An executor is the person appointed by a Will to carry out the wishes of the deceased, such as closing bank accounts, selling property, and distributing money and property as the deceased intended.
Generally, executors should aim to administer the estate within a “reasonable” timeframe, which depends on the complexity of the estate. If there are excessive delays in the administration of an estate, the beneficiaries of the Will may suffer losses.
Also, if there is a dispute about the Will, or about how much someone gets, it is highly desirable that any claims are made sooner rather than later. As an example:
Five years is really just too long: Harkin v Harkin [2022] NSWSC 1212, Meek J
This case concerned the estate of the late Helen Jean Shaw. Helen was survived by her three children, Gregory (the Plaintiff) and Sherrie and Colin (the Defendants). Gregory, Helen’s eldest child, owned a property at Charmhaven jointly with his mother. Helen passed away in March 2017, leaving a Will that divided her estate equally between her surviving children.
Greg sued Sherrie, as executor of their mother’s estate, to obtain possession of the whole of the property, because after five years he said she had not done anything to advance the estate to an end.
During the proceedings, it was alleged that illegal and anti-social activities were occurring at the property. The Court also took a very dim view of the significant delay in administering the estate – his Honour commenting “a period of five years is really just too long” [58]. Troublingly, none of the parties were able to give the Court basic details about the estate, including a copy of Probate, or details of any other assets.
His Honour stated that the administration of this estate is a straightforward task as only a part of a piece of real estate was an estate asset. Sherrie did not satisfy the Court with an explanation as to why the deceased’s share in property had not been transmitted to her name, beyond suggesting it was her brother Greg’s obstruction to that process causing delay. His Honour did not accept that.
His Honour did not make the order for possession sought by Greg, and instead directed the parties to consult, with a view to selecting an independent administrator (a solicitor experienced in this area) to take over the estate administration.
The decision in Harkin makes it clear that the Court takes supervision of the administration of estates seriously, and delay can cause significant difficulties for beneficiaries and executors alike. An executor has a number of responsibilities they must attend to. Beneficiaries are not left without an option if an executor is not doing their job.
The Private Wealth team at Chamberlains is experienced in assisting executors to conduct an estate efficiently, or helping a beneficiary get an estate back on track.
If you have any questions about a claim on an estate, please contact Ashleigh Blewitt of our Private Wealth Team on 02 6188 3600