Submitted by tropyal on Fri, 12/17/2010 - 17:24
My mother passed away almost 4 years ago and my Father passed away last year. My older sister is the executor and my younger sister does not live near by. Due to most of the contents of the property I was the one that did most of the work (several hundred hours). Plus several thousand in lost income (I am self employed). The Will states that assetts will be split equally. My question is: Was my time and money wasted or am I entitled to get paid for tne work I did?
If it was just my older sister and me I would not care about equal split, but the "where is my check" attitude of my younger sister has got me very upset.
Thank You
Work done by sibling
You may or may not be surprised to learn how common your situation is. Almost inevitably there is one group of "doers" and another group of "supervisors". Sometimes the "doers" are more abled-bodied, or live closer, or just want to help, but not always. Conversely, sometimes the "doers" keep the others at bay and create tension by not effectively communicating with the interested parties. Needless to say, it is a difficult time for families.
You do not give any indication as to what your sister the executor thinks about this situation. The executor has the right (maybe the obligation) to pay you fair value for your services. If you were taking necessary steps at the request of the executor that benefited the estate, why wouldn't you get paid? Presumably your sister would have had to pay a third party to take these necessary steps. So I would talk to your sister. If she agrees, then you need only to agree on what the fair value for your services is. Your other sister may object, but if you have done your homework (documented your efforts and charged a reasonable fee), then the court is not likely to intervene.
If the executor does not agree, then it will get more difficult. In effect you might have to sue the estate to recover for your services. Based on your brief overview, you might have a very good case. So talk with your sister the executor. I would also encourage to talk with your other sister. It may be awkward, but it may make her feel better to be included in the decision making process. One final point. The funds you receive from an estate as a beneficiary are not subject to income tax. The type of payment that we are talking about is NOT a distribution to you as a beneficiary, but a payment by the estate for services rendered. You will want to talk to your tax advisor about the implications or any such payments. Good luck.
Attorney Peter Bernardin