Will not fully executed - what can i do?

lizzie742

Hi,

My grandma died 3 years ago, and left a will naming my father and a family friend as co-executors. Things were fraught from the start, as my father basically strong-armed the family friend out of the execution of the will, only going to him for his signature on cheques etc. as required but shutting him out of having any real input.

The beneficiaries included my father and his brother (house 75:25 where my father then bought my uncle out, and contents to my father), and 5 grandchildren (all monies in cash or accounts).

Since my grandma's death, our family has become increasingly estranged due to my parents' behaviour (long story), and I and my siblings now have no contact with my father. The money left to myself and my siblings has been distributed, this isn't the issue at hand. However, my grandma specifically requested in her will that some money from her estate be used for a gravestone to replace the one already there (she shares the burial plot with her parents). Three years on, money has been kept aside by my father from that which was to be divided between the grandchildren, but no stone has been agreed or purchased, and my grandma is basically in an unmarked grave with nothing to state that she is in there.

Whenever we asked our father to take action with this, his response has been to insinuate that we were money grabbing. This isn't the case at all, we just want our grandma's wishes to be fulfilled.

Basic question is, is there anything we can do regarding my father not fulfilling the terms of the will with regard to the gravestone? I feel like he's tried to appease us by giving us our share of the will, and I'm not sure if we have any legal footing if it isn't in relation to us as beneficiaries?

Any advice appreciated, I just want somewhere to go to remember my grandma.

pphillips

A will where execution is not completed is not a valid will. Unfortunately if you want your grandmother's wishes to be carried out then you may have to pay for this yourself. You can ask the other beneficiaries if they are willing to make a contribution towards the cost, although it seems likely that not everyone will contribute.

lizzie742

Thanks, if that's the case then my father has surely taken money that he isn't entitled to, given that he took the money for the gravestone before splitting it between grandchildren? Is there anything we can do from that angle?

pphillips

Well I think the problem here is that if there is no valid will and at least one of her children survives her then the grandchildren are not entitled to anything anyway.

Keep_pedalling

pphillips wrote: »

Well I think the problem here is that if there is no valid will and at least one of her children survives her then the grandchildren are not entitled to anything anyway.

That is nonsence, a will cannot be made invalid by the executor not doing their job correctly.

pphillips

Keep_pedalling wrote: »

That is nonsence, a will cannot be made invalid by the executor not doing their job correctly.

The OP says the will was not fully executed - if this is what they mean then the will is invalid. If they means what you are saying - that the will was correctly executed but the executor has not carried out the instructions of the will - then you are correct and the will is not invalid.

lizzie742

pphillips wrote: »

The OP says the will was not fully executed - if this is what they mean then the will is invalid. If she means what you are saying - that the will was correctly executed but the executor has not carried out the instructions of the will - then you are correct and the will is not invalid.

Yes sorry for any confusion, the will is valid but the executor hasn't carried out the instructions of the will.

lincroft1710

There is nothing in the OP's post to suggest the will is invalid. A will cannot be invalidated by the actions of the executor(s) in relation to that will.

I think there is some confusion about the term "executing a will", which in the USA means signing a will and making it legal, but in the UK means acting as executor.

pphillips

lincroft1710 wrote: »

There is nothing in the OP's post to suggest the will is invalid. A will cannot be invalidated by the actions of the executor(s) in relation to that will.

I think there is some confusion about the term "executing a will", which in the USA means signing a will and making it legal, but in the UK means acting as executor.

Not sure why you think that "executing a will" is a USA term and not also as UK term. All UK wills have to be executed to be valid, which means signed by the person making the will in the presence of two witnesses and the witnesses also signing it in each others presence.

Keep_pedalling

pphillips wrote: »

Not sure why you think that "executing a will" is a USA term and not also as UK term. All UK wills have to be executed to be valid, which means signed by the person making the will in the presence of two witnesses and the witnesses also signing it in each others presence.

That is not what the term means, hence our confusion.

http://www.facingbereavement.co.uk/executingawill.html

https://www.ft.com/content/d0b493ea-86ed-11e5-9f8c-a8d619fa707c

pphillips

Keep_pedalling wrote: »

That is not what the term means, hence our confusion.

http://www.facingbereavement.co.uk/executingawill.html

https://www.ft.com/content/d0b493ea-86ed-11e5-9f8c-a8d619fa707c

It is exactly what the term means.

Here are my references:

http://www.inbrief.co.uk/estate-law/formalities-making-a-will-s9-wills-act/

http://probate.uk.com/will_problems.html

What you all have been referring to is "administering an estate".