Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New Jersey

you need a lawyer to fight for you. Your brother is an idiot, and you have to take action.

I agree with Bob, but procedures have to be followed. If your brother's name in the Will, as co-executor, is incorrect, he caanot qualify without formal Court approval correcting the error. I suggest, to save time, is to agree with your brother about buying him out, have him renounce appointment as co-executor and bring estate to a close as quickly as possible. In agreeing to buy him out, make him realize that he is only entitled to his half of net value of the estate, overall, not just half of house value.

You may be able to get appointed sole executor if your brother refuses to act. He has a legal obligation to probate the will so his refusal to act could be grounds to have him barred from becoming co-executor.

As the answer above states, the mere difference in name will not disqualify your brother's right to be executor and you will have to get court approval to be appointed on your own. Some Surrogate's offices will appoint one co-executor where the other refuses to act, but the Surrogate's Office will require that your brother be given notice of your application with an opportunity to demand appointment. If he fails to respond, the Surrogate will appoint you. Not all Surrogate's Offices will do this. In that situation, you will have to apply to the Superior Court on an order to show cause, again with notice to your brother, to be appointed alone. However, in that action, you can request that he not be appointed based upon his refusal to probate the will. The court will not allow him to hold up estate proceedings in order to force you to accept his terms.

An action on an order to show cause will be heard on an expedited basis so it isn't like you will be wrangling over this for years.

You mentioned that he has been emptying your father's bank account. You should know that you will also be able to challenge the propriety of those transactions. If any were illegal, he will be required to repay the money to the estate, thereby increasing your share by half of the amount returned. That claim will probaby have to be litigated and may take some time and expense before it is resolved by the courts.

Don't be too worried about the medical bills though. Every estate has six months before it has to pay bills that do not have first priority and there are ways to compromise debts. All you have to do is notify the creditor that the debt is part of an estate, that you cannot by law pay it until the six month period is over, and that it will be considered in due course.