Can your lawyer be your executor

The Executor of your Will plays an essential role in ensuring that your last wishes as stipulated in your Will are carried out in a timely and effective manner.

An Executor is simply a person who you appoint to carry out the last wishes of your Will in the event you pass.

This is often a family member or close friend. However, in some circumstances it may be beneficial for you to decide against appointing a family member or close friend as the Executor of your Will, and instead opt to elect your Solicitor to to fulfil this role. In this situation, you have two choices: Either name both parties to serve together to force them to work with each other thereby avoiding an unequal playing field , or name neither of them and minimizing court disputes.

The latter approach is often better. Courts tend to not approve executors they have trouble getting jurisdiction over, as well as people who have a criminal past. Therefore, non-U. Remember that minors cannot serve as executors, and if you do name a person who is currently not a minor it is usually best to only allow him to serve if he has attained a certain age, since many year-olds may not be ready to handle executor tasks. Most important, you want an executor who can handle doing hard work without hesitation, maintain emotional balance and apply tough love to beneficiaries.

At some level probate has not changed much in the last years, meaning a system that was originally designed to transfer land and livestock now distributes stock portfolios, patents and corporate business interests. Mistakes can easily be made, clerks may disagree on their approach to authenticate documents or court procedures, and middlemen will get confused.

Do not be fooled: Probate work is hard for executors, bureaucrats and hired professionals. Even simple probates can be long and frustrating processes, from fulfilling seemingly arbitrary court requirements, to getting access to apartment keys and renting dumpsters. An executor must be ready to invest her time, not expect immediate perfection and remind beneficiaries to be patient. Daniel A. He is a graduate of Pace Law School. If her husband is a lawyer or an accountant, she can hire him to do the legal work or the accounting work.

However, the choice of legal or accounting help should be joint between both executors. If he is hired in one of these capacities, he doesn't gain any rights to the estate. If he is not a lawyer or accountant, I can't see how she could hire him to "advise" her. He can advise all he wants, but he shouldn't be getting paid for it. I have to say, this situation doesn't sound good at all. There is zero trust or communication between co-executors.

You two are going to need legal advice but I doubt you can agree on who to hire. Best of luck. Hello Lynn. I am just about to settle a divorce with the help of legal aid here in BC. Do I have to pay this fee?

What are some of the easiest way around paying this fee if possible? Hi Lynne, Just reading about the trust company route as I am setting up my will and have a desire to leave things to them instead of family as they are not local. I live in southern Alberta. Can you recommend a trust company here?

Thank you, Arlene. I can vouch for the hard work and experience of the Scotia Trust folks out there. All will be similar in terms of fees. If you bank at one of the major banks, you might find it easiest to ask at your branch for one of the trust company people to call you directly. The majority of trust companies have offices in Edmonton and Calgary, which is great if you live in those cities but not so convenient if you don't.

If you call a trust company or ask at your bank, ask directly whether there is anyone actually on the ground in your area that you can meet and chat with. That's a pretty good indication of how committed they are to your region. Can someone still living, who has a will and selected an executor, divulge the executor's identity ahead of time?

Ahead of his or her demise? What might be a reason why the individual would not agree to state to a beneficiary the executor's identity ahead of time?

Sure he can divulge it, if he wants to. Lots of parents, for example, will tell the kids which one of them the parents have chosen as executor. The individual might not want to tell anyone who he has chosen as executor simply because it's nobody else's business. Wills are private documents until they are probated. Or perhaps the person wants to reserve the right to make future changes to the will without causing confusion.

Hi Lynne, At first I thought this was only but found the more recent posts at the bottom. I had a lawyer make my Will in I am handwriting a Codecil and have Witnesses who will sign when I finish. I just called the phone number of the lawyer who made the Will in , and number no longer exists.

What would happen to the original copy of my Will which he had on file. I have no way of finding out whether he had another lawyer that he passed Wills to. In Ontario Toronto is there a place they are filed? If the lawyer was part of a firm, check with the firm to see what happened to the lawyer who may be practicing somewhere else and to your file.

If you don't get an answer that way, get in touch with the Law Society for Ontario. Find out whether the lawyer is still practicing and if so, where. If you find out that the lawyer has died or retired, ask them what happened to his files.

Hi Lynne, my mom died suddenly and had no will I went to a lawyer who advised me not to take executor I should walk away from the condo I have 4 kids who live with me also Its hard to get answers from anyone without it costing Can my lawyer draw up my Enduring Power of Attorney that appoints his wife? Hi Ed, To question 1, yes. To question 2, yes, but the lawyer should not personally be a witness to the POA. Sunday, July 4, Can I appoint my lawyer as my executor? Email This BlogThis!

Keywords corporate executor , executor , executor compensation , lawyer , trust company , Wills and estate planning. Anonymous December 1, at PM. Anonymous December 13, at AM. Anonymous December 14, at PM. Anonymous July 19, at AM. Fast February 2, at AM. Unknown June 5, at PM. Simo Labus August 7, at AM.

James32 November 11, at PM. Anonymous August 22, at AM. Anonymous August 26, at AM. Anonymous February 4, at AM. Attorneys cannot ethically include themselves as an Executor or successor Executor without your informed consent. Similarly, an attorney cannot require you to designate him or her as the Executor. Of course, you may always execute a new Will at any time, whether or not you have previously designated your attorney as the Executor.

As with all aspects of your estate plan, changes should be considered periodically as your circumstances change. Should you name your Attorney as the Executor of your Estate? June Many clients ask if they should name their attorney as the Executor of their Estates. In This Section: Recent Posts.

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