Coping With The Thankless Job Of Being The Personal Representative Of A Deceased Person’s Estate
Until you have to do it, being the personal representative of a deceased family member’s estate sounds like an honor. It gives you a chance to make peace with the loss of a close family member, and even though you would never admit this in front of the other beneficiaries of the will, it means that the testator trusted you the most out of everyone. Even if acts of service are your love language, you must admit that tying up the loose ends of someone else’s financial affairs is no one’s idea of a good time. Personal representatives of estates are not the only people who get stressed out by probate, but with few exceptions, they inarguably get stuck with the most stressful job. The good news is that there are ways to make your task as personal representative of a deceased family member’s estate less stressful, up to and including walking away from the job entirely. Before you decide whether the hassle and conflict of being the personal representative of a deceased relative’s estate is too much to bear, contact a Tampa probate lawyer.
Don’t Shoot the Messenger
The personal representative’s main duty is to follow the instructions in the decedent’s will and to follow state laws about the probate of the estates of deceased individuals. In uncomplicated probate cases, the personal representative does not have to make decisions or use his or her own judgment at all. Despite this, the task falls to the personal representative to deliver bad news. The testator disinherited you. After settling the testator’s debts, there is only X amount of money left in the estate. The buyer is only offering X amount for the testator’s house, and most of the proceeds will go to debt repayment. This is the most unpleasant part of probate, even when no one challenges the will. The personal representatives of estates often end up in the line of fire of people’s grievances, even when the personal representative did not cause the problem, and when there is little that he or she can do to fix it.
Knowing When You Are in Over Your Head
If you know that probate is going to be a nightmare, or even if you feel overwhelmed by a relatively simple probate case, there is no rule saying that you must take on the responsibilities of probate alone. You have the right to refuse to accept the role of personal representative; your duties as personal representative do not officially begin until the court appoints you to the role. Even if you have started the probate process, you can resign from your duties as personal representative while the case is pending. If you decide that you want to stay the course, you can hire a probate lawyer to represent you before or during the probate case.
Contact David Toback About Acting as Personal Representative of an Estate
A Central Florida probate lawyer can represent you in your role as personal representative of the estate of a deceased family member. Contact David Toback in Tampa, Florida to set up a consultation.
Source:
leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/Index.cfm/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0700-0799/0733/Sections/0733.502.html#:~:text=733.502%20Resignation%20of%20personal%20representative,not%20jeopardized%20by%20the%20resignation.
