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Attorney, Beneficiaries, Beneficiary Rights, Common Estates, Communication, estate, Estate Administration, Executor, Executor Rights, Final Accounting, Legal Bias, probate, Suspicious Beneficiaries, Will
In common estates, suspect executor behavior will create suspicious beneficiaries. Although the beneficiary may view the executor behavior as suspect, the behavior may not be suspect at all. As described in the article Executor Rights to an Estate, the executor has rights granted by the probate court in which most beneficiaries are unaware. Furthermore, if the executor ignores the beneficiaries, the beneficiaries may become suspicious of the executor’s activities. In common estates, this type of miscommunication usually leads to costly conflicts.
Suspicious Beneficiaries and Executor Legal Representation
One right an executor has is the right to hire an attorney using estate funds. To some uninformed beneficiaries, this may seem like a misuse of estate funds and cause some suspicion. However, since an estate is a legal entity, common executors using probate will hire an attorney for the following reasons:
- Help with legal matters such as applying for probate and acting as a legal guide throughout the estate administration.
- To handle the entire estate if the estate is too complex.
Additionally, beneficiaries must know that an attorney hired by the executor only serves the executor, not the beneficiary. So, suspicious beneficiaries may feel that the attorney acts with bias towards the estate, and they may be right. At times, the executor may rely on the attorney to make a decision with legal consequences that adversely affects the beneficiaries. Suspecting legal bias, the suspicious beneficiaries may feel the need to act. Consequently, a conflict will ensue that may prove costly to the estate.
The Options for Suspicious Beneficiaries
Although executors have rights to an estate, so do the beneficiaries. As mentioned in the article Know your Beneficiaries, beneficiaries can act to have the executor removed in addition to other actions. However, pursuing action against an estate will impact the estate and possibly the inheritance of other beneficiaries. Therefore, before proceeding with any type of costly action, suspicious beneficiaries should consider the following:
- Request a copy of the will to ensure the executor is conforming to the intent of the will.
- If still suspicious, the beneficiary should hire an attorney to protect their interest in the estate.
- Review the final accounting at the close to ensure the executor handled the estate properly.
Moreover, unless the executor is committing obvious violations, suspicious beneficiaries should ensure that their suspicions are valid before acting on them. This is especially true where legal bias is a concern.
Executors Should Communicate Regularly
In most common estates, many beneficiaries move on with their lives as the estate administration is taking place. Conversely, there are some beneficiaries that want to be part of the process. To strike a balance and to keep the estate administration moving forward, the executor needs to communicate regularly with the beneficiaries. If the executor communicates regularly, the executor lessens the chance of a costly conflict while moving forward with the estate.
Was this article insightful? Do you understand that if you suspect legal bias in an estate, you will have to prove that the suspicion is valid? Share your comments in the comment box below.
Reference
Checklist for Executors by Nolo
Found this website after 11 distressing years following my fathers death.
The professional executors refused accountability, said we had no rights to information, valued the estate at a very low figure, refused to justify their figures and generally used their (I would call it) self-entitled superiority to patronise us. They even seemed to mange to get their so-called ‘regulatory bodies’ to protect them.
We eventually found fraud and the police are now involved – the police have been fantastic.
I think it is outrageous that executors have so much power, that they can use to abuse their position at such a time of vulnerability and grief for the beneficiaries.
It seems like such a scam – easy money for so many professionals. So much grief for those that are supposedly owed a duty of care.
Well, if the police is involved and fraud is a certainty, those executors will be held accountable. Hopefully, with jail time. Anyway, in my opinion, the best estate plans name trusted relatives as executor. This way, if the executor needs to hire a professional, the professional is accountable to the executor and will be under the oversight of the executor. It sounds to me like your father had good intentions by naming a professional to handle the estate relieving his survivors from the stress of administering an estate. Unfortunately, professionals can get greedy and charge large fees if not outright fraud. Anyway, thanks for sharing your story and I hope this nightmare has a great ending for you and the other beneficiaries.
Robert
Re Executor Obligation
I could not agree more. Beneficiaries also create problems for Executors. Not as common, but it does occur. I can attest to that.
Hi Webeye,
Good to hear from you again. The article on Suspicious Beneficiaries was inspired by the experience I had with a belligerent beneficiary, but your situation pushed me to write something about the perception of legal bias. In my experience, the belligerent beneficiary and his wife (the wife had no interest in the estate) called my attorney to levy a lawsuit against me as executor. My attorney quickly informed them that he represents me and not the beneficiaries. I hired him basically to coach me about probate and to handle the legal matters in the estate. So, that episode hinted to me that some of the beneficiaries may not understand my rights and responsibilities. So, I sent a group email to all the beneficiaries and explained my rights and obligations. Out of the twenty beneficiaries, nineteen were relieved that I was handling the estate and nothing else mattered. The other one continued to haunt me until I confronted the situation. So, as long as the executor is up front with the beneficiaries and handles the estate properly, many of the beneficiaries will cooperate. In the end, my devil beneficiary couldn’t afford his own attorney and gave up the fight once he knew I was handling the estate in accordance with the deceased wishes. So, constant communication worked for me. I hope it works for others dealing with belligerent beneficiaries.