Updated October 2026
CM Law’s Ultimate List: Top 50 FAQs on Administration of Estates | #35: Resolve Outstanding Issues
Promptly resolving outstanding issues and disputes is crucial when administering an estate in New South Wales. Executors must address lingering matters fairly and efficiently to prevent delays, reduce costs and protect the estate’s value. Unpaid debts, unclear instructions and disagreements between beneficiaries can otherwise become expensive obstacles to completing the administration.
The practical starting point is to identify each unresolved issue, establish who must deal with it and set realistic deadlines. Acting promptly also means recognising when further investigation or legal advice is necessary before making payments or transferring assets. Speed should support careful administration, rather than replace it.
1. Identify the outstanding estate issues
Common problems include disputed debts, uncertainty about ownership, missing financial records and disagreement over selling a home or family business. A beneficiary may question the executor’s expenses, while another wants an immediate distribution. Separate these concerns so that one disagreement does not obscure the work needed elsewhere.
Create a written issues register recording the concern, supporting documents, responsible person and next review date. Check bank statements, title records, loan documents and correspondence before accepting a claim. For a disputed valuation, consider an appropriately qualified independent valuer. Keep a record of why a particular course was chosen and what alternatives were considered.
2. Understand which legal dispute you are facing
A challenge to a will’s validity differs from a family provision claim. Validity questions can concern capacity, execution or undue influence. A family provision claim asks whether an eligible person has received adequate provision for their proper maintenance, education or advancement in life. A valid will can still be subject to such a claim.
Modern NSW family provision claims are governed by Chapter 3 of the Succession Act 2006. The Family Provision Act 1982 has been repealed. Eligibility is legally defined; dissatisfaction with an inheritance does not, by itself, establish a right to additional provision.
An application generally must be filed within 12 months after death. A late application requires the parties’ consent or a court order allowing it on sufficient cause. Neither should be assumed. Negotiations do not stop that deadline. Legal Aid NSW’s family provision guidance explains eligibility and the application process. Obtain advice promptly about protecting any claim.
Where the concern is the will’s validity, preserve the original will and relevant records and seek advice before a grant is made. A probate caveat may be appropriate in some circumstances, but it requires a proper legal basis. A family provision dispute does not automatically justify lodging a caveat. Choosing the correct procedure early helps avoid spending estate money on the wrong application.
3. Keep administering the estate fairly
The executor must act carefully and impartially, protect estate assets and keep proper accounts. Being a beneficiary does not remove those duties. Keep estate money separate from personal funds and distinguish your own inheritance interests from your responsibilities as executor.
Maintain necessary insurance, secure vacant premises and arrange essential maintenance. Check who has authority to make decisions if a business is involved. Give beneficiaries measured updates explaining completed work, outstanding questions and expected next steps. Avoid promising a distribution date before the relevant debts, tax and claims have been assessed. Clear communication can prevent uncertainty from developing into suspicion.
4. Resolve debts and tax questions before distributing
Investigate creditor claims and retain invoices, contracts and evidence of payment. Do not assume every demand is valid or ignore a claim because beneficiaries dislike it. If the estate may be insolvent, obtain advice about payment priorities before choosing which creditors to pay.
Ask the accountant to identify outstanding returns and tax liabilities, and allow for those amounts in the estate budget. The deceased’s final individual return and estate tax returns are separate matters. Leave sufficient funds for unresolved liabilities and administration expenses. Discovering another account, asset or debt may require the figures and proposed distributions to be revised.
Negotiation is more useful when everyone has the relevant documents and understands the real disagreement. Mediation provides a structured opportunity to discuss solutions with an independent mediator. Possible outcomes include an agreed sale process, an independently valued buyout or a timetable for providing accounts. Record any binding settlement carefully, including payment dates, releases and responsibility for costs.
The NSW Supreme Court’s 2024 Annual Review records 548 court-annexed mediation listings in Succession and Probate, compared with 248 in 2023. Across all civil categories, 707 cases proceeded to court-annexed mediation and 47% settled by the session’s close. Those figures are not an estate-specific settlement rate and do not measure private mediation outcomes.
6. A real NSW case: when delay leads to removal
In Smith v Pallister (2026), the NSW Supreme Court considered an estate whose administration had stalled. The deceased left her estate equally to five children and allowed her son, who was also executor, to occupy the principal estate property for 12 months after her death. After that period expired, the property remained unsold and communication with the other beneficiaries was poor.
The Court found that the executor’s delay was unexplained and unreasonable. It revoked his grant of probate and appointed two of his sisters as administrators with the will annexed. The former executor had to hand over estate property, funds and records, and provide an affidavit accounting for his administration. He was also ordered to pay the successful applicants’ costs personally on the ordinary basis.
The practical lesson is that personal circumstances and unresolved disagreements cannot justify allowing administration to stand still indefinitely. Removal is a serious remedy concerned with proper administration; ordinary family friction does not automatically justify replacing an executor.
7. Check the position before distributing assets
A notice of intended distribution can provide an executor with protection from personal liability in specified circumstances. Relevant statutory protections generally involve waiting at least six months after death and allowing at least 30 days under the notice. The exact requirements depend on the type of claim and applicable legislation.
Publishing a notice does not authorise ignoring a known claim. Nor does the six-month period replace the usual 12-month family provision deadline. Obtain advice before relying on these protections or making an interim payment. Legal Aid NSW’s distribution guidance explains why early distributions can create personal liability. An adequate reserve and a documented assessment are essential considerations where liabilities remain unresolved.
Before a proposed payment, update the estate accounts and identify which assets and liabilities remain. Check whether a claim, tax assessment or sale cost could exceed the available reserve. Explain any justified delay to beneficiaries and give a review date. If more information is needed, identify exactly what is missing and who is obtaining it, rather than leaving the administration open-ended.
8. Escalate persistent problems and control costs
If negotiations fail, identify the particular court order needed. Depending on the problem, that might involve interpretation of the will, production of accounts or replacement of a personal representative. An executor may also seek judicial advice about an administration question under section 63 of the Trustee Act 1925. These matters generally belong in the NSW Supreme Court; NCAT is not the general forum for probate or family provision disputes.
Where property is deteriorating, money appears to be missing or a sale deadline is approaching, ask about urgent protective steps. A mediation timetable should not prevent necessary action to safeguard assets. Equally, a demand for immediate litigation should be tested against the evidence, the available remedies and the costs. A clear written action plan helps the executor remain accountable while bringing the estate closer to completion.
Ask for staged cost estimates and compare the likely expense with the value and importance of the issue. Estate litigation costs are not automatically paid from estate funds, and personal costs orders are possible. Seek advice from CM Lawyers’ estate administration team when a dispute or unexplained delay threatens to consume the inheritance you are responsible for protecting.
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