A grant of probate or letters of administration may be cancelled for in the following reasons;

• Where the grant/letters were obtained fraudulently by making a false suggestion or by concealing from court information
• Where the grant has become useless/inoperative for example where the administrator dies or becomes insane or where the administrator uses the deceased s estate for their personal gain to the detriment of the beneficiaries.
• Where the person to whom the grant was made has refused to distribute the estate, to file an inventory and or an account.

Where no will was made, the following are entitled to benefit from the property of the deceased.

• Where the deceased died leaving behind a customary heir, a wife, a lineal descendant and a dependant relative.
• Customary heir is entitled to 1%
• Widow/widower is entitled to 15%
• Children of the deceased entitled to 75%
• Dependent relatives are entitled to 9%

Note: The administrator or an executor must file a list of all assets of the deceased in court within six months from the grant of probate or letters of administration, (inventory) and an account of how the properties have been used or distributed within one year of receiving the authority and he /she is expected to have performed his or her duties by the end of 12 months unless he requests court to grant him more time.

The law of succession involves the management of the property of a deceased person. There are two ways to deal with a deceased person’s property depending on whether at death they had left a will or not.

The authority given to an executor/executrix (a person named in the will to distribute the property) is called a grant of probate

The authority given to an administrator (person given authority to distribute the property of a person who died without a will) is called letters of administration.