Executor availability.

YoungBlueEyes

Hello all.

I have a question but I can't find an answer online so I'm hoping you can help.

My question is this - for how long must an executor be available to beneficiaries for their complaints and issues?

Is it an indefinite duty? Does it end when the estate is wound up? Is it for x months after probate, or the death or...?

Context - Father died Nov 11th last year, probate granted Jan 15th this year. Me and sis are executors. 2 beneficiaries are unhappy, there's all kinds of mud-slinging and insults coming my way. Estate is wound up, we all 4 accepted our inheritance. My specialist solic is so far responding to their personal emails (they haven't made any complaints through legal channels, nor do they have a solic), but it's costing me a bunch of money each time.

So can I tell my solic to stop responding unless it comes from their solic, if they get one? If they then go back to sending abusive texts or calls am I allowed to block and delete them?

I would appreciate any advice or thoughts please

Brynsam

Probably better to raise the question with your solicitor, who by now must be familiar with this sorry tale. It won't cost much to ask the question and get his/her opinion about how best to proceed and whether to stop responding. Much will depend on the nature of their complaints and the likelihood they will try to take things further.

YoungBlueEyes

I'm going to ring him on Tuesday, I was hoping someone here would know the answer so I could stop worrying about it.

I was keeping my fingers crossed for a "it's probate plus 6 months" type answer..

Edit: I'd say they're very unlikely to take things further. The issues they're unhappy with now have been bandied about since the day daddy died. I've done nothing wrong so I'm not worried, but I don't want to have be legally obliged to put up with all this b0ll0x for the next 5 years or whatever.

Brynsam

YoungBlueEyes wrote: »

I'm going to ring him on Tuesday, I was hoping someone here would know the answer so I could stop worrying about it.

I was keeping my fingers crossed for a "it's probate plus 6 months" type answer..

Edit: I'd say they're very unlikely to take things further. The issues they're unhappy with now have been bandied about since the day daddy died. I've done nothing wrong so I'm not worried, but I don't want to have be legally obliged to put up with all this b0ll0x for the next 5 years or whatever.

Not that sort of answer, I'm afraid - but it may be worth getting your solicitor to write one final letter saying you regard the correspondence as closed. It won't stop them contacting you but if you stand firm and resist the temptation to enter into any correspondence/refute what they are alleging, they will get the message...ultimately.

Flugelhorn

I would be very tempted to block their phone number to avoid getting calls. I would suspect that the fact they have accepted the money comes down less to the money side of things and more to the other unresolved grumbles in life

lukewarn

I would stop all communication with everybody,including your 'specialist' solicitor.

You have fulfilled your executor duties - estate distributed,beneficiaries have cashed their cheques.

Change your telephone number and block them on your email account.

Why are you bothering still spending money with a solicitor ? He is only interested in one thing - getting as much of your money as possible

The only option open to the vexatious beneficiaries is court action and you will probably find (as I did) that they will not have a leg to stand on and the judge will give them short shrift.

So, in short do nothing.Don't even bother telephoning your solicitor as the only certainty is that he will charge you more money for another phone call.

Have faith,you have done your bit - call their bluff and let them start spending some of their money.They won't spend anything and soon get bored with it all and quietly go away.

I went through all this nonsense for over 20 months and the best thing I did was in not responding at all - they soon get the message that they are wasting their time.

buildersdaughter

Did your solicitor do the probate, or did you and your sister do it yourselves?
I would double check with your solicitor that you got it right, and then follow the advice above.
What a shame you have to be dealing with this.

YoungBlueEyes

Thank you everyone.

I'll do the one last letter thing, then call it a day. Ignore all the way.

Our family solic did the probate. We just swore oathes, answered a few questions for the IHT bit and paid the bill. I actually didn't know then that we could do it ourselves, but there was so much else going on it would've been the straw that broke the donkey's back tbh.

maximumgardener

as I understand it...if you are an executor then it is "for life"

Savvy_Sue

maximumgardener wrote: »

as I understand it...if you are an executor then it is "for life"

Nothing changes the fact that you were executor for X's estate, but once you've obtained probate and paid the beneficiaries, I'd say your duty was done. Of course someone might come after you years later for unpaid debts, but if the solicitor was doing probate on your behalf, they'd know if you'd done it right or not!

Who's now paying the solicitor? If it's no longer coming out of the estate, you want to knock that on the head pronto!

YoungBlueEyes

The specialist solic is my bill, cos they're coming after me personally. He's doing a final letter, sending me a bill and closing the account, so to speak. If they want to continue with their nonsense they'll have to put their hands in their pockets!

Re how long for an executor - you'll always have been an executor, but once the estate is wound up your duties are done. He said again about the probate+6months thing. Once they can no longer contest the will (which doesn't apply to me cos they've given up with that now they have a new drum to bang) then executors duties are 'discharged'. It doesn't stop all the other fallacious angry bullsh1te, but none of that relates to executorship. He wouldn't offer a legal opinion on the block and delete idea. But I'll be doing it anyway.