I was assigned as the executor of an estate in Florida. What does that mean?

As an executor, or personal representative of a friend or relative’s estate, you are the person they named in their will to carry out their final wishes when they are no longer here. Being an executor does carry a lot of responsibility, however, not all executors are required to do the same thing. For instance, if your loved one named more than one person to serve as their executor, your role may only consist of ensuring assets are properly distributed. But, if your friend or relative didn’t name anyone else in their will to serve as their personal representative, here are a few things you should prepare yourself for in the event of their death.

Patience is a must.

Closing an estate can take time which means you are going to have to dig deep and find the patience within you. For Susan Crim whose mother died in 2011, she had no clue it would take her two years to complete her job as her mother’s executor. Crim told AARP that between “wrestling with paperwork, faxing documents, and traveling from Virginia to consult with legal and financial experts, she found closing out the estate “became a way of life as she grappled with a confusing bureaucracy.”

You may be required to travel.

If you don’t live in the same state as your friend or relative at the time of their death, you may need to travel back and forth to get their financial affairs in order or to meet with other family members.

If you are distributing assets, be as transparent as possible.

If your loved one has a clear and concise will, then this should be an easy task to complete. However, if their will doesn’t clearly define who gets what or there are some family members who don’t agree with how assets are divided, then you could run into some trouble. Therefore, if your loved one is still alive, remind them to have an estate planning lawyer in Coral Springs, FL review their will to ensure it clearly states their wishes and conforms to state laws if they haven’t already done so. In the event your loved one recently passed away, work with family members so that assets are divided as fairly as possible.

It isn’t uncommon for one or more family members to contest the terms of a loved one’s will, especially if something they thought was going to be left to them wasn’t. If you run into an issue with other family members over the division of assets, don’t hesitate to contact Express Law immediately so the issue can get resolved as quickly as possible.

If, at any time, you struggle to serve your role as an executor of someone else’s estate, Coral Springs, FL estate planning attorney Margery Golant is available to provide you with the help you need.

Express Law can be reached at:

Festival Marketplace

2900 West Sample Road

Pompano Beach, FL 33073

Phone: 561-449-2076

Website: www.expresslaw.net