Family inheritance is a sensitive matter. At a time when you are still grieving the loss of a loved one, quibbling and quarrelling about who gets what is not something one would wish to engage in. While pop culture and media are obsessed with large family fortunes – just look at the hit movie Knives Out and the media’s interest in the vast fortune of late Casino King Stanley Ho, the reality is that large family fortunes often leads to ugly inheritance disputes, even if where there is a Will clearly stating who gets what.
At the center of most inheritance disputes is the Executor of deceased’s estate (where the deceased had executed a Will). The Executor is the only person that is legally entitled to carry out the terms of the Will, including the distribution of the deceased’s assets, and is thus the all-important “gateway” to Beneficiaries (persons entitled to share of the deceased’s estate) getting their share of the inheritance.
Given the Executor’s role, it is natural for Beneficiaries to look to the Executor for updates and accountability on the state and administration of the deceased’s estate. However, in our experience, not all Executors are cooperative and transparent in their decision-making, and often may either give no answers or unsatisfactory answers to the Beneficiaries. The Singapore Court of Appeal case of UVJ and others v UVH and others and another appeal [2020] SGCA 49 (“UVJ”) is a good example. The case revealed that the executor Brothers of their late father’s estate did not inform and did not distribute to their Sisters their share of the inheritance for 19 years.
In this article, we discuss the Beneficiary’s right to the accounts of the estate managed by Executor. If you are a Beneficiary currently facing difficulties with your Executor, this may be a powerful tool in obtaining answers and accountability from your Executor.
Beneficiary’s Right to Accounts
At law, Executors have a special relationship to Beneficiaries under a Will, known as a fiduciary relationship. What this means is that an Executor owes duties to you as a Beneficiary, to act in your best interest when administering the deceased’s estate. Practically speaking, this means the Executor should inform you of what you are entitled to under the Will and distribute your share of the deceased’s assets in a timely manner.
As to what a “timely manner” means, this really depends on the facts and whether the Executor has a good reason for the delay. In UVJ, the Brothers told the Court that they did not distribute the Sisters’ share to them because of oversight. The Court did not buy this excuse and added that the Brothers could have taken legal advice on this. Given that the costs of obtaining legal advice can be covered by the deceased’s estate i.e. not using the Executor’s own money, there is really no reason why an Executor should not obtain legal advice if he or she is unsure about how to administer the estate – see Section 57(4) of the Probate and Administration Act.
The Executor must also keep proper accounts of the administration of the estate. Crucially, if asked by a Beneficiary for these accounts, an Executor is obligated at law to furnish such accounts. The accounts are required to show the monies and assets received by the Executor and how he or she had dealt with them.
Thus, as a first step, a Beneficiary should always request to see the accounts from the Executor if there is suspicion that the estate is not administered properly.
Court Process of Taking of Accounts
If the Executor is not cooperative, or if you are unsatisfied after reviewing the accounts (because of lack of detail, suspicious entries, etc.), you can apply to Court for a process called the Taking of Accounts. As a Beneficiary, you are entitled to this process as of right, and you do not have to first show that the Executor acted improperly. This is useful if you are unsure if there was indeed anything wrong in the accounts. (Do note that, as with any Court process, the Court may still decline granting the Taking of Accounts even though it is your right, for example, if it would be oppressive to the Executor to do so).
The Taking of Accounts may then reveal discrepancies in the account. At that stage, you may seek a further inquiry or account on what happened to the assets or monies. If there is evidence that the Executor acted improperly, you can then pursue certain remedies depending on what the Executor had done i.e. made an unauthorised payment or investment, profited himself at the expense of the estate etc, and have that money paid back to the estate. As with any case, whether the Executor had acted improperly really depends on the facts. If you would like legal advice on this, please feel free to reach out to us at the contact details below.
In certain circumstances, as was the case in UVJ, the Taking of Accounts may reveal serious misconduct and improper administration of the estate by the Executor and result in his or her removal. This may just be the best outcome given that a more impartial and objective party can step in to ensure a timely and proper distribution of the assets (for example, a professional executor or a lawyer). The executor Brothers in UVJ were removed as the Court found that they intentionally failed to inform and distribute to the Sisters their share of the estate and tried to cover up their improper administration of the estate.
What Next?
In family inheritance matters, it is common for the Executor to be a family member of the deceased. We know that family dynamics can be tricky, and where the Executor appointed is a family member you do not get along with, the proper administration of the deceased’s estate can be a frustrating process. While no one wishes to be seen as being overly concerned with money or suspicious of a family member for no rhyme or reason, we see from UVJ that not asking relevant questions can lead to 19 years of improper administration of the deceased’s estate.
At the end of day, if you have a good relationship and a cooperative Executor, there is no need to resort to a formal demand for an account or take up a Court action. However, knowing what your rights are is crucial and important should things subsequently become complicated.
We know that dealing with these problems while still grieving the loss of a loved one can be painful. Adding to that, the complexity of family dynamics can make the whole process frustrating and lead to further breakdown of family relationships. As experienced inheritance dispute lawyers, we are well-versed with the sensitivities involved, and based on your needs and objectives, will tailor our advice and strategies to achieve the best outcome for you in the least painful manner.
If you would like to discuss any of these further, please do get in touch with us.