Choosing executors: who to appoint and what they take on
An executor takes on personal liability for getting an estate right. This covers what the job involves, who is suitable for it, and the appointment decisions that cause the most trouble later.
By Robert Festenstein, Head of Legal
Updated 21 September 2026
6 min read
The short version
- An executor's authority starts at the date of death, unlike an administrator's, which begins only when the grant is issued.
- Executors are personally liable for mistakes, including distributing an estate before a claim period has expired.
- Up to four executors can take a grant, and appointing two is usually enough to cover illness or death without creating deadlock.
- A beneficiary can be an executor and very often should be, since they have the strongest interest in getting it finished.
- A professional executor charges the estate, and an appointment in the will is difficult to displace once the person has died.
- Advertising for creditors under section 27 of the Trustee Act 1925 protects executors against claims they did not know about.
What an executor actually does
An executor is the person named in a will who deals with everything the deceased left behind. The role is substantial and it usually runs for nine to eighteen months, longer where a property has to be sold or a business wound up.
The work falls into a sequence. Register the death and deal with the funeral. Find the original will and establish what it says. Identify and value everything owned at the date of death, including jointly held assets, pensions, life policies and anything given away in the previous seven years. Complete the inheritance tax account and pay any tax due, which generally has to happen before the grant is issued. Apply for the grant of probate. Collect in the assets, settle the debts, and deal with the income tax position to the date of death and for the administration period. Prepare estate accounts, and then distribute what remains.
An executor's authority derives from the will and starts at the moment of death, so they can act immediately, although most institutions will release nothing substantial until the grant is produced.
The personal liability that comes with it
This is the part people accept without understanding. An executor is personally liable for getting the estate right, and that liability is not limited to the value of what they receive.
The exposures that matter in practice are distributing before all liabilities are known, undervaluing assets in the inheritance tax account, missing a beneficiary, and distributing while a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 is still possible. On the last of these, an executor who distributes within six months of the grant and then faces a successful claim can find themselves making up the shortfall.
Two protections exist and both should be used. Advertising for creditors under section 27 of the Trustee Act 1925, in the London Gazette and a newspaper circulating in the area where any land is held, protects an executor against claims from creditors they did not know about, provided at least two months pass before distribution. And waiting until six months after the grant before distributing protects against 1975 Act claims.
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How many to appoint
A maximum of four executors can take out a grant. Appointing one is risky because there is no cover if that person dies first, loses capacity or simply refuses. Appointing four is usually unwieldy, because every document needs four signatures and every decision needs four people to agree.
Two is the usual answer, with a substitute named in case one cannot act. Where the will creates a trust, or a beneficiary is under 18, two trustees are needed anyway to give a valid receipt for the proceeds of land, so appointing two has a practical basis as well.
Where the family is spread out, it is worth thinking about who can realistically attend to things. An executor living abroad complicates identity checks, document signing and the sale of property, and can slow an estate down by months.
Who makes a good executor
The qualities that matter are ordinary ones: organised, contactable, willing to ask for help, and able to remain on speaking terms with the family while doing it.
Age is worth weighing. Appointing contemporaries means appointing people who may predecease you or lack capacity when the time comes, which is why a mix of generations often works better than a pair of lifelong friends.
Relationships matter more than competence. An estate administered by two siblings who do not get on will cost more and take longer than one administered by a single cousin nobody argues with. Where a family has a known fault line, naming somebody outside it is usually the better decision.
Anybody appointed should be told they have been appointed and asked whether they are willing, since they are free to decline and finding out at the funeral is a poor way to be asked.
It also helps to think about what the particular estate will demand. An estate holding a business, a farm, a portfolio of let property or assets abroad needs somebody who can make commercial decisions under time pressure, because a business left without authority for three months can lose most of its value. An estate that is mostly a house and a few bank accounts asks far less, and a capable family member handles it comfortably with a solicitor doing the probate application.
Where a beneficiary is under 18 or has a disability, the executors usually become trustees afterwards and the role then continues for years. That is a substantially different commitment from administering an estate and distributing it, and it should be raised with the people being asked.
Can a beneficiary be an executor
Yes, and it is very common. Unlike a witness, an executor loses nothing by benefiting under the will, and a beneficiary executor has the strongest possible interest in getting the administration finished.
The caution applies where the will treats beneficiaries unequally. An executor who receives more than their siblings is the person who has to explain the estate accounts to them, and that combination generates disputes. Where a will deliberately favours one child, appointing a different child, or somebody independent, removes an obvious flashpoint.
A beneficiary executor cannot be paid for their time unless the will says so. They can recover expenses actually incurred, and a professional charging clause is required for anything more.
Professional executors and what they charge
A solicitor or other professional can be appointed as executor, either alone or alongside a family member. The advantage is competence, continuity and somebody carrying the liability who is insured against getting it wrong. It suits estates that are large, complex, hold a business, involve a trust, or sit inside a family likely to argue.
