What is an Estate BY NANCY BURNER, ESQ. Accounting?

Q: I’m an executor of an estate. My brother is requesting an accounting. What does this mean?

A: When you're the executor of an estate, you're the person chosen in someone's will to take care of their property and money after they pass away. Your job is to follow the instructions in the will and make sure everything is done correctly. Since you are the Executor, you have already filed the necessary documents with the Surrogate's Court and been officially appointed by the Court. As Executor, you marshal the decedent’s assets, pay any debts of the decedent, and distribute the property in the estate to the beneficiaries.

Before the Executor finally distributes the estate property, the Executor must give an accounting of their actions to the beneficiaries. An estate accounting is a document that details what property was in the estate at the time of the decedent’s death, any additional property that subsequently came into the estate, what property remains in the estate at the time of the accounting, and how the remaining assets will be distributed. The accounting includes any commissions to be paid to the Executor and any outstanding legal and accountant fees. The beneficiaries must approve the accounting.

A beneficiary may request a judicial accounting which is a formal accounting that must comply with court rules. The beneficiaries will have the opportunity to challenge the accounting and once any issues raised are addressed, the court will issue a decree discharging the executor. Alternatively, the Executor may prepare an informal accounting so long as the beneficiaries sign receipts and releases documenting their final approval of the estate accounting.

Preparing an estate accounting can be very difficult depending on the estate’s assets, income, and debts. Working with an experienced estates attorney is beneficial to anyone named as Executor. But it is crucial when the Executor has a complicated relationship with the beneficiaries.

Brittni Sullivan, Esq. and Dylan Stevens, Esq. are attorneys at Burner Law Group, P.C. focusing their practice areas on Estate Planning and Elder Law.

Burner Law Group P.C. serves clients from Manhattan to the east end of Long Island with offices located in East Setauket, Westhampton Beach, New York City and East Hampton.