inspection and tax
The account lies open for inspection for 21 days; SARS and the Master’s clearances are obtained. Objections, if any, are resolved here.
Distribute and discharge
Transfer duty on inherited property is paid and registration follows at the Pretoria Deeds Registry; beneficiaries are paid; the executor is discharged. Ordinary estates commonly run six to nine months in total; complex ones longer.
Which Offices and Courts Serve Johannesburg Estates
Johannesburg estates and transfers run through the city’s offices:
- Master of the High Court, Johannesburg – estate reporting, letters of executorship, requisitions and Guardian’s Fund matters for the wider Johannesburg district.
- High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Johannesburg – will disputes, trust litigation and removal of executors; the court sits on Pritchard Street in the CBD.
- SARS – the deceased’s final tax return, estate income tax and transfer duty on property passing to heirs.
Otrebski Attorneys serves families across the wider Johannesburg metro, from the CBD and the southern suburbs to the far north, from its 5th Street, Sandhurst office.
How to Choose a Deceased Estates Lawyer in Johannesburg
You are trusting someone with the family’s whole balance sheet. Choose on evidence.
- Master’s office practice.Johannesburg estates report to the Master’s Johannesburg office; a firm that lodges there regularly prevents requisition drift.
- Clear timeline talk.Six to nine months for ordinary estates is the honest range. Faster promises are not administration plans.
- Fee transparency.The executor’s fee is negotiable by law; ask what the fee buys and what is billed hourly on top.
- Both sides of the desk.Ask whether the firm acts for executors and for beneficiaries pressing executors; both skills matter.
- Tax capability.The estate’s final tax return, capital gains at death and transfer duty each need competent handling before distribution.
What Estate Administration Costs
As a market guide, executors’ fees follow the regulated tariff of up to 3.5 percent of the gross assets plus 6 percent of income collected, though beneficiaries may agree a lower fee; attorney-assisted administration on smaller estates commonly runs R15,000–R60,000, with hourly work at R1,500–R4,400.
Master’s fees, SARS filings, valuations, VAT and disbursements are quoted separately. The executor’s fee is agreed in writing, and it is negotiable. Otrebski Attorneys scopes each phase in writing before it begins.
Testate vs Intestate Estates
Estate with a Will
The will names an executor and directs the inheritance.
The executor the testator chose takes office, a testamentary trust can catch minors’ inheritances, and the family’s intentions govern, provided the will is valid and lodged.
Intestate Estate
No valid will: the Intestate Succession Act draws the map.
A surviving spouse and descendants share the estate by fixed formula; more distant branches inherit only where closer ones do not exist. An executor is appointed by the Master rather than chosen by the family.
| Issue | With a Will | Intestate |
|---|---|---|
| Executor | Named by the testator | Appointed by the Master |
| Who inherits | As the will directs | Statutory formula by proximity |
| Minors’ inheritances | Trust if the will creates one | Guardian’s Fund by default |
| Spouse’s share | As bequeathed | Child’s share or fixed formula |
| Dispute risk | Validity challenges only | Formula disputes and searches |
Documents Needed to Report an Estate
What Goes to the Master
- Death notice – Lodged with the Master’s Johannesburg office within 14 days of death; late or defective reporting is the single biggest source of delay.
- The original will – Lodged and accepted with the death notice; where no valid will exists, the Intestate Succession Act draws the map instead.
- An inventory of the estate – Goes to the Master with the death notice and the will, and anchors the choice between letters of executorship and a shorter letter-of-authority process for smaller estates.
- Asset and liability records – Bank balances, shares, policies, vehicles and property are traced and moved into the estate’s account once the letters issue, typically one to three months.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
The costly mistakes are avoidable.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does a deceased estate take in South Africa?
An ordinary, uncontested estate commonly takes six to nine months from reporting to distribution; complicated estates with businesses, foreign assets or disputes can take a year or longer. Estates under R250,000 can proceed on a shorter letter-of-authority process.
Where is a Johannesburg deceased estate reported?
To the Master of the High Court in Johannesburg, which serves the wider Johannesburg district. The death notice, original will and inventory must be lodged within 14 days of death.
What is a letter of executorship?
The Master’s formal authorisation empowering the executor to administer the estate: gathering assets, paying debts, drafting the account and distributing. Estates of R250,000 or less may instead use a letter of authority, a shorter process for close relatives.
What happens if the executor will not communicate or account?
Demand the account in writing; an executor must account to beneficiaries and the Master. Persistent failure can be escalated to the Master’s office and, ultimately, to removal by the High Court, Gauteng Division. Beneficiaries are not powerless; they are the people the duty is owed to.
What is the liquidation and distribution account?
The estate’s balance sheet for the Master and the beneficiaries: every asset, every debt, the executor’s fee and each heir’s share. Once endorsed, it lies open for inspection for 21 days before the estate may distribute.
Who inherits when there is no will?
The Intestate Succession Act applies: a surviving spouse and descendants share by fixed formula; parents or siblings inherit only if there is no spouse or descendant. For minors, inheritances default to the Guardian’s Fund unless a trust is created.
Does the estate pay tax before we inherit?
Yes. The deceased’s final income tax return, capital gains on deemed disposal at death, and transfer duty on property passing to heirs must be settled before distribution.
Can inheritance pass to a beneficiary’s bank account directly?
Only from the estate’s account, after the account has lain open for inspection and the Master has authorised distribution. Any shortcut around the account exposes the executor personally.
Report the estate inside 14 days. Distribute it once.
Otrebski Attorneys practises from Office 9th Floor, The Spaces, 5th Street, Sandhurst, Sandton, and serves clients across Johannesburg, with transparent billing and no hidden costs.
Call 060 500 3098
Office hours: Monday to Friday, 08h00 – 17h00 · send a message
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