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Jessica
Consultant
Chris The Lawyer, Expert
Hi
I am a New Zealand lawyer based in Wellington and will help you with your question today. Please give me a minute to read the question
Chris The Lawyer, Expert
I don't understand why the funeral director thought his daughter was his next of kin, because as you are his wife, you are his next of kin ahead of her. And if you were paying the funeral director, they should have sent the document to you anyway. If you need a copy you can get another one through the Registrar of Births Deaths and Marriages.
Chris The Lawyer, Expert
If someone dies and does not leave a will, their estate is usually wound up by their surviving spouse. So if you have to wind up his estate you are the person who would need to apply for Letters of Administration which is the document you need for estates where there is no will. You probably won't need this if he didn't own much and his bank accounts had less than $15,000
Chris The Lawyer, Expert
You would need to apply for letters of administration if there are substantial assets like a house or bank accounts over $15,000. Otherwise you probably don't need to apply. To apply for letters of administration I would suggest that you see a local lawyer who can help prepare the application. They are reasonably complicated documents and I wouldn't recommend you try and do this yourself if you need to