How to Choose an Executor for Your Will

Why Your Choice of Executor Matters

An executor is the person named in your will to settle your estate. The role does not begin on its own. A court appoints the executor and issues letters testamentary, the document banks and brokers ask for before they deal with the estate. Our guide on how to be an executor walks through everything the person will do.

It is real work, and it often runs many months. Executors owe a duty to act in the interest of the estate and its beneficiaries, and they can be held personally responsible for serious mistakes. That is why willingness and reliability count for more than a title or birth order.

Who Can Legally Serve as an Executor

Each state sets its own rules. The common themes are age, mental ability, criminal history, and where the person lives. Three examples show the range:

The takeaway: a felony conviction, living out of state, or a health problem can complicate or block someone's appointment in some states but not others. If your first choice has any of these, check your state's rules or ask an estate attorney before you name them. Our state probate guides are a starting point for state-specific rules.

The executor does not need to be a lawyer or an accountant. They need the judgment to hire help when the estate calls for it.

What to Look For in an Executor

Think about the actual tasks: tracking down accounts, talking to banks and the court, keeping records, paying bills on time, and communicating with beneficiaries. Then ask whether the person you have in mind would do those well. These qualities tend to matter most:

• Honesty. The executor handles other people's money. Choose someone you would trust with your checkbook.
• Organization. The job is mostly paperwork and deadlines. Someone who keeps track of documents will do better than someone who dislikes them.
• Time and availability. A busy caregiver or someone with a demanding schedule may struggle. Living far away is not disqualifying in most cases, but it can add travel and delay.
• Calm under conflict. If your family may disagree, choose someone who can stay even-tempered and communicate clearly.
• Willingness. A person who dreads the role may do it badly. Ask, and listen to the answer.
• Age and health. Someone close to your own age may not be able to serve when the time comes. A younger adult can outlast you.

Spouse, Child, Friend, or Professional

There is no single right answer. Each option has trade-offs.

Executors are generally entitled to payment from the estate, and many family members waive it. Our executor fees by state guide explains how fees work, including what a professional is likely to charge in your state.

Choosing a child who is also a beneficiary is common and often practical. Think ahead about whether the others will see it as favoritism. A short, honest conversation now tends to prevent resentment later.

One Executor or Two

Some people name two or more co-executors so that no child feels left out. It can work, but it adds friction. Under the Uniform Probate Code as enacted in Maine, co-representatives must all agree on acts connected with administering and distributing the estate, unless the will says otherwise. There are limited exceptions, such as emergency action to preserve the estate when everyone cannot be reached in time.

Other states have their own rules. In general, two executors mean two sets of signatures, two schedules, and more room for disagreement. Many families find that one executor with a named backup is simpler. If you want to include everyone, you can name one executor and ask them to keep the others informed.

Name a Backup Executor

Your first choice may die first, become ill, move, or simply decline. If no one named can serve, the court appoints someone under a priority order set by state law. That person may not be who you would have picked.

Name at least one alternate in your will. Choose someone who meets the same qualities you used for the first choice, and tell both people about the arrangement.

Talk to Them Before You Write the Name

Being asked after the fact is a hard way to learn about a job. A person nominated in a will is not forced to take the role. Under the Maine statute, anyone may renounce a right to appointment by a writing filed with the court. Ask first, so you know your choice is willing.

When you talk, cover the basics:

• What the role involves and roughly how much time it takes.
• Where your will and key documents are kept.
• Who your family members and advisers are.
• That you have named a backup, and who it is.

Make their job easier by leaving a record of your accounts and contacts. Our emergency information list and estate inventory checklist help you gather these in one place.

Bonds, Trusts, and Writing It Into Your Will

Executor bonds

A bond is insurance that protects the estate if an executor mishandles funds. Rules differ by state. Under the Maine version of the Uniform Probate Code, bond is generally not required in informal proceedings unless the will requires it, and in formal proceedings it is not required if the will relieves the executor of bond. A court can still require one if an interested party requests it and the court agrees. Your will can state whether you want your executor to serve without bond. Check your state's rules.

Executors and trustees are separate roles

If you have a living trust, the person who takes over the trust is a successor trustee, which is a separate role from executor. Many people choose the same person, but you can choose two different people. Our pour-over will guide explains how the will and trust work together.

Put it in writing

Your executor is named in your will. Learn the steps in how to make a will, or compare options in our guide to making a will online. Review your choice every few years and after major life changes such as marriage, divorce, a move, or a falling-out.

Frequently Asked Questions