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Wills, executors and beneficiaries
Hello,
I'm hoping someone can help me answer a few questions. My husband's aunt recently died and my husband has been told that he is one of the beneficiaries of the will. He has asked me to 'handle things' because he feels overwhelmed by trying to understand everything that is involved (his dyslexia affects his ability to understand processes, small detail and administration). No one has seen the Will (apart from the solicitor). There are, apparently, two executors - the solicitor and my husband's half-cousin, M. My husband has asked M to deal with me and keep me (on his behalf) informed on anything financial/legal relating to the Will. Her response was , "hmph, I don't know about that" and she said she only wanted to update one of the other beneficiaries (his sister) and that is who we should go to for any communication. Despite hours and hours of internet searching, I'm unable to find any answer to some of the following questions (hence why I am here!):
Thank you in advance for your help. I imagine that speaking to a solicitor is always the best option, but we simply don't have the money to do so. Obviously we don't want relationships to break down, but we unfortunately don't trust M (through incompetence, rather than deceit) to do things properly and I suppose we just need to know where we stand. I hope everything I've said makes sense so far :-)
Cheers,
JungleGirl
I'm hoping someone can help me answer a few questions. My husband's aunt recently died and my husband has been told that he is one of the beneficiaries of the will. He has asked me to 'handle things' because he feels overwhelmed by trying to understand everything that is involved (his dyslexia affects his ability to understand processes, small detail and administration). No one has seen the Will (apart from the solicitor). There are, apparently, two executors - the solicitor and my husband's half-cousin, M. My husband has asked M to deal with me and keep me (on his behalf) informed on anything financial/legal relating to the Will. Her response was , "hmph, I don't know about that" and she said she only wanted to update one of the other beneficiaries (his sister) and that is who we should go to for any communication. Despite hours and hours of internet searching, I'm unable to find any answer to some of the following questions (hence why I am here!):
- What, if any, obligations do the executors have to inform the beneficiaries about progress with dealing with the estate?
- If necessary, can my husband legally appoint me in some way so that I can speak to the executors on his behalf?
- Knowing M, we are concerned that she will sell the London property for much less than it's market value. Is there any way of ensuring that it is sold for market value? Or any chattels/valuables for that matter?
- What are the Executor's rights (I'm thinking of M) with regards to chattels? E.g. who has the authority to say that we can take this vase or that sofa? Can M (who is also one of the beneficiaries) just take things for herself without discussing it with the rest of the beneficiaries?
Thank you in advance for your help. I imagine that speaking to a solicitor is always the best option, but we simply don't have the money to do so. Obviously we don't want relationships to break down, but we unfortunately don't trust M (through incompetence, rather than deceit) to do things properly and I suppose we just need to know where we stand. I hope everything I've said makes sense so far :-)
Cheers,
JungleGirl
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