While you may have prepared a solid estate plan, you should anticipate that not everything will go as expected. These may be due to circumstances beyond your reasonable control, but even still, you must come up with possible solutions for them. This is so your estate administration does not get unnecessarily delayed or complex in any way, for your beneficiaries’ sake. Using one example, you may have planned for one person to be your will’s executor, but they may no longer be able or willing to serve. And so, if you were strategic, you may have also planned a backup executor. With that scenario in mind, please read on to discover what happens if you do not appoint a backup executor and how a seasoned Broward County wills lawyer at The Probate Lawyers can ensure this oversight does not occur.
What happens if I do not appoint a backup executor in my will?
Say your primary executor steps down from their role, or the Florida probate court otherwise removes them from this position. Well, the court may then refer back to your will document and see whether you have also designated a backup or successor executor. If you have failed to disclose this selection, the court may have no choice but to appoint an administrator. The court may give priority to the surviving spouse or adult children to fill this role. But if a surviving family member cannot be located, they may resort to a professional fiduciary or public administrator.
At the end of the day, an administrator may carry the same powers as your original executor. However, they may not have been someone you would have necessarily chosen or trusted, and they may even take actions slightly differently than the way you had intended. Also, this opens up the door for possible tensions and frustrations brewing amongst your beneficiaries, given the likelihood of uncertainties, challenges, and delays. Ultimately, all of this can be avoided by simply adding a backup or successor executor in your will document.
When am I allowed to add a backup executor to my will?
You may worry that it is too late to designate a backup or successor executor if you have already established your will document. However, you still hold the opportunity to update your will at any time, so long as you still have a strong mental capacity. That is, you may modify your existing will through a codicil or create an entirely new will and revoke your existing will. Either way, you must adopt clear language when naming your backup executor, so as to avoid confusion at the time of probate.
Specifically, you should write something along the lines of, “I appoint (legal name) as executor. If (legal name of executor) is unable or unwilling to serve, I appoint (legal name of backup executor) as successor executor.” Again, please make sure that your codicil or new will is properly witnessed and signed the same way you did for your original will; otherwise, your backup executor designation may become invalid and unenforceable.
When it comes to your estate planning, you should not settle for anything less than spectacular legal assistance. So please hire us to help with your planning process. A competent Broward County estate lawyer at The Probate Lawyers looks forward to working with you.
