What property constitutes an individual’s estate for succession purposes?
Under the law of England and Wales, an individual’s estate for succession purposes comprises all property he or she owns in his or her sole name. It also includes the deceased’s interest in any property owned jointly with others under a ‘tenancy in common’. With a tenancy in common, each co-owner has a fixed share in the property, succession to which is determined by their will or intestacy rules.
The estate also comprises assets over which the deceased had power to control their use and determine their destination, known as a general power of appointment, together with assets in the estate of an individual who predeceased him or her to which the deceased is entitled.
For these purposes, a deceased’s estate does not include jointly owned property held under a ‘joint tenancy’ in which the co-owners each own an indivisible share. In these circumstances, on the death of a co-owner, the rule of survivorship applies to vest his or her interest in the property in the other joint tenants.
England & Wales Guide
The England & Wales guide answers the principal questions for Private Clients relating to the law in this jurisdiction.
