Q: My sister and I are co-executors and co-trustees for my Mom's estate. How can you get a co-executor to move forward?
My daughter and I have taken care of my Mom for the past 9 years. She lived in assisted living; however, we paid the bills, took her to dr. appointments, did her taxes and ran errands. We spent a lot of time with her. My 4 siblings would visit her maybe once a year. My siblings became upset with me for asking them to come see her more. My Mom passed away in March and my siblings are being very difficult. My co-executor sister wanted to use an attorney that was just arrested with 5 felonies including dipping into someone's trust. He took over $320k. She is refusing to do anything to move this forward. The estate consist of 2 annuities, a small life insurance policy and a bank account of Mom's that I've been on for years. My Mother's wishes were to divide the estate 5 ways. Easy! Over the years, my daughter has furnished my sister with quarterly statements. She told my siblings that she has received nothing which isn't true. How can I get this settled and move on.
A: My condolences for your loss. You should seek your own attorney to represent you independently of your sister co-executor. Attempting to complete administration without counsel, especially under the circumstances you are now facing, is not something that you should try.
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A: There are a number of options available to you, but you most likely would need a lawyer to help you. One option is to go to court and have the co-trustee removed. Another option is for a lawyer to send a demand letter telling your sister that she has a legal obligation to act as trustee and, if she refuses, she needs to resign or you will seek to forcibly remove her through a court order. I'd say you could write the letter yourself but she hasn't listened to you thus far, so you likely need assistance getting your sister to move. Best wishes!
1 user found this answer helpful
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