Assent to Account

First, please remember that the Will of a decedent is a matter of public record. Contact the attorney for the estate, the executor, or go to the court and get a copy. As a beneficiary you should make it your business to know what the Will provides.

The allowance of the final Account of the executor is, as the name would imply, the final stage of the administration process. By requesting that the court "allow" the final Account, the executor is telling the court that they have done their job, and now wish to close the estate.

You are right to be cautious - as a beneficiary you have certain rights, but those rights largely disappear once the Account is allowed. So you need to look at the Will and understand the decedent's dispositive wishes. You need to carefully review the Account and make sure that all the assets have been accounted for; that the distributions out of the estate are consistent with the Will; that there are no unusual fees or expenses paid out of the estate - basically that all the entries make sense. Often your questions will be answered by the executor or the attorney to your satisfaction. In that case, it is fine to sign an Assent (your assent will save the estate time and fees), and may be fine to also agree to indemnify the executor, at least to the extent of any assets that you received from the estate. To be fair, even the most scrupulously honest executor can make a mistake. And sometimes the executor can be forced to pay for the mistake from his or her own funds. So while it is an issue that requires serious review, it is not uncommon request. I always ask the beneficiary to indemnify the executor (to the extent of the value that they received from the estate) because I think it is only fair. In addition, I think it would be very hard to find anyone willing to act as an executor if we left them holding the bag for even an innocent mistake.

Of course you should not sign anything until you are 100 % comfortable with the Account and fully understand what you are signing. Once you sign the Assent the Court assumes that you accept everything that the executor has done and are willing to close the estate.

So now you know what I am going to recommend: You really should consider hiring an attorney if you have any concerns about the account or the estate administration in general. If you have an objection to the Account or anything that the executor did, and you do not act quickly, then you will LOSE your ability to object.

Good Luck.

Peter Bernardin