find the entitled beneficiaries. An administrator (sometimes known as the administratrix, if female) acts as the personal representative of the deceased in relation to land and other property in the UK. Consequently, when the estate under administration consists wholly or mainly of land, the court will grant administration to the heir to the exclusion of the next of kin. In the absence of any heir or next of kin, the Crown has the right to property (other than land) as bona vacantia, and to the land by virtue of the historic land rights of the Crown (and the Duchy of Cornwall and Duchy of Lancaster in their respective areas). If a creditor claims and obtains a Grant of Administration, the court compels him or her to enter into a bond with two sureties that he or she will not prefer his or her own debt to those of other creditors. Other types of letters of administration The more important cases of grants of special letters of administration include the following: Administration cum testamento annexo, where the deceased has left a will but has appointed no executor to it, or the executor appointed has died or refuses to act. In this case the court will make the grant to the person, usually the residuary legatee, with the largest beneficial interest in the estate. Administration de bonis non administratis occurs in two cases: Where the executor dies intestate after probate without having completely administered the estate Where an administrator dies. In the first case the principle of administration cum testamento is followed, in the second that of general grants in the selection of the person to whom letters are granted. Administration durante minore aetate, when the executor or the person entitled to the general grant is under age. Administration durante absentia, when the executor or administrator is out of the jurisdiction for more than a year. Administration pendente lite, where there is a dispute as to the person entitled to probate or a general grant of letters the court appoints an administrator till the question has been decided. See also Probate (administration, as to both testate and intestate estates, in the United States and England and Wales) Administration of Estates Act 1925 Calendars of the Grants of Probate and Letters of Administration (CGPLA) Estate planning References Real property law Wills and trusts English law Inheritance