Executor not following will

Huh?
In any case...
Insurance money goes to whoever is named as the beneficiary. So, if Bob is the only named beneficiary, then Bob doesn't have to share a penny.

Beyond that, I don't believe (from what you've shared) that you are named in the will. You have no dog in this fight. There is no "we" or "our".

 

Ummm...then not following a will that doesn't exist isn't a problem, right?

If there was no will, then what does this mean?

Who are "they"?

I assume "we" includes your spouse who was your mother-in-law's child. That's important because, if there is no will, then the disposition of your mother-in-law's estate has nothing to do with you.

Those would be half-brothers and half-sisters, not step-siblings.

You need to make up your mind.

Again, if there was no will and no insurance policy, what does all this mean? Also, if there was an insurance policy, she didn't really leave EIGHT children as co-beneficiaries, did she?

Who are "they"?

The persons who stand to inherit from the estate can seek to have the court-appointed executor removed.

If there was a life insurance policy, the money belongs to the named beneficiary(ies) and is not part of the estate.

 

It seems that your questions are only about insurance proceeds. That he was able to get paid without getting anybody else involves suggests that he was the sole beneficiary of the policy.

As such he doesn't have to tell anybody the amount nor does he have to share it. It's his money.

As for anything else in your rather incomprehensible post, I suggest you go back to your lawyer.

 

As I see it:

Your wife's mother died last year. She had a will which states that her entire estate (after paying required expenses) is to be distributed to her 8 children. She also had at least one life insurance policy and there was one beneficiary of that life insurance policy, who received the entire policy.

With the above said: The beneficiary of the insurance payout owns all of that money. It is not part of the estate. YOU are not a party to this at all. Your wife is.

I don't understand any other questions you may have. Please ask again.

 

I can't even begin to explain the irony in your statement.

 

Then the proceeds of the policy are his alone. They are not part of the estate, and he's under no obligation to share the insurance proceeds, unless....

If the beneficiary designation on the policy named "John Smith, as executor of the Estate of Mary Smith," then an argument could be made that the insurance proceeds are part of the estate.

You said that you have (or, more accurately, your wife has) an attorney, so any issues relating to the administration of the estate should be discussed with the attorney.

 

You weren't even aware of the existence of the policy until a short while ago. How do you know how the beneficiary was designated?

 

Assuming he has the actual policy in hand, the policy would contain the application which would show the beneficiary designation.

 

You really need to be discussing all this with your lawyer.

 

While not inconceivable, I find it strange that the insurance company would give out that sort of information to a random phone caller who claims to be neither the owner nor the beneficiary of the policy.

 

The insurance company/agent sure seems very talkative to someone who has no business having any information about the policy.