Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New Jersey

If you and your siblings are doing all of these things without having probated (filed) the will with the Surrogate iin the county where your mother resided, you're doing it all the wrong way. After filing the will, the executor has to be officially appointed by the Surrogate as the personal representative of the estate. Without such appointment, no one has the power and authority to act.

You have to go through the formalities of estate administration. You can't just be signing "papers" made up by anyone. How can you have an accounting if you don't even know what expenses or assets in the estate were?

If you do not know how to go through the administration process correctly, you should be consulting an estates lawyer. If you try to do this yourself and haven't done it properly, you could be personally liable to the State of NJ, to the Federal Government, to creditors and to your siblings and other heirs and beneficiaries under the will.

This response is not legal advice, since I do not have all of the information that would be required, and I do not have a representation agreement with you.

* If the answers to your question confirm that you have a valid issue or worthwhile claim, your next step should almost always be to establish a dialog with a lawyer who can provide specific advice to you. Contact a lawyer in your county or township.

* Another reason for contacting a lawyer is that it is often impossible to give a good answer in the Internet Q&A format without having more information. The unique circumstances of your situation and things that you may not have thought to mention in your question may completely change the answer. If you want to be sure that you have a complete answer to your question and an understanding of what that answer means, establish a connection with a lawyer who practices in the area of your concern.

I would agree that the first thing you need to do is to probate the will and become appointed executor. After that you should give a copy of the will to the benficiaries and begin collecting the assets and debts of the extate so you can make an accounting. The tiem to file an accounting is no longer than 9 months. Please feel free to call me or set up an appointment with my office