When people in Pennsylvania begin to consider making or updating a will, they may focus initially on how they want their assets distributed after they die. Certainly, this is an important thing to address with a will. However, it is equally important to give clear thought to who shall be named as the executor of a will. The decision to identify someone to essentially manage an estate is not a popularity contest and should be taken seriously.
As explained by Forbes, an executor must be able to deal with a variety of legal and financial matters, including filing tax returns and more. For this reason, an executor of a will should be someone with some prior experience that would allow them to understand or quickly learn the nuances of the job.
Navigating complex and even adversarial disputes among beneficiaries may well be part of the realities that an executor will face. For this reason, Kiplinger recommends that any named executor be someone with the emotional intelligence and savvy to deal with these. In addition, it may be best to avoid naming a beneficiary as an executor. This can be especially true in the case of a person who has multiple children. Identifying one child to act as the beneficiary may set up a conflict between siblings that need not exist.
Finally, in addition to a primary executor, at least one backup executor should be named in the event that the originally named person is unable to serve when the time comes around.