Administrator's Deed

An administrator's deed is a legal document that transfers the property of an intestate individual, who is a person who passes away without a will. In such cases, the property is transferred to descendents or next-of-kin with the use of an administrator's deed since the deceased individual did not have a will. As a matter of public policy, the surrogate, or probate, court in the county of residence for the deceased individual appoints an administrator of the estate for the intestate individual. The administrator of the estate plays a fiduciary role and has authority to manage and distribute assets belonging to the estate of the deceased. The administrator of the estate also has various duties to fulfill before the property can be distributed, such as obtaining death certificates, setting up an estate, filing estate tax returns, selling assets to pay bills, filling legal documents and locating members of the immediate family of the deceased.