Q&As

Is it appropriate to allow the executors to appropriate one of the deceased's two houses to the joint executor, who receives 50% of the residuary estate, without first obtaining the agreement to this of the other residuary beneficiaries to this? The other three beneficiaries are grandchildren of the deceased who are all of adult age.

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Produced in partnership with Lynne Counsell of Addington Chambers
Published on: 30 September 2019
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Duties of executors

Executors are under a duty to collect and get in the real and personal Estate of the deceased and administer it according to law (section 25 of the Administration of Estates Act 1925 (AEA 1925)). In carrying out these duties, an executor must act with Due diligence: see Re Tankard. Executors are also under the duty to exercise reasonable care and skill in accordance with section 1 of the Trustee Act 2000. See: Personal representatives鈥攐verview.

These duties of the executor are of a fiduciary nature. The executor must act in good faith and cannot put themselves in a position whereby there is a conflict of interest between their interests and those of the estate: Broughton v Broughton. The

Lynne Counsell
Lynne Counsell

Barrister, Addington Chambers

Lynne has been in traditional Chancery practice for some thirty years, specialising in probate matters, construction of wills and trusts and also financial services and drafting.

Lynne was for some years counsel for Tower Hamlets, representing them on landlord and tenant cases and counsel for Bedford Building Society representing it on mortgage cases.

Lynne has written or updated over fifty books, including writing the initial volume of Atkin鈥檚 Court Forms 鈥淔inancial Services鈥 and updating Halsbury鈥檚 Laws on Injunctions. Lynne was also co-author of two editions of 鈥淚nsider Trading鈥 and co-editor and one of the writers of 鈥淐hancery Practice and Procedure.鈥

Articles include 鈥淢arketing of Investments鈥 for the Law Society Gazette and 鈥淭he Doctrine of Mutual Wills鈥 for the Trust Quarterly Review. Lynne won one of the few cases on mutual wills in the last fifty years 鈥 Charles v Fraser (2010).

Lynne has drafted the standard unit trust for the government of Nigeria, the rules and related documentation for various building societies and clubs, shareholder agreements, company takeovers compliance documentation for certain banks as well as wills and trusts.

Lynne was awarded the 2017 Corporate international Magazine Global Award 鈥 鈥淚nvestment Contracts Barrister of the Year in England鈥.

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Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
Related legal acts:
Key definition:
Estate definition
What does Estate mean?

The means by which land is owned in England and Wales.

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