pros and cons of Reserved power as executor

TJ666

Can anyone spell out the pros and cons please, I'm considering electing to have reserved power as executor.  My last parent died recently,  All children are named equally as executors and trustees in the parental wills (no other parties are mentioned), and the estate is bequeathed equally to the trustees.  So should be fairly simple.

My elder brother has done all the work of finding accounts, informing banks, appointing a solicitor to do the probate etc, etc.  The solicitor has written to me to ask whether I would like to remain as executors or reserve my powers as executor.  No advise was given as to the pros and cons of doing this.

The siblings don't live near each other, nor near the solicitors, so it might be sensible for me to reserve powers if there are lots of hard copies that need to be sent from person to person (3 siblings) for signing. i.e. to speed things up

However, I worry that I would be kept out of the loop, or I would lose rights as a beneficiary of the will.  For instance, I would be keen to sell the house to the highest bidder when probate allows, However, one or both siblings are more emotionally attached to the family home than I am, they might want to keep it as a holiday home for their use, or turn down a favourable offer from a developer who has made offers in the past and of whom they don't approve.

I'm generally willing to let things slide a little for the sake of harmony with the siblings, although we don't have much to do with each other, but I might feel irked if this had larger financial implications.  I also worry a little that poor decisions may be made, not through malice but perhaps trusting in what professionals say (e.g. solicitors, estate agents), some of whom have an agenda, I imagine.  Maybe I'm an old cynic.

Many thanks for any pearls of wisdom. 

poseidon1

It's a question of trust.

A friend of my in the same position found that his brother was more than happy to retain reserved powers and let him ( my friend) to do all the work leading to the wind up of two estates their respective children were beneficiaries.

My friend possessed the aptitude, clerical skills and ability to grasp unfamiliar legal concepts, and his brother did not. Also helped that my friend was retired and could call on me for assistance on technical matters, whilst the brother was still employed and too busy in his job to be much help. Important to add that my friend did provide his brother with regular updates and still discussed with him matters he felt both needed to be in agreement ( such as price to sell a house).

You have outlined the main benefit of your circumstances ie allowing your brother to speed up getting things done if left alone, but up to you how much of the nitty gritty you want to be updated periodically on.

The only con I can think of is if your brother is not really competent to be entrusted with this task alone ( his professional life skills perhaps lacking) or you have tangible reasons to suppose he would not act fairly or honestly in his dealings with you and your other sibling. On both those issues that's a judgement call by you ( and your sister) which no one here can really assist or advise.

GrubbyGirl_2

Only you can decide and you clearly have reservations.  When my last parent died, like you the estate was divided equally between 3 of us.  My eldest brother was retired whist me and my other brother were still working and I was 200 miles away as well.  As he was an accountant by trade we agreed to reserve and let him get on with it, which he did brilliantly and we had a very comprehensive spreadsheet showing where everything went (it was a lot more complicated than I had realised).

At the end of the day it's a trust issue and it sounds like you don't trust your brother to work in all of your interests.  With special delivery you can get paperwork next day so hardly any delay.  And as for the house, have an early conversation about what you all want to do. If they want to keep it then they can buy you out.  In this current flat market that might be very beneficial to you

Newly_retired

I was one of three executors for my late husband's will. One reserved powers, but was still able to deal with a certain matter for which a copy of the death certificate and the will were needed. Another remained as executor but as he did not live locally and had a full time job and young family he left all the work to me. We kept in touch and there were no disagreements but it was useful to have two or sometimes three heads to discuss a few matters. Any documents needed could be scanned and emailed to him or to the solicitor. As I recall only one wet signature was required and he made the journey as wanted to be involved at that point. We have kept in close contact and there have been no delays or other problems because of distance. Trust is the most important aspect.