The value in appointing a legal practitioner to administer an estate

Publication: Private Client Adviser

The dispute regarding the administration of the estate of Mrs Kathleen Lilley has highlighted an uncomfortable risk. The appointment of a professional executor should, in principle, foster a sense of trust and reliability among beneficiaries but unfortunately in this case, the opposite took place.

In the Law Society v Elsdon & Ors [2015] EWHC 1326 (Ch), the High Court upheld the SRA’s decision to intervene in a solicitor’s involvement in the administration of a number of estates. The solicitor, Mr Elsdon, was found to have overcharged for his services on a substantial level, and was ultimately seen by the court to have ‘lost his ethical compass’.

The executors of an estate are responsible for collecting all assets which form part of the estate and…

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