Ancram, NY Estate Planning Law Firms & Lawyers

Executors have the responsibility of protecting and properly distributing the estate of the deceased. As a beneficiary, you have the right to see the testamentary documents that include you. Demand a copy of the will, trust, and any other gifting documents. If the Executor refuses, tell them you can sue and get them without much difficulty. Executors also have the responsibility to prepare an accounting of the estate, so if he has been making equal distributions, he should be able to show what the entire estate included. Finally, if you doubt the Executor's statements and actions, you may have to sue to find out the truth. Unfortunately, this can be very stressful and expensive, so you may not want to start any action until you are sure there is a problem. Locking the house is not automatically a breach of an Executor's duties. Timing is important. It is best to demand that all beneficiaries be allowed to review the contents of the home prior to the executor's "Sweep" of the house removing valuables. It sounds like you are too late to do that. You can still demand that he escort you around the home to see what is still there. Sometimes simply retaining an attorney who will write a letter to the executor demanding an accounting and threatening suit if he fails to disclose the contents of the estate will be enough to keep things in order. Please note: Prescription medications should be destroyed, not passed on to heirs for non prescription use. This is both the law and common sense. There is no known right to inheritance of prescription medications.

If you mean the assets you leave at your death, it is actually quite easy to do so. Visit with an attorney specializing in estate planning, they will be able to assist you.

The personal representative, upon appointment by the court, is to take possession of all of the property of the estate. He is to keep the property safe and secure, so, yes, changing the locks is probably unnecessary but it's not wrong. He should have given you notice of the beginning of probate, and 60 days after appointment should give you an Inventory of the assets of the estate. A year later he will owe you an account of what has happened to those assets. Giving Dad's medicines to family members may be illegal, is certainly irresponsible. The personal representative has primarily responsibility, rather than rights. He is a fiduciary for your Dad's creditors, and the devise's named in the will.