Dealing with Problem Personal Representatives Effectively - In One Hour

Introduction

Situations where there are problems dealing with personal representatives of estates are all too commonly encountered by practitioners in the field of private client work.

The problems come in different varieties: gross delay in obtaining probate, conflicts between the PR’s personal interests and their duty to the beneficiaries of the estate as a whole, refusal to provide a proper accounting of the estate administration, neglect of estate assets, and deadlock where multiple PRs disagree among themselves.

The invariable consequence is that beneficiaries do not receive what is due to them in a timely manner, while costs threaten to spiral out of control.

However, the courts are equally familiar with dealing with applications to resolve these problems, and this is an area where the application of the legal principles to the unique facts of each case is usually relatively clear and predictable - provided that the ground is prepared before going to court.

This webinar is suitable for those practising in the area of estate administration, who may be acting for a beneficiary or for a PR or may be acting as PR themselves.

The focus will be on dealing with applications to remove a PR, but for those cases where removal will not necessarily solve the problem there will also be discussion of how else the court can be asked to assist at the same time.

What You Will Learn

The webinar will cover the following:

• The legal rules governing when a PR can renounce their office without the court’s involvement and the grounds on which the court can remove a PR before or after a grant
• The well-trodden approach to applications for the removal of a PR established by the modern caselaw
• Practical guidance on maximising the prospects of success with a removal application, and being in the strongest position when arguing about the costs
• Guidance on how a professional PR can appropriately respond where their removal is sought
• What can be done in cases of greater urgency?
• What can be done to facilitate the estate administration after removal of a problematic PR?
• When a claim for an account will be useful and how such a claim proceeds in practice

This pre-recorded webinar will be available to view from Friday 27th March 2026

Alternatively, you can gain access to this webinar and 1,900+ others via the MBL Webinar Subscription. Please email webinarsubscription@mblseminars.com for more details.