Executor won't progress Probate

SevenOfNine

maverick19 said:

Yes the house stands empty.  The insurances are being paid by the granddaughter as is the standing charges for gas and electricity and water.   
Yes he had money and a house of his own.
Solicitor advises no one directly reminstrate with him as it might make situation worse!
The law seems very much an !!!!!! to me at the moment

I agree, the law is falling way short without incurring mega costs.  He's got a grudge to bear so you're right, high risk to antagonise him further, that's one spiteful man!

Does the death cert have grandaughter's name on it?  If so she can close gran's bank account/s easily with that IF the amounts held are below the bank limits for paying out without probate (Lloyds is £50k, a lot of the others are pretty high as well), a disclaimer is signed, no will shown, never even been asked questions about wills or executors. At least it would be the estate funds directly paying the bills (no charges for the water used as long as property remains empty & minimal free water use is allowed for toilet flushing & a bit of house cleaning - "however many years it takes for property to be occupied") .

Not sure if anything here might be of help (not recommending them/it, just for research). But it does all point to major expense to remove him as executor.

https://www.hughjames.com/blog/how-do-i-remove-an-executor#.W3aycU0zXIU

maverick19

Keep_pedalling said:

Do you have anyone one in the family who is on good terms with him? If so could a friendly chat over a couple of beers be enough to persuade him to either renounce or hold his powers in reserve so the solicitor can get on with probate.

Yes we tried that.  His son (also a 1/4 beneficiary)  spoke to at length. He told his son that he would sign the papers in a few days but never did.  His son is now also fuming.

maverick19

SevenOfNine said:

maverick19 said:

Yes the house stands empty.  The insurances are being paid by the granddaughter as is the standing charges for gas and electricity and water.   
Yes he had money and a house of his own.
Solicitor advises no one directly reminstrate with him as it might make situation worse!
The law seems very much an !!!!!! to me at the moment

I agree, the law is falling way short without incurring mega costs.  He's got a grudge to bear so you're right, high risk to antagonise him further, that's one spiteful man!

Does the death cert have grandaughter's name on it?  If so she can close gran's bank account/s easily with that IF the amounts held are below the bank limits for paying out without probate (Lloyds is £50k, a lot of the others are pretty high as well), a disclaimer is signed, no will shown, never even been asked questions about wills or executors. At least it would be the estate funds directly paying the bills (no charges for the water used as long as property remains empty & minimal free water use is allowed for toilet flushing & a bit of house cleaning - "however many years it takes for property to be occupied") .

Not sure if anything here might be of help (not recommending them/it, just for research). But it does all point to major expense to remove him as executor.

https://www.hughjames.com/blog/how-do-i-remove-an-executor#.W3aycU0zXIU

Solicitor is currently trying to get her bank account transferred to them by signing a waiver? So the Bill's can be paid from the estate incl the Solicitors costs.

maverick19

Sea_Shell said:

You say that it's her Son in law and her granddaughter that are the executors.

Where is her SiL's spouse (her child?) in all this, have they unfortunately already passed?

Yes, sadly passed some years back.
He always made her life a hell, God only knows why MiL made him an executor.  I did raise my concerns some time ago and sadly they proven correct.

Keep_pedalling

maverick19 said:

Keep_pedalling said:

Do you have anyone one in the family who is on good terms with him? If so could a friendly chat over a couple of beers be enough to persuade him to either renounce or hold his powers in reserve so the solicitor can get on with probate.

Yes we tried that.  His son (also a 1/4 beneficiary)  spoke to at length. He told his son that he would sign the papers in a few days but never did.  His son is now also fuming.

His son may still be the best bet to bring him round. Get him working on getting his idiot dad to renounce.

xylophone

It seems to me that if it goes to court, because the need to do so arises solely from the obduracy (not to say wilful obstruction) of the SiL/Executor, there would be a good chance that the judge would award costs against him?

maverick19

xylophone said:

It seems to me that if it goes to court, because the need to do so arises solely from the obduracy (not to say wilful obstruction) of the SiL/Executor, there would be a good chance that the judge would award costs against him?

You would hope so.  But why do "we" need to risk 15-20k to get probate done.   Shouldn't it be a statutory duty within a given period?  

xylophone

It is up to the other executor to deal with the matter.

https://www.thegazette.co.uk/all-notices/content/103565

What should you do if an executor refuses to apply for probate?

If, for any reason, the executor refuses to apply for a grant of probate, it is sensible to write a letter to the executor and warn them that an application to court will be made, potentially leading to appointing someone else to deal with the estate. If the court orders it, a beneficiary or next of kin is entitled to apply for a grant of probate.

Prior to making a formal court application, if the circumstances are right and if the executor has not intermeddled (as outlined above), a formal notice in the form of a citation from the Probate Registry can be served to the named executor.

The purpose of a citation is to:

1. direct the named executor to take the grant of probate or renounce his/her entitlement
2. allow the court to direct that the grant of probate should be issued to the next of kin or beneficiary if the named executor does not respond

The Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987 govern the procedure for preparing and serving a valid citation. It may also be necessary as part of this to make an application to subpoena the will if the executor is holding the original.