The cost is the consideration. A professional executor charges the estate under the charging clause in the will, and charging is typically time-based, sometimes with a percentage element. The figures are set out before anybody is engaged, and under the SRA Transparency Rules a firm offering probate has to publish its prices.
The point families miss is that a professional appointed in the will is difficult to remove afterwards. They can renounce voluntarily, and if they decline to, the beneficiaries have to apply to court. Anybody thinking of naming a professional should consider instead naming family members with a direction that they may instruct a solicitor, which keeps the choice with the people who will be living with it.
The clause to look for in an old will
Wills prepared through banks and some will-writing services often name that institution, or a company connected to it, as executor. The clause can be buried in the appointment provisions and is easy to miss on a quick read.
Anybody with a will more than a few years old is worth checking on this point specifically. Where an institutional executor is named and is no longer wanted, the answer is a new will removing the appointment. Doing that during a person's lifetime is straightforward; doing it after death is not.
Refusing the job, and being removed from it
Nobody is obliged to act. An executor who has not started dealing with the estate can renounce, by signing a formal renunciation, and that is final.
An executor who wants to stay appointed without doing the work can instead have power reserved, which allows another executor to take the grant while leaving open the possibility of joining later. And an executor who wants to be involved without handling the administration can appoint a solicitor to act on their behalf.
The position changes once somebody has intermeddled, meaning they have started acting in the administration. After that they cannot renounce, and removing them requires an application to court under section 50 of the Administration of Justice Act 1985. The court will act where an executor is failing to progress the estate, has a conflict of interest, or has become incapable, and the costs frequently come out of the estate.
Guardians, and why they are a separate decision
A will can appoint guardians for children under 18, and this is a different decision from the executor appointment even though people often merge them.
A guardian's appointment takes effect where no one else holds parental responsibility, so in most two-parent families it only bites if both parents die. Guardians take on the day-to-day care of the children; executors and trustees hold and apply the money. Keeping those roles with different people creates a check on how the money is spent, and appointing the same people keeps it simple. Either can be right, and the decision belongs to the parents. A standard form should not make it for them.
The practical step most often skipped is asking the proposed guardians first, and thinking about where the children would live, which school they would attend and whether the estate holds enough to fund it.
Frequently asked questions
How many executors should I appoint?
Two is usually right, with a substitute named in case one cannot act. A maximum of four can take out the grant. Appointing one leaves no cover if that person dies before you, loses capacity or refuses, and appointing four means four signatures on every document. If your will creates a trust or a beneficiary is under 18, you need two trustees in any event to give a valid receipt for the proceeds of land.
Can an executor also be a beneficiary?
Yes, and it is very common. Unlike a witness, an executor does not lose their entitlement by benefiting, and a beneficiary has the strongest interest in finishing the administration. The caution is where the will treats beneficiaries unequally, because the executor who receives more is the one who has to explain the accounts to everybody else. In that situation an independent executor removes an obvious source of conflict.
What happens if an executor does not want to act?
They can renounce by signing a formal renunciation, provided they have not already started dealing with the estate. Alternatively they can have power reserved, which lets another executor take the grant while leaving the door open to join later. Once somebody has started acting they can no longer renounce, and removing them needs an application to court under section 50 of the Administration of Justice Act 1985.
Is an executor personally liable if something goes wrong?
Yes, and the liability is not capped at what they inherit. The common exposures are distributing before all liabilities are known, undervaluing assets in the inheritance tax account, and paying out while a claim under the 1975 Act is still possible. Two protections help: advertise for creditors under section 27 of the Trustee Act 1925 and wait at least two months, and do not distribute until six months after the grant.
Should I appoint a solicitor as my executor?
It suits an estate that is large or complex, holds a business, creates a trust, or sits in a family likely to argue. The cost is charged to the estate under the will's charging clause. The drawback is that a professional named in a will is hard to remove afterwards: they can renounce voluntarily, and if they decline the beneficiaries have to apply to court. Naming family with a direction that they may instruct a solicitor keeps the choice with them.
Is a guardian the same as an executor?
No. A guardian looks after children under 18 where nobody else has parental responsibility, so in a two-parent family the appointment usually only takes effect if both parents die. Executors and trustees hold and apply the money. You can appoint the same people to both roles for simplicity, or different people so that there is a check on how the money is spent. Ask the proposed guardians before naming them.
Sources & further reading
This article is general information, not legal advice. The law changes and depends on your circumstances — always take advice on your specific situation before acting. Last reviewed 21 September 2026. AD Solicitors Limited is a recognised body regulated by the SRA (no. 8011228).
A solicitor with more than two decades' experience in commercial law, dispute resolution, insolvency and judicial review. Robert acts for businesses, directors and individuals on the matters that carry real consequence — and leads AD Solicitors.
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