Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Pennsylvania

It depends on what the testator (the person whose will it is) wants. The testator, with appropriate legal advice, should also be certain that any such provision will not adversely affect the over-all estate plan.

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.

Is it standard? Not in the sense that every will is unique and peculiar to the person making his/her will so what will work for one person may not work for another. However, I have seen many wills use similar terminology ("sole discretion").

Ultimately, the choice is the testator's to make concerning the disposition of the property and how much control or lack thereof that he/she wishes his personal representative to have. The testator may also be concerned that a particular beneficiary is going to make problems and to avoid any difficulty, the testator has made clear that the executor will have the final say so. And even where children ostensibly agree about matters now, whenever parents pass, money has a funny way of changing the children. It does not matter if there are 5 cents or $5 million, I have seen the children get into arguments over the disposition of the deceased's parent's property. That is why it is best to avoid it and why the testator may have used such language.

However, it would help to view the whole will and see the context in which the language is used rather than talk about a phrase in the abstract.