Questions to Ask a Probate Lawyer
Questions for an executor or administrator working through an estate with a lawyer. They cover your authority, your personal exposure, the order in which debts and gifts are paid, what beneficiaries are owed, and what has to happen before the estate can close.
The questions
Open any question for the note
What am I personally responsible for if something goes wrong?
Why ask it
Executors can be held liable for paying the wrong creditor, distributing too early, or failing to file a return, and most people take the role without knowing this. Ask which of those risks apply here and what protects you: court approval, a bond, or waiting out a statutory period.
What am I allowed to do right now, and what has to wait for the court?
Why ask it
Between the death and the grant of authority there is a period where you can secure property and pay very little else. Getting the line drawn clearly in the first week prevents the most common early mistakes.
Is this estate solvent, and what changes if it isn't?
Why ask it
If the debts exceed the assets, the rules on what gets paid, in what order, and what beneficiaries receive change completely. This is the question to ask before any bill is paid, not after.
In what order do debts, taxes, expenses, and gifts get paid?
Why ask it
Priority is set by law, not by which creditor is most persistent or which relative is most upset. Ask for the order in writing so you can point to it when someone asks you to pay them first.
How do I deal with creditors, and how long do they have to make a claim?
Why ask it
There is usually a fixed period after notice is given during which claims must be brought, and distributing before it ends is what exposes you personally. Note the closing date and put it in your calendar.
What do I do about a bill I don't think is owed?
Why ask it
You are not obliged to pay every invoice that arrives, and some are duplicates, scams, or debts that died with the person. Ask what the process is for rejecting a claim and how long the creditor then has to respond.
What happens with accounts held jointly or with a named beneficiary?
Why ask it
These often pass outside the estate entirely, which affects both the size of the probate and what is left for the will's beneficiaries. It also explains why one family member may receive money quickly while others wait.
What do I need to do about the house?
Why ask it
An empty property needs insurance that covers vacancy, the utilities kept on, and often a decision about sale or transfer. Insurers frequently limit cover after a property has been unoccupied for a set number of weeks, so raise this early.
Which tax returns are due, and by when?
Why ask it
A final personal return and possibly an estate return are separate filings with separate deadlines, and penalties for missing them can fall on you. Ask who is preparing each one and who is watching the dates.
What records do I need to keep, and in what form will the court want them?
Why ask it
A running ledger of every receipt and payment, with supporting documents, is what an accounting is built from. Setting it up in the first week takes an hour, and reconstructing it a year later can take days.
What am I required to tell the beneficiaries, and when?
Why ask it
There is usually a legal minimum, such as notice of the probate and a copy of the will or the inventory. Most disputes come from families kept in the dark, so ask what you must send and consider going somewhat beyond it.
What do I say to a beneficiary who wants their money now?
Why ask it
Having the lawyer's explanation of the creditor period in plain words, ready to pass on, takes the pressure off you personally. Ask also whether a partial distribution is possible and what it would require.
Some items have already been taken from the house. How do I handle that?
Why ask it
This happens in most families and it is easier to raise now than at the accounting. Ask whether it needs to be recorded, valued, and set against that person's share, and what to do if the items are not returned.
Am I allowed to be paid for doing this, and how is the amount set?
Why ask it
Executor compensation is permitted in many places, sometimes at a rate fixed by statute or requiring court approval, and it is taxable. Ask how to claim it and how to record the hours if it depends on the work done.
What if an asset is worth much more or less than we first listed?
Why ask it
Valuations move, particularly on property, shares, and contents. Ask what the correction process is, since an inventory that turns out to be significantly wrong can require an amended filing.
What should I do about the digital accounts, the phone, and the subscriptions?
Why ask it
Access to email, photographs, and cloud storage is governed by provider terms and by law, and using someone's password can be a problem even with good intentions. Ask what to close, what to preserve, and what needs the court.
What happens if another will or a written note about their wishes turns up?
Why ask it
Later documents, informal letters, and promises made verbally are treated differently, and none of them should be quietly ignored or acted on. Tell the lawyer as soon as anything surfaces.
Can I step down if this turns out to be more than I can carry?
Why ask it
Resignation is generally possible, with a process and sometimes an accounting for the period you served. It is a fair question to ask early, especially if you are also grieving or unwell, and asking it is not a failure.
Which decisions can I make from here without calling you?
Why ask it
Agreeing a threshold, by value or by type of decision, keeps the estate moving and the fees down. It also removes the anxiety of wondering whether every small step needs advice.
What has to happen before the estate can close and I'm released?
Why ask it
Ask for the closing checklist: final accounting, receipts from beneficiaries, tax clearance, and any court approval. Knowing the list gives you a sense of the remaining distance, which is often the thing executors most want.
Administering an Estate: Practical Notes
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
The First Few Weeks
Secure before you sort
Lock the property, check the insurance covers it while empty, redirect the post, and take photographs of each room before anything is cleared. Sorting through belongings can wait. Securing them cannot.
Start the ledger on day one
One spreadsheet with dates, amounts, what each payment was for, and where the receipt is filed. Every accounting, tax return, and awkward family question later is answered from this file.
Open a separate estate account as soon as you are authorized
Run every receipt and payment through it and reimburse yourself for anything you have had to cover personally. Using your own account for convenience is the most common cause of a difficult accounting.
Order several certified copies of the death certificate
Banks, insurers, registrars, and pension providers each want their own. Getting a handful at the outset saves weeks of waiting on single copies.
Write to the beneficiaries early, even with little to say
A short factual note explaining the stage, the likely timescale, and when they will next hear from you prevents most of the friction that arises later. Keep a copy of each update with the ledger.
Where Executors Get Into Difficulty
Paying or distributing too soon
Settling a bill or handing over a gift before the creditor period closes and the taxes are known can leave you personally short. When someone presses, the answer is that the law sets the timing, not you.
Treating sentimental items as minor
Estates rarely fall apart over investments. They fall apart over a ring, a tool set, or a photograph album. Record who has what, in writing, and agree a method for dividing the rest before anything leaves the house.
Acting on what you were told the person wanted
Verbal promises and undated notes may carry no legal weight, however genuine they were. Raise them with the lawyer rather than honouring or discarding them yourself.
Going quiet
Long silences read as concealment even when nothing is wrong, and probate contains long stretches where nothing can happen. A brief update every month or two costs you almost nothing and prevents suspicion hardening.
Carrying it alone
This work arrives at the worst possible time and often falls on the person least able to take it on. Delegating the house clearance, the accounts, or the correspondence to another family member is normal, and stepping down is possible if you need to.
What to Ask at Each Stage
At the start
- 1"What am I allowed to do before the court appoints me?"
- 2"Is the estate solvent?"
- 3"What am I personally responsible for?"
- 4"What records should I be keeping?"
In the middle, while claims and taxes are pending
- 1"When does the creditor period close?"
- 2"What do I do about a bill I don't think is owed?"
- 3"Which returns are due, and who is filing them?"
- 4"What do I tell a beneficiary who wants money now?"
Towards the end
- 1"What still has to happen before we can close?"
- 2"Am I claiming compensation, and how is it recorded?"
- 3"What do the beneficiaries need to sign?"
- 4"When am I formally released?"