QUESTION
Is there a law that says the executor of an estate can use funds from the deceased personal account to pay their lawyer fees
Asked on Sep 13th, 2012 on Estate Litigation - New Jersey
More details to this question:
For example,my daughter's dad passed away & his 2nd daughter's mother petitioned the court to become the executor.She has retained a lawyer & she has payed him out of an account that the deceased has.i needed to know can she use funds from that account to pay the lawyer that she has retained or does she have to use her own money to pay her lawyer fees?
1 ANSWER
2 Awards
Yes, unfortunately there is. There is a law that requires that those fees be paid, and a lot of people use it to their advantage to make trouble where they should just leave the estate alone. Rule 4:42-9(a)(3) allows the court to award attorneys' fees “in probate actions.” That Court Rule would allow someone who is challenging the will or asking to be the executor to have their fees paid from the estate.
Answered on Sep 14th, 2012 at 8:51 AM
Diana L. Anderson, Certified Elder Law Attorney This response is not legal advice and does not establish any form of attorney/client relationship