Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Indiana

Re: Executor

If you are sure you are only being asked to be the executor of a will, then your duties will not fall on you until after her death. For now, she just needs to know that you will accept the responsibility. Ask her to spend a few minutes with you so you can learn -- in general terms, not in detail -- whether she is likely to have substantial assets at her death, whether the disposiiton of her assets in her will is likely to put you in the middle of a cat fight among other relatives, and any other information she might provide for you to determine whether you are comfortable accepting the job. If you learn before she dies that you do not want the job, then you should tell her so she can appoint someone who has the stomach for it. You are not required to do this. You could just tell her you will do it, then evaluate the situation after her death and decline the appointment at that time. All the information in Ms. Wunder's response to you is correct.

If she has prepared a "living trust", where you are being asked to serve as trustee for her assets in the event she is unable to handle her own affairs, then she should be happy to give you a more detailed run-down of what she has and what she wants done with it before her death.

Re: Executor

Your friend appears confused as she has your role being somewhat backwards. The executor is the person or entity (can be a bank and trust company)named in the will that is responsible for carrying out the provisions of the will. In most cases this encompasses mainly administrative tasks, such as closing out old bank accounts, opening up new ones, getting a tax number from the IRS if needed, selling real estate, and distributing assets of the estate to the beneficiaries. Depending on the size and complexity of an estate, an executor may have very little to do, or may have his hands full.

However, the key misconception that your friend

has is that you are the one to determine how her estate is to be left. Although she may confide in you for your thoughts and opinions, the ultimate decision is hers. I know when I have elderly people come in to have their wills done, and they are accompanied by other people (children, lovers, friends, etc.),I always separate them and interview that person alone to make sure that the will is a reflection of that person's intent, not somebody else's.

I would suggest that you tell her that she needs to set up an appointment with an attorney to have a will drawn up and make her decide what to do with her things. A good estate attorney will ask her all the right questions and do his or her best to draft the appropriate document. Where you can be of service is to help the elderly person collect any documents that may be needed to be reviewed by the attorney, such as insurance policies, brokerage information, tax preparer information, deeds to real estate, information on bank account, certificates of deposit, bonds and other securities, etc.

Re: Executor

An executor named in a will does not need to do or know anything during the testator (the person who wrote the will)'s lifetime other than where the original of the will is physically located, so that it can be found at death.

When your elderly relative dies, you need to collect the estate, pay the final expenses and just debts and distribute the estate in the manner specified in the will.

But until that time you have no duties or obligations.

It is best if you know where this person keeps his or her important papers, where the bank accounts are, if there are stock certificates and life insurance policies, where these are located to be able to put your hands on them after death. It is customary but not required to use the attorney who assisted the testator in drafing the will.

Whatever attorney you contact after this person has died will need to see the will as well as to consider the size and nature of the estate in order to advise you what needs to be done.