Executor will not communicate, Estate delinquent with Court

[C.Phelps]

Jurisdiction

Iowa

This is in regards to my mother's estate. The Executor has dropped off the face of the earth it seems and will not communicate with heirs. The court has levied fines because required documents and costs have not been paid and also, in about a month, a $2,600 Bond premium will be due.

This Estate has been going on since December of 2018. I know, you'll all tell me to get an attorney and probably have some snarky remarks at my expense

Please understand, I cannot afford to hire an attorney. To get on this site, I am at a generous friends house who is letting me use their internet and computer.

Could I directly contact the Iowa Court system, the clerk and/or judge assigned to the case and make a complaint? It's pretty obvious by now that the Executor has "checked out".

FYI, the Estate has been settled, only waiting on taxes to be paid (found out that neither the IRS or Iowa Revenue Dept have received payment. Also, FYI, the Executor has also fully compensated himself with the $8,500 Fee agreed to in the settlement.

Guess he figures, since he's been paid, no reason or desire to officially and dutifully finish the job. The money that was held back (including heir's assets) are rapidly dwindling.

Again, can I directly contact the court about this?

 

[zddoodah]

I know, you'll all tell me to get an attorney. . . .

Please understand, I cannot afford to hire an attorney.

How much do you believe you stand to inherit? It's possible that you can find an attorney who will agree to a percentage of your inheritance.

Could I directly contact the Iowa Court system, the clerk and/or judge assigned to the case and make a complaint?

Could you? Yes. However, if you don't follow appropriate procedures, the court isn't likely to do anything in response.

You mentioned a bond premium, so the easiest thing for you to do at this point will be to reach out to the surety that issued the bond and make a claim.

 

[army judge]

Again, can I directly contact the court about this?

Nothing prevents you from contacting the court.

That said, doing so would do nothing to resolve your dilemma.

Having graduated from an Iowa law school, what you're pondering won't work.

Have you considered contacting the county prosecutor regarding the improprieties, perhaps illegalities, of the executor?

If the executor is an Iowa licensed attorney, the Iowa Judicial Branch might be able to offer you some relief.

Their website explains the process:

Complaint Against a Lawyer
...



Have you contacted the other heirs to determine whether others would be interested in sharing the costs of an attorney?

Otherwise attempting to continue to do what has been done readily reveals a rather useless tactic isn't working.

 

[adjusterjack]

Again, can I directly contact the court about this?

How you "contact" the court is you file a petition to be appointed representative of the estate on the grounds that the original representative of the estate has absconded and left the estate in limbo.

You might find some helpful information in the Iowa Probate Court Rules.

06-30-2022.7.pdf (iowa.gov)

If not, go to the courthouse, look up the case file, get copies of all the documents and see if the court clerk has a form's packet for probate.

You might have better luck finding forms at:

Iowa Probate Forms - Iowa Inheritance Laws 2022 | US Legal Forms