Your will in Indiana is a legal document that public courts will uphold. To make a will feasible, however, you need someone to execute it. Execution occurs when someone has the specific role of closing the accounts of an estate. This person can be chosen by you specifically or left for a judge to determine. Either case places a tremendous amount of influence within the hands of the executor. For this reason, many estate owners question the power of this person.
Supporting the wishes of the deceased
As far as the final say, the executor exists to represent any wishes stated in a will. These wishes are difficult to forward if their original writer is now deceased. The executor, therefore, takes their direction from the instructions laid out within a will. This person is only placed in their role in order to satisfy the needs of that will. If the executor was handpicked, they’ll tend to be prepared for the work they have ahead. Such executors might do even more than necessary.
Allocating and liquidating assets
Managing the assets of an estate is also the executor’s job. However, allocating assets doesn’t give them rights to the deceased’s possessions. They, instead, focus on:
- Notifying the public of the estate owner’s death
- Valuing all of an estate’s assets in order to settle any liabilities
- Finding the beneficiaries of an estate and transferring any assigned assets
- Abiding by any decrees made by the judge presiding over the estate’s execution
Wills in Indiana
Every executor has a fiduciary responsibility to the estates they execute. This liability means that they can only do what’s in the best interest of their estates. The executor of a will has tremendous power, but that freedom is limited to the benefit of the deceased.