Blog & Resources

Question: As the Executor of a Philadelphia estate, can I hire an eviction attorney to remove a squatter from a rental owned by the estate?

It is the executor’s duty to protect the estate assets and to make them profitable. If the estate has a rental unit with a squatter, the beneficiaries could try to hold the executor responsible for lost rent if he does not act. Because this is an estate asset the executor is trying to optimize, he is free to use estate assets to retain an expert to assist in the eviction.

Question: My mother’s Burlington County Will directs me to distribute money directly to my brother, who is mentally ill and has a spouse who will squander the funds. What recourse do I have?

As the executor of a Burlington County will, he has a duty to follow through with the terms of the will. Should the brother not wish to cooperate, he has a legal right to have his Burlington County Probate Attorney petition the Surrogates Court to force the executor to turn over to him his inheritance.

If you are a Lehigh County resident with a will, following your death your executor will take your death certificate, the original copy of your will, a checkbook and an ID card to the Lehigh County Register of Wills Office to be sworn in as the executor of your estate.

Being an executor means that this person is a fiduciary with many responsibilities and duties. Selecting the correct person for the job is a vital part of your estate plan.

Question: Can a Trustee be removed because he did not inform the beneficiaries of the irrevocable trust when they came of age? This Trust is in Camden, New Jersey.

Maybe.

A trustee removal action can be a long and painful process, so no action should be taken without having an experienced New Jersey Surrogates Court attorney review the trust and interview the interested parties.

Question: I am the Executor of a Montgomery County estate and the trustee of the trust into which the estate assets pour. The trust is for my brother. He is the beneficiary of the estate. What do I do when the beneficiary’s lawyer does not engage me?

Careful! First, the executor needs to understand that the beneficiary of the estate is not the brother; the beneficiary of the estate is the trust for the brother. The brother is a beneficiary of the trust, but he is not the heir of the estate. He may have an attorney, but the executor may be giving that attorney too much power over estate matters.

Question: I am the executor of my mother’s estate in Gloucester County, New Jersey. How do I know when it’s safe to distribute the assets of an estate?

As the executor of an estate, that person is a fiduciary, and owes a duty to the beneficiaries. The executor also is the representative responsible to satisfy all valid estate debts prior to making distributions. Creditors include any taxes due, such as the mother’s final income tax return and the New Jersey Estate Tax return.

If you are a Chester County resident with a will, following your death your executor will take your death certificate, the original copy of your will, a checkbook and an ID card to the Chester County Register of Wills Office to be sworn in as the executor of your estate.

Being an executor means that this person is a fiduciary with many responsibilities and duties. Selecting the correct person for the job is a vital part of your estate plan.

If an executor sells his mother’s Chester County home, does he have to pay the Pennsylvania probate tax before dividing up the sale proceeds with his siblings?

First, let’s clarify a few things. In Pennsylvania, the “probate tax” is the Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax. Because the estate is being divided up between the mother’s children, that rate is 4.5% on the date of death value of her entire taxable estate. The taxable estate includes the house.

Question: How do I reopen a closed estate in Atlantic County? My brother served as executor of my father’s estate and in the will I was named as the successor executor. My brother has since died, and I have discovered more assets.

First, understand that an estate is never “closed”. Estates run out of things to do and the file might be moved from the Atlantic County Surrogate’s Office long-term storage area, but once someone is named as executor, they continue to be the executor.
That being said, if the successor executor has discovered more assets that belong to the father and, if the original executor were still alive, it would be a simple matter to get updated paperwork from the Atlantic County Surrogate to prove he is still the executor.

If you are a Delaware County resident with a will, following your death your executor will take your death certificate, the original copy of your will, a checkbook and an ID card to the Delaware County Register of Wills Office to be sworn in as the executor of your estate.

Being an executor means that this person is a fiduciary with many responsibilities and duties. Selecting the correct person for the job is a vital part of your estate plan.