Once the nephew from Columbus took over as his aunt’s Personal Representative, the legal part was the easy part. Notify the creditors. File with the court. Take inventory. He could follow instructions for that — the court’s instructions.
What he couldn’t follow was hers. Because she’d never written any down.
Keep the piano, or sell it? Give her clothes to a cousin, or donate them? What about the cat? None of it was in the will, because there was no will. None of it was in a letter, because she’d never written one. So he guessed what to do with her personal property, on every decision, for a woman he’d seen maybe a dozen times in his life.
He guessed right sometimes. He guessed wrong other times. There was no way to know which, and no one left to ask.
That’s the part people miss about the role. Being named Personal Representative doesn’t come with a script. It comes with authority — the legal power to make decisions — and nothing telling you which decisions the person actually wanted made. The job title covers the process. It says nothing about the person.
A short letter of instruction would’ve changed all of it. Since there was no Will or other legal document, but just a plain accounting of what she wanted done with the house, the piano, the cat. It would’ve turned his guesswork into direction.
He did the job the way the court required. He never got to do it the way she would’ve wanted, because he neverknew what that was.
Being named to carry out someone’s wishes only works if you actually know what they are.
If you haven’t put your actual wishes in writing — beyond just the legal minimum — that’s the right place to start.
The Curran Law Firm handles estate planning and trust administration in Jupiter, Florida. We make sure your Personal Representative isn’t just legally authorized — they’re actually informed.
Call 561-935-9763 to schedule your appointment
