Death Notices In Scottish Newspaper.....

Vscheipel · Post by **Vscheipel** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 8:22 pm

I was wondering if anyone could tell me if placing death notices in the newspaper in Scotland is manditory when a person dies and if so what date did this become manditory. In Canada, placing a death notice in the newspaper is a requirement so that individuals owed money by the deceased will be able to make claims.

I am asking because I was recently on the www.scotsman.com website accessing their digitized old newspapers. The Scotsman was printed in Edinburgh which is where my ancestors are from but quite frankly, so far I have only found death notices for two of my ancestors. Therefore I was wondering if it was not manditory and only those who could afford it placed a notice.

Veronica

mesklin · Post by **mesklin** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 8:44 pm

Veronica

Newspaper death notifications are purely a courtesey. Not compulsory.

Dave

Post by **AndrewP** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 8:45 pm

Unless things have changed, there's nothing mandatory about the deaths notices in the newspaper. Their purpose is to announce the death and advise people of the funeral details. I've never heard of these notices being used to do with collecting monies owed.

All the best,

Andrew Paterson

Southpaw · Post by **Southpaw** » Sat Jul 02, 2005 1:50 am

Neither have I. And I'm in Canada.

Southpaw.

JayPee · Post by **JayPee** » Sat Jul 02, 2005 2:53 am

Southpaw wrote:Neither have I. And I'm in Canada.

Southpaw.

Moi aussi. Strictly a courtesy, to inform those who might be interested in attending the funeral or associated events.
- JayPee

Wendy · Post by **Wendy** » Sat Jul 02, 2005 2:22 pm

Hi ,
Actually here in Canada there's nothing mandatory about the deaths notices in the newspaper. Their purpose is to announce the death and advise people of the funeral details.

Reference to money is actually when an estate (eg. Family of ....or lawyer handling the will..etc.) puts a Notice to Creditors ad in the paper giving an address to contact if the deceased (or his estate) owed you money...but certainly not the intention of the obit.

Wendy

Martin63 · Post by **Martin63** » Sun Sep 03, 2006 11:09 am

You are much more likely to find death notices (and ones for Birth and Marriages for that matter too) in the papers of local Scottish towns than in the Scotsman as that is considered more of a national paper.

Best wishes

Martin

LesleyB · Post by **LesleyB** » Sun Sep 03, 2006 11:46 am

Hi all
It kinda depends on the date too with the Scotsman - certainly in its early days I've found it was only the "better off" who tend to have death notices. This slowly changes and the death notices become more numerous & general later on, but I think from what I've seen that it was still those who were reasonably well off - the middle classes & etc in Edinburgh (and those who hoped to be seen as such perhaps!) & only death notices from further afield if you were either very well known, or again, from a landed or wealthy family in the late 1800-mid 1900s.

Best wishes
Lesley

Jean K · Post by **Jean K** » Sun Sep 03, 2006 12:33 pm

Death Notices are not compulsory, and would be expensive inthe Scotsman. You would only get a statutory Notice requiring creditors to make themselves known where someone died without close family, to protect the Administrator of the estate from future claims from creditors after they had already distributed the funds among the beneficiaries. This would usually only happen where there was no close family and the estate was being administered by a professional person. It is definately the exception rather than the rule.

LesleyB · Post by **LesleyB** » Sun Sep 03, 2006 12:56 pm

Hi Jean K
..and a warm welcome to TalkingScot

Best wishes
Lesley