May 9th, 2012

Estate beneficiaries’ happiness is inversely proportional to the amount of money spent by an administrator for professional help.  That’s why we see a lot of disputes not over the hiring of a professional, but over the appropriateness of the total amount paid to a professional hired to help settle an estate, such as an attorney or accountant.

In Murphy v. Prescott (unpublished), the Appeals Court of Massachusetts weighed in on a group of heirs’ claims that certain fees paid to the administrator, an attorney, and an accountant in connection with settling an estate were unreasonable.   The appellate court also gave some helpful advice to attorneys about those pesky time sheets. (more…)