Expert: John Varghese - 3/7/2011

Question
I have a situation where 1 member of a 3 person S-Corp board died. The deceased (Mary) has 50% of the shares and a second person has the other 50%. One of the deceased family member’s (John) has said he was appointed to take care of Mary’s affairs; there is no Will. The question is does John automatically assume Mary’s placement on the board and her position on the board? Assuming John can legally prove Mary appointed him her executor.

Answer
Hi,

John will not automatically become administer of Mary's affairs unless there is a will. He has to apply to a court to get himself appointed as the administrator of Mary's estate. Executor or administrator is appointed either by the will or by process of court. Since Mary does not have a will, there is no other way the administrator or executor can be appointed. John has no other way to legally prove that he has been appointed executor by Mary. Hope this is clear.

Regards