Wills and Administration of Estates: Intestacy, IHT and Grant of Representation for FLK2

You’re staring at a FLK2 practice question about who inherits under the Administration of Estates Act 1925, and your mind blanks on the order of priority. Or you misapply the £325,000 nil-rate band because you forgot it’s not automatically doubled for spouses unless the first spouse’s unused allowance is formally transferred. Or you confuse a grant of probate with letters of administration — and lose two marks on a question that could’ve been straightforward.

This isn’t theory. It’s FLK2 — and Wills and the Administration of Estates is one of those subjects where small errors cascade. You don’t need more definitions. You need precision, pattern recognition, and the kind of repetition that sticks under exam pressure.

Why this topic trips up even strong candidates

FLK2’s Wills and the Administration of Estates sits at the intersection of statute, case law, tax rules, and procedural nuance. It’s deceptively concrete — until you hit the edge cases. And FLK2 loves edge cases.

Here’s what makes it sticky:

• Statutory layers pile up. The Administration of Estates Act 1925 sets out intestacy rules, but it’s modified by the Inheritance and Trustees’ Powers Act 2014 (which changed the surviving spouse’s entitlement), then overlaid with Inheritance Tax Act 1984 and HMRC guidance — which isn’t law, but appears in questions as “the correct approach”.
• Grant terminology is non-negotiable. “Grant of probate”, “letters of administration”, “grant of representation” — they’re not synonyms. FLK2 asks *which* grant applies *in which scenario*, and the distinction hinges on whether there’s a valid will, whether executors are willing/able, and whether beneficiaries are minors or incapacitated.
• IHT isn’t just arithmetic. Yes, you’ll calculate tax — but FLK2 tests *when* relief applies (e.g., business property relief), *who* qualifies for exemptions (spouse vs civil partner vs cohabitant), and *what triggers liability* (e.g., lifetime gifts within seven years, failed PETs).

Candidates often treat this as “just memorisation”. It’s not. It’s logic under constraint — and that’s where practice matters most.

Intestacy: when there’s no valid will

Intestacy isn’t rare — around 40% of adults in England and Wales die without a valid will. That means the Administration of Estates Act 1925, as amended, dictates who gets what. And FLK2 tests your grasp of its hierarchy — not just the list, but the *conditions*.

The statutory order — and where candidates slip

Under section 46 of the Administration of Estates Act 1925, assets pass in strict priority:

1. Spouse or civil partner (if survived by issue — children/grandchildren);
2. Spouse or civil partner (if *not* survived by issue);
3. Issue (children, grandchildren — per stirpes);
4. Parents;
5. Siblings (whole blood only, unless no whole-blood siblings — then half-blood);
6. Nephews/nieces (by representation);
7. Grandparents;
8. Aunts/uncles (whole blood);
9. Half-aunts/uncles;
10. None — estate passes to the Crown as bona vacantia.

But here’s where FLK2 bites:

• “Spouse or civil partner” excludes cohabitants — no matter how long they lived together. A question might describe a 15-year relationship with shared finances and children — and still, if no marriage/civil partnership, zero entitlement.
• “Survived by issue” means *living* children or grandchildren at the time of death. If a child predeceased but left children of their own, those grandchildren inherit *by representation*. FLK2 loves asking who inherits if Child A dies before Parent, then Parent dies — and Child B is alive. Answer: Child B gets half; Child A’s children split the other half.
• Siblings must be *whole-blood* unless there are *no* whole-blood siblings — then half-blood count. A question won’t say “there are no whole-blood siblings”. It’ll describe two half-sisters and one whole-blood brother who died last year — forcing you to spot the absence.

And remember: the Inheritance and Trustees’ Powers Act 2014 changed the spouse’s share. Pre-2014, if there was issue, the spouse got £250,000 + personal chattels + half the residue. Now? They get the first £322,000 (as of 2026–27 — check sqe.sra.org.uk for current figures) + personal chattels + *half the residue*. The rest goes to issue. Get the figure wrong, and you’ll misallocate the residue — and lose the mark.

Inheritance Tax: beyond the headline rate

FLK2 doesn’t ask “What’s the IHT rate?” — it asks *whether tax is due*, *who pays it*, and *what reduces the charge*. That means understanding exemptions, reliefs, and timing — not just percentages.

Key thresholds and exemptions — tested relentlessly

The standard IHT rate is 40% on the value of an estate above the nil-rate band (£325,000 as of 2026). But here’s what FLK2 actually tests:

• Spouse/civil partner exemption. Transfers between spouses or civil partners are exempt — *but only if both are domiciled in the UK*. A question may describe a UK-domiciled widow inheriting from her non-UK-domiciled husband — and the exemption is capped. That’s a classic trap.
• Residence nil-rate band (RNRB). Up to £175,000 (2026–27) — but only if the deceased’s residence passes to direct descendants. “Direct descendants” includes children, grandchildren, stepchildren — but *not* nephews or nieces. And RNRB is tapered if the estate exceeds £2 million. FLK2 has asked candidates to calculate taper *before* applying RNRB — and many forget the order.
• Business Property Relief (BPR) and Agricultural Property Relief (APR). Both can reduce taxable value by 50% or 100%, but eligibility depends on ownership duration (2 years minimum for shares, 2 years for unquoted trading businesses), control, and use. A question describing a family-owned pub held through a limited company? BPR likely applies. Same pub held personally? Not automatically — depends on trade status.

