"NOBODY MOVE!" Beneficiaries and Executors sit back

[JustAThought]

Just asking for any views on the following please.

Who does the ultimate legal responsibility lie with as to which party (Executors, named Beneficiaries, Interested persons) must actively resolving complaints and any discontent where no court action is initiated?

Should it be for Executors to ultimately put it to the court to "propound" a Will and ask for any other Wills to be invalidated, or is it the right thing that Executors tell Beneficiaries to get on with their own court action?

What happens if no Beneficiary takes action (other than the obvious gathering the estate)? The Caveat gets renewed continuously and the Executors decide that they do not have to do anything, not even Warning off the Caveat?

Thank you for reading...

[Pezza54]

Executors have the duty to warn off the caveat
The beneficiaries can legally challenge executors who fail to do their duty

[JustAThought]

Thank you Pezza54.
Leeds Probate office have confirmed by email that no actions on their records have been triggered in respect of a Warning.

The Executors are not saying what the investigations into the Will revealed.

Can a challenge to the Executors be a request to order them to do something? As opposed to significant costs being incurred to challenge the validity of the Will.

[Pezza54]

The beneficiaries could write a polite letter to the executors pointing out the delays being caused by the caveat and asking them to write to the caveator warning off the caveat. If the executors still fail to act a solicitor's letter threatening legal action against the executors may have more success

[JustAThought]

Greetings,
A beneficiary abroad has asked the Executors to warn off the Caveats to a English will, but nothing has taken place by the Executors.
Executors solicitor has admitted a written statement by them may have misled caveator (and others - presumably anyone who reads the statement). Solicitor not on the case any more but law firm still acts for Executor.
The Will investigation is deep into its second year but no answer from Executors. Will witnesses have spoken...
Executors have not waved legal privilege (counselling opinion).

QUESTIONS
Why would beneficiaries NOT be entitled to know the outcome to the investigation into that dodgy will?
When Executors are part of group who are will writers how do they do an independent investigation? (Beneficiaries complain about will writers and the professional Executors?

Any view please...

[Tofros]

This whole area of law is most unsatisfactory. The caveat process is often abused. It is for a person wishing to challenge a will to do their own investigations. That will often involve their own solicitors making what is known as a Larke v Nugus request to the will writing firm asking about the circumstances and process of the writing of the will. The challenger should then do their own further investigations to gather any further evidence (if any) to support their challenge.

If there is any proper grounds for challenge there would usually be some negotiation to come to an agreed settlement between all or some of the beneficiaries ( for example it might mean one beneficiary agreeing they had borrowed money from the deceased and that it be taken into account in the estate, or it might be an agreement between siblings to include one who had been cut out).

If the executors file a warning, all the challenger has to do is file a form confirming they are a beneficiary under the disputed will, an earlier will or would be a beneficiary under intestacy and the caveat becomes permanent. Once permanent only costly legal action can resolve it and that would mean a beneficiary or the estate paying for that. Executors are prudent to be cautious about risking a caveat becoming permanent prematurely.

it also happens that some challengers just sit on their caveat without pursuing it at all just to try to get a deal because no one else wants to pay the cost of forcing them to court. Professional executors are perhaps less intimidated by the prospect, but of course it depends on the value of the estate. If the challenger loses they often but not always have to pay at least some of the winners cost, but the cost risk has to be carefully considered.

so to answer you original question, who needs to take action it very much depends on the individual circumstances of tge case - what the beef is and who the beef is between.

[Tofros]

Also, forgot to say, once a challenge is indicated in which it is said there was something amiss in the will writing process the will writing firm can’t represent the beneficiaries or executors on the claim due to conflicts of interest because if there was professional negligence the beneficiaries could end up suing them. The beneficiaries will need their own separate representation. The will writing firm should supply a copy of their Larke v Nugus response to the beneficiaries lawyers, if the complaint includes executors other than the willwriting firm they should receive a copy of the original complaint letter too.