Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New Jersey

The executor of an estate to which I am 1 of 4 named beneficiaries ( equally divided ) attempted to embezzle from the estate when discovered he is now claiming the monies removed as advances on his share of the estate cash assets - even though the amount removed was well over his share of the cash assets. He also notified the beneficiaries that there were only 3 bank accounts with a cash total of approx $150K . After pressing for bank statements he would not provide, upon requesting an interim accounting he refused to provide until stating I would file a petition with the court. He finally provided an accounting through an estate attorney in which a total of 6 banks were disclosed for a total cash value of approx $190K. A review of the supporting bank statements showed he removed approx $65K of the cash assets ( well over his 1/4 share. Also, used the estate account for paying personal bills, etc. Wouldn't this be a valid reason for having him removed as executor ? How can I go about doing that ?


Asked on 10/27/15, 1:30 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Jonathan Chester The Law Office of Jonathan S. Chester, Esq., LLC

Obviously, it's difficult to answer without all the facts and the executor's side of the story, but yes, stealing and/or misappropriating estate assets for personal use would certainly be grounds for removal of the executor.

To do this you would need to file a complaint with the Surrogate to compel the executor to account and for his removal.

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Answered on 10/27/15, 5:37 am


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