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Registering a death

In the unfortunate event that the Court of Protection client dies, notification must be provided to the Court Funds Office, Office of Public Guardian and the Court of Protection as soon as possible.

It is essential that notification be provided to all three bodies at the same time so that the necessary administrative changes may be made to ensure minor disruption to the handling of the Court of Protection client affairs.

The Court Funds Office (CFO) will send a Bereavement Pack which contains information on how to go about 'winding' up the Court of Protection client affairs to the Deputy or person dealing with the administration of the estate.  This pack includes details of the forms required by us to close the account.

A request for confirmation as to the monies and / or investments held by us must be made in writing.  Upon receipt, we will provide you with a Certificate of Funds that shows the value of the cash that we hold at the date of death and details of any other investments.  It does not provide a valuation of those investments.  This will be needed when dealing with Probate Registry and HM Revenue & Customs.

Once the Executor or Administrator has been appointed, they will need to instruct us to pay out cash, sell or transfer any investments and close the account.

To do this form 209 or form 210 are used depending on the value of the Court of Protection client's estate. 

The relevant form must be completed and sent to the Court Funds Office with an Office Copy of Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration as issued by the Probate Registry, where appropriate.

Please note that for each form, a declaration must be made before any person whom an affidavit may be sworn such as a practicing solicitor, Commissioner for Oaths, Notary Public or a Justice of the Peace.

For amounts under £5,000 you will need to fill in form 210, ensuring the following are completed:

  1. Full name of the client
  2. The case number (available on the court order)
  3. The CFO Account number (if known)
  4. The account details to where the payment is to be made
  5. The declaration section


For amounts over £5,000 you will need to fill in form 209 ensuring the following are completed:

  1. Full name of the client
  2. The case number (available on the court order)
  3. The CFO Account number (if known)
  4. The details of the Legal Representative(s) including signature(s)
  5. The account details to where the payment is to be made
  6. The declaration section

We will return any payment instruction if there are any difficulties with it, such as incomplete information, lack of date or signature or the documentation received is a photocopy or fax.

We will explain the reason for the return and state what is needed in order to process it correctly.

If the Court of Protection client dies, has not left a Will and has no blood relatives, you will need to notify the CFO of their death (and these circumstances).

The CFO will contact the Treasury Solicitor, the Solicitor for the Duchy of Lancaster, or the Solicitor for the Duchy of Cornwall as they hold responsibility for the administration of such estates on behalf of the Crown.

The CFO will interact with these organisations to ensure that the Court of Protection client's account is dealt with appropriately and that the funds are managed correctly.