What if there is no executor of the estate assigned?

Answer 1

The probate process is not completed until the estate has been distributed. You should complain to the court that the executor has not carried out her duties and ask that she be replaced. You should also be complaining to the attorney who is handling the estate.

Answer 2

You should complain to the probate court that appointed the executor and request the court order the executor to file an account. If the executor isn't performing their duties responsibly and with expediency you should ask the court to appoint a new executor.

Answer 3

The beneficiaries should visit the court and complain to the court that appointed the executor immediately. The beneficiaries can file a motion for the court to compel the executor to perform their duties. The beneficiaries can also file a motion to remove and replace the executor.

Answer 4

The court will appoint one. No estate will fail because an executor wasn't named. Typically an attorney or bank will serve as the executor, but a family member can volunteer and if the other heirs agree can serve.

Answer 5

There is no executor of an estate until one is appointed by the probate court. If someone converted the assets of the decedent to their own use then you should contact an attorney to initiate a lawsuit. You might also speak to the police or the district attorney about filing a complaint. The following legal definition is provided for your review: "Conversion" in law: The unlawful appropriation of another's property.

Answer 6

Another family member should file a Petition for Administration as though the decedent died intestate. If there is a will the person who has it may come forward and produce the will. But also see the section of the Massachusetts Probate Code that addresses such a situation provided below. Generally, each state would have a similar provision.

By the way, there is no executor until the will has been examined and approved by the probate court and the court has appointed the executor. The person you are referring to as "the executor" is simply the person who is holding up the probating of the estate by the unauthorized retention of the decedent's will. If the family members know there is a will and that person will not produce it then you should bring an action in probate court and have them served.

Chapter 190B: Section 2-516. Duty of custodian of will; liability

[ Text of section added by 2008, 521, Sec. 9 effective July 1, 2011. See 2008, 521, Sec. 44.]

Section 2-516. Section 2-516. [Duty of Custodian of Will; Liability.]

After the death of a testator a person having custody of a will of the testator shall deliver it within thirty days after notice of the death to a person able to secure its probate and if none is known, to an appropriate court. A person who willfully fails to deliver a will is liable to any person aggrieved for any damages that may be sustained by the failure. A person who willfully refuses or fails to deliver a will after being ordered by the court in a proceeding brought for the purpose of compelling delivery is subject to penalty for contempt of court.

Answer 7

The court will appoint an executor. Usually it will be an attorney, or perhaps a financial institution.

Answer 8

The executor can be sued; however, there could be an innocent explanation for this - a provision in the will, for instance, or difficulty liquidating an asset.