Seaman's Will of Henry Sheppard dated 13 Jul 1843
Any seaman's will was only valid to bequeath any outstanding pay, bounty, prizes, etc. if it had been registered and approved by the Inspector of Seamen's Wills, who checked that all the rules for Seamen's wills had been followed. The Inspector, on receiving a will would register it (the registers are in ADM 142)and if it were approved as genuine, issue a 'check' to the executor, and endorse the back of the will (often with the abbreviation 'Ch.') to indicate this had been done. This check was a pre-printed form on which details were inserted. If the seaman died, the executor had to present the check, with various proofs of identity, to the Naval Pay Office. If there was just outstanding pay from Navy bequeathed in the will (and pay could accumulate for the three or four years of a voyage), then it appears that a payment was made and no probate sought. If there was other property involved, the Navy Pay Office instructed a proctor at Doctor's Commons to initiate the process of probate, which it appears could happen at any appropriate probate court. If the will was invalid, the Inspector would return the will to the executor and a notice would be issued to the Naval Pay Office to warn that it had not been approved, and should not be acted upon.
There were a complex set of rules setting out when the wills were valid, including the necessity that they were attested by the Captain of the ship, and they could cease to be valid if the seaman changed ship amongst many other things.