Executors Duties

If you have been appointed executor by the Will of a friend or relative who has recently died you need to decide very quickly if you should accept the appointment.

The purpose of this free information on “Executor’s Duties” is to let you know what responsibilities you have and how you should handle them.

Some Important Terminology

The Will appoints an executor. This is the person who represents the deceased person after death and who does everything necessary to carry out the instructions set out in the Will.

The person or persons who receive gifts under the will are referred to as beneficiaries. 

In some but not all cases, the executor must obtain probate of the will by making application to the relevant court. A grant of probate gives the executor authority to act. After obtaining probate an executor will be recognised at law as the person who has the right to deal with the assets of the deceased after death 

You can find out more about obtaining probate by selecting “Handling Probate” on the AussieLegal menu. 

What does the executor have to do?

In the course of administering an estate, an executor will usually have to:

  1. Apply for probate in some circumstance.
  2. Determine what debts and liabilities have to be paid
  3. Assemble the assets which will be used to pay debts
  4. Work out the order in which assets have to be used to pay debts. In some cases this will be set out in the will, otherwise there are laws which tell you which assets to use first.
  5. Lodge taxation returns for the deceased and for the estate.
  6. In some cases, you will need to arrange for documents to show that you are the legal owner of certain types of assets before these can be sold.
  7. Pay debts
  8. Publish a notice that you intend to distribute the assets to the beneficiaries.
  9. Distribute the assets to beneficiaries according to the terms of the will.

Read on about Executor's Duties.

Find-a-Lawyer experienced in Wills & Estates.

Read about Executor's Duties Kits.

DISCLAIMER

This Information Outline is available courtesy of AussieLegal’s online legal information and law firm referral service.

The information is provided by participating law firms. Accordingly, neither AussieLegal Pty Limited nor eBroadcast accepts any responsibility for loss, damage, cost or expense arising from using the information provided.

As the information provided by participating law firms is of a general nature, the law firms accept no liability for any loss, damage, cost or expense that arises from relying on the information provided by them. The information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of it. This recognises that despite the participating law firm’s best endeavours to provide up to date accurate legal information and documents, you may misunderstand or misinterpret instructions or advice.