Do executors have to sign something?

[Blughbablugh]

My parents have appointed myself and one of my brother's as executors. They told us sometime ago and didn't think anything of it until my dh parents asked him and his brother to sign something to appoint them as executors of their will. I asked my parents if I needed to sign anything and they said they didn't think I did.
I wouldn't really be concerned, however I have another brother who I and my brother are estranged from (parents aren't estranged and have contact) due to him being a very dodgy person who has done some horrid things. I'm concerned that if all proper channels haven't been followed, then the second brother can have some say, influence over it. He also lives closer to my parents and sees them more regularly because of how far away they are from him. Can anyone advise please?

[nauticant]

You don't need to have signed anything to be named as executor in a will. But the will does have to have been done. Is there any way you can check this? For example if you are comfortable, and you think it wouldn't cause a kerfuffle, to say it could be handy for you to have a copy. (I realise they might want to keep it private to themselves.)

I'd guess that the signature your DH provided is something in addition to a will, maybe a power of attorney.

[nauticant]

To clarify, I assume you're in England or Wales.

[LadyLolaRuben]

There's nothing you need to sign

[Blughbablugh]

@nauticant

To clarify, I assume you're in England or Wales.

Yes I am.

[Blughbablugh]

Thanks for your replies. My Mum has told me what is in the will, so I could ask for a copy.
I'm just very nervous about what tricks my other brother may try and pull and want to be one step ahead, without upsetting my parents in the meantime.

[nauticant]

I was in a broadly similar situation Blughbablugh. I managed to persuade our Mam to remove the troublesome child from being an executor and, once our Mam died, sorting everything out, in a scrupulously fair manner, was straightforward and any attempts to pull a stunt could be readily batted away.

[Sleeplesnights]

Hi. Following this thread as,from my other post here,I'm.in a similar situation. My brother and I are executors but I'm NC with him. He's also got a shady past after "borrowing" my dad's redundancy money(13 grand) many years ago and didn't pay it back. Also upsetting my dad on his death bed for money for a car etc. I'm 4 hours away. He's much closer in distance to mum and trying to get her to relocate even closer to him to "look after her". Worried that he's going to take advantage :(

I didn't sign anything when I was made executor.
I'm sorry for hijacking your thread but wanted to say you're not alone.

[Propertylover]

@Blughbablugh It may be at the same time as getting their wills they also put Lasting Powers of Attorneys in place which do need them to sign.

I might be a good idea to suggest your parents also put LPoAs in place as this can help (but can’t stop) if an estranged family member or anyone tries to take advantage of vulnerable elderly parents.

[Morgaliza]

I was executor on my parents will and didn't have to sign or do anything prior to their passing.

[RogueFemale]

@nauticant

You don't need to have signed anything to be named as executor in a will. But the will does have to have been done. Is there any way you can check this? For example if you are comfortable, and you think it wouldn't cause a kerfuffle, to say it could be handy for you to have a copy. (I realise they might want to keep it private to themselves.)

I'd guess that the signature your DH provided is something in addition to a will, maybe a power of attorney.

Yes, exactly this. I've been an executor, and you don't have to sign anything. Also, I've made a Will and haven't even told the executors that they are executors (I'll do so as and when....)

As PP said, almost certainly the thing your DH had to sign related to a Power of Attorney (health and/or finance), often done at the same time as a Will is done.

[samsums]

As others have said you need to see the will to make sure it is absolutely watertight so that the other brother cannot challenge it.

And it may be worth getting a lawyer involved to handle the administration of the estate - you and the other executor can decide to engage the lawyer when the time comes or your parents can name the lawyer in the will as a third executor of the will.

Obviously this will cost but it will be worth it to ensure that the administration is correct and cant be challenged. Did they use a lawyer to draw up the will? If so maybe you could talk it through with them.

As others have said its worth making power of attorney arrangements now - that way you can gain access to (and potentially control of) your parents' bank accounts etc to monitor and hopefully prevent any undue payments if your brother tries anything on. Its also easier as your parents become frailer to be able to take a more active role in paying utilities bills/ ensuring that they get good returns on savings and investments etc as this can be a worry as parents get older.