“I spent three weeks memorising IHT rates — then lost marks on a question about who’s liable for tax when an executor distributes before clearing liabilities. The answer wasn’t ‘the estate’. It was ‘the executor personally’ — and that’s in the Inheritance Tax Act 1984, section 212.” — FLK2 candidate, London, 2025

A worked example: calculating IHT on an intestate estate

Fact pattern: David dies intestate in June 2026. He’s survived by his wife, Eleanor, and two adult children. His estate is worth £1.2 million, including a London flat valued at £750,000 (his sole residence), held solely in his name. He owned 100% of a small manufacturing company worth £200,000 — unquoted, trading for five years.

Step-by-step FLK2 thinking:

1. Intestacy first. Eleanor gets the first £322,000 + personal chattels + half the residue. Residue = £1.2m – £322k = £878k. She gets half (£439k). Children split the other £439k equally (£219.5k each).
2. IHT liability? Spouse exemption applies to Eleanor’s share — so no IHT on her £322k + £439k = £761k. But the children’s £439k is part of the taxable estate — unless relieved.
3. RNRB? Yes — residence passes to direct descendants (children). Flat is worth £750k, so full £175k RNRB applies.
4. BPR? Yes — 100% on the £200k company (unquoted, trading, >2 years). So £200k removed from taxable value.
5. Taxable estate: £1.2m – £761k (spouse exemption) – £175k (RNRB) – £200k (BPR) = £64k. Below £325k nil-rate band → no IHT due.

That’s one question. FLK2 gives you 90 seconds. You need the flow — not just the formula.

Grant of representation: probate, administration, and why wording matters

“Grant of representation” is the umbrella term. FLK2 asks *which type* — and *why* — not just “what is it?”.

Three grants — and the facts that decide them

Notice: “Grant of representation” is never the *answer* — it’s the *category*. FLK2 asks for the *specific* grant. Confusing them loses easy marks.

Also tested: who can apply when minors or protected parties are involved. If a beneficiary is under 18, the grant must be limited — e.g., “letters of administration *during minority*”. FLK2 has asked which grant permits distribution *before* the minor turns 18 (answer: none — trustees hold until majority, unless court authorises early release).

How to revise this for FLK2 — efficiently and effectively

You don’t need to read the entire Inheritance Tax Act 1984. You need to know *where the traps are*, and how to drill them.

Active recall beats passive reading — every time

Passive rereading of intestacy tables or IHT charts rarely sticks. FLK2 rewards retrieval under pressure. Try this:

• Blank the statutory order — write it from memory, then check.
• Take a fact pattern (e.g., “Died leaving spouse, two children, one sibling, parents alive”) — sketch the distribution *without looking up the Act*.
• Given an estate value and asset breakdown, calculate IHT *before checking reliefs* — then see where you missed BPR or RNRB.

This builds the neural pathways you’ll need on exam day — not just knowledge, but *application speed*.

Use realistic, timed practice — not just theory

FLK2 gives you 180 questions in 2 hours 33 minutes — roughly 52 seconds per question. That means you can’t afford to re-derive the spouse’s share every time. You need fluency.

That’s where targeted question banks make a difference. The Ant Law SQE Question Bank, for example, tags every Wills & Estates question by sub-topic (intestacy hierarchy, IHT calculation, grant type), lets you build custom quizzes on weak areas, and mirrors the SRA’s timing ratio in mock exams. Its AI Legal Tutor explains *why* an answer is right — not just what the rule is — so you learn the logic behind the exception.

Link to QWE — it’s not academic

Many candidates doing Qualifying Work Experience (QWE) in private client or probate departments see real grant applications, IHT forms (IHT400), and intestacy distributions. Don’t treat this as abstract law. When you draft a letter to a client explaining why their aunt’s estate goes to cousins instead of them, you’re rehearsing FLK2. When you check whether a lifetime gift was a PET or a CLT — you’re reinforcing the seven-year rule. Your QWE isn’t just ticking a box. It’s low-stakes rehearsal for high-stakes exam questions.

Final reality check: what the SRA expects — and what FLK2 really tests

The SRA’s official syllabus says FLK2 assesses “knowledge and application of the law relating to Wills and the Administration of Estates”. That sounds broad. In practice, it’s narrow — and precise.

It tests:

• Your ability to identify *which statutory provision applies* — not just recite it;
• Whether you spot *domicile*, *timing*, *capacity*, and *representation* issues buried in dense fact patterns;
• Whether you apply exemptions and reliefs in the *correct order* — because getting the sequence wrong changes the outcome;
• Your grasp of *who bears liability* — executors, administrators, trustees — not just “the estate”.

No fluff. No essay. Just 180 single-best-answer MCQs — each one designed to separate those who *know* from those who *can apply*.

If you’re relying on memory alone, you’ll run out of time — or confidence — before the final question. What sticks is repetition with feedback. What transfers to exam day is seeing the same trap, recognised, solved, and owned.

So don’t just revise Wills and the Administration of Estates. Drill it — with questions that mirror the SRA’s style, timing, and emphasis. Then test yourself under exam conditions. Then do it again.

Ready to put this into practice? Try the Ant Law SQE Question Bank at antlaw.ai — with 14,000+ FLK1 and FLK2 questions, including deep coverage of intestacy, IHT calculation, and grant of representation — all tagged, timed, and ready for your next study session.