Advice request

[baxterboy]

In 2008, my father passed away without a will. The sole beneficiaries were my sister, my mother and I.

There was no administrator appointed for the estate.

I was given the option of opening an informal trust bank account for our mother with £80,000 from his estate but declined in favour of my sister.
My sister and I had a verbal agreement she would have an account in her own[my sister's] name and that I would be kept informed of all important transactions regarding it, and that I would have access to records on request.

In 2021 my mother passed away without a will.

My sister and I are the sole beneficiaries.
We cannot agree to an administrator.


I was only recently informed that my sister acquired virtually all of the assets from both estates and that the £80,000 left by our father was used to pay off her mortgage 10 years ago.
She has no Deed of Gift.

Advice?

[Sam101]

More information is needed please. Who was appointed to act for the estate when your father died.

When your father died was the estate valued at more than £270,000? How was the home owned, was it jointly, as tenants in common (50/50) or just owned by one of your parents

Following your mothers death, an application needs to be made to appoint an administrator. If you and your sister cannot agree then an independent administrator would be best although the costs will reduce to amount for you both.

[baxterboy]

More information is needed please. Who was appointed to act for the estate when your father died.

When your father died was the estate valued at more than £270,000? How was the home owned, was it jointly, as tenants in common (50/50) or just owned by one of your parents

Following your mothers death, an application needs to be made to appoint an administrator. If you and your sister cannot agree then an independent administrator would be best although the costs will reduce to amount for you both.

Thank you for responding.

When my father died no one was appointed to act for the estate.

There was no home owned. All of the assets for both estates were moveable property. (My sister paid off the mortgage for her own home from the informal trust bank account from our father's estate set up for our mother )

Will the court appoint an independent administrator if my sister and I cannot agree to one?

[atticus]

you can apply to be administrator.

https://www.gov.uk/applying-for-prob...res-not-a-will

[baxterboy]

you can apply to be administrator.

https://www.gov.uk/applying-for-prob...res-not-a-will

I can apply but my application would be disputed by my sister just as I would dispute her application as sole administrator.

[baxterboy]

re: the 2008 bank account my sister set up in her name from our father's estate:

Without my knowledge and contrary to our verbal agreement of keeping me informed, my sister used £80,000 from this account to pay off her mortgage.

Would an administrator have the authority to access all the records of this account?

[atticus]

An administrator may be able to require your sister to account for her dealings with the estate.

[baxterboy]

An administrator may be able to require your sister to account for her dealings with the estate.

Atticus, I was concerned that:

a. there may be a statute of limitations, preventing an administrator accessing an account set up exclusively in her name
eg. I'm not sure when she took the money out of the account to pay off her mortgage and, if she took it out more than 10 years ago, can an administrator still access those records?

b. to protect herself, my sister may deny the verbal agreement was ever made made regarding the bank account set up in her name from our father's estate and, if she does, can an administrator still access those bank records?

And, if she does deny the verbal agreement concerning such a bank account and my access to the records, what recourse, if any, do I have if she broke this verbal agreement?