When a parent dies in Pakistan and the children live in the Gulf, the United Kingdom, North America or Australia, the estate usually stalls. Banks will not release balances without a court grant, property cannot be transferred without establishing the heirs, and no single relative has authority to act alone however senior they are in the family.
The firm administers estates for families spread across several countries, and coordinates the process so that it moves at the pace of the documents rather than at the pace of the most distant relative's travel plans.
Which grant the estate needs
Families frequently ask for a succession certificate when the estate in fact requires something else. Establishing which grant is needed, before filing, saves months.
- A succession certificate covers movable assets — bank balances, savings certificates, shares and similar. This is what a bank will require.
- Letters of administration are granted where there is no will, and are the route for dealing with the estate more broadly, including immovable property.
- Probate applies where there is a valid will, and authorises the executor named in it to act.
Who the heirs are is decided by law
Shares in the estate of a Muslim decedent are determined by the applicable personal law, not by family agreement and not by informal statements the deceased may have made. The court requires the heirs to be identified and will not simply accept a list put forward by whoever files.
This matters in both directions. An heir who is omitted — a married daughter, a half-sibling, a grandchild through a predeceased parent — retains a claim that does not lapse because the rest of the family proceeded without them. Estates 'settled' informally decades ago are a recurring source of litigation today. Equally, where the family genuinely wishes to distribute differently from the default shares, that can usually be achieved, but it must be documented properly rather than assumed.
Taking part from abroad
Heirs outside Pakistan ordinarily participate without travelling, through a combination of attested instruments:
- A power of attorney, executed before and attested by the Pakistani mission in your country of residence, then attested in Pakistan
- Affidavits sworn before the mission where the court requires a statement from a particular heir
- No-objection statements where one heir consents to another administering the estate
What actually causes the delay
In an uncontested estate the litigation is rarely the bottleneck. The delay comes from coordination: getting four or five relatives in four or five countries each to attend their local mission with the right documents, in a reasonable period.
The second common cause is incomplete information about the assets. Where the family does not know which banks held accounts or what the deceased owned, establishing that takes longer than the court process. Gathering statements, certificates and title documents early is the most useful thing the family can do before instructing anyone.
Where the estate includes property
Immovable property runs on a slower track than bank accounts and should be planned for separately from the outset. It also carries the greater risk: an unoccupied house or an undeveloped plot belonging to an undistributed estate is precisely the asset most likely to be occupied or dealt with by one branch of the family while the others are abroad.
Where that has already happened, the succession matter and a possession or cancellation suit generally proceed together.
Common Questions
Frequently asked
How long does an uncontested succession matter take?
Where the heirs are agreed and the documentation is complete, a straightforward succession certificate commonly takes some months, including a fixed statutory notice period that cannot be shortened. Contested matters, incomplete records or an heir who cannot be located extend it considerably.
Can one heir obtain the grant on behalf of everyone?
Frequently, yes — with the consent of the others, recorded properly. The remaining heirs give no-objection statements and, where needed, powers of attorney. What no heir can do is deal with estate assets without a grant at all, regardless of seniority in the family.
The bank is refusing to release my late father's account. Is that lawful?
Yes. Banks in Pakistan generally require a succession certificate before releasing a deceased customer's balance, and a death certificate alone is not sufficient. That is the ordinary position rather than obstruction.
Our family settled the estate informally years ago. Can it be reopened?
Potentially. An heir whose lawful share was never given, and who did not validly relinquish it, may have a claim notwithstanding the passage of time and the family's understanding at the time. Whether it succeeds depends on the facts and on limitation. If you are on either side of such a situation, take advice on the specifics.
Enquiries
Acting for you, from Karachi.
Almost every step can be conducted under a power of attorney, without your travelling. Tell us what the matter concerns.