Being asked to act as an executor is a great honour, and a big responsibility — you’re the final instrument in what may have been years of planning. Here are five of the most common mistakes executors make and why to avoid them.

1. Failing to follow the terms of the will

Your primary duty as an executor is to administer the estate and distribute assets according to the terms of the will. It can be tempting, especially if you were close to the deceased, to trust your own knowledge of his or her final wishes instead of what’s laid out in the will.

This is especially the case with personal effects. For instance, although Aunt Hazel’s will may say “to distribute my personal effects equally among my nieces and nephews,” executors sometimes think it’s okay to distribute the property in the way they feel Aunt Hazel would have wanted. This is wrong. If Aunt Hazel really wanted your cousin to receive a tchotchke from Niagara Falls, the will would have said so.

Lesson learned: Failing to provide everyone with their entitlements as per the terms of a will may lead to a claim by a disappointed beneficiary, adding headache to heartbreak.

2. Failing to properly interpret the will

A will is a binding legal document and, for better or worse, it reads like one. Unfamiliar and sometimes downright confusing terms such as in specie, per stirpes, per capita, issue and devise are commonly seen in wills. And that’s leaving aside less frequent but not uncommon terms such as hotchpot and en ventre sa mere.

Even if you plan on tackling the estate administration itself alone, you should consider seeking legal advice to first interpret the will.

Lesson learned: Improperly interpreting a will resulting in a loss to one or more beneficiaries may lead to a claim and open you to personal liability.

3. Going it alone

With today’s increasingly complex family structures, estate and tax legislation, being an executor is a more challenging task than ever. Yet, you may feel a responsibility to do everything yourself.

This sense of obligation can be misplaced. As a general rule, you may delegate administrative duties, such as securing estate assets, preparing estate accounting and income tax preparation and filing. With the possible exception of investment choices, it’s discretionary decisions — e.g., whether to accept an offer for estate-owned property — that you can’t delegate.

Inexperience, lack of expertise and unfamiliarity with the rules, including various laws and the applicable standard of care, may end up costing more than seeking help at the start. For example, doing all the tax work yourself can mean missing out on potential savings, adding extra costs to the estate.

Lesson learned: When you’re struggling to figure things out on your own, it translates into wasted time and money. The DIY option can be more costly in the long run.

4. Keeping mum

As an executor, you have the power to control assets, sell estate property, make payments from estate funds and invest trust property. However, never lose sight of the fact that you’re acting on behalf of the estate beneficiaries, and they have a right to know what’s going on.

The legal duty to account to beneficiaries includes keeping track and producing evidence of all estate property transactions.

But keeping them informed on the status of the administration is a matter of courtesy. Estates usually take longer to administer than expected. A wise executor will ensure the beneficiaries are kept in the loop.

With some help from your advisor or agent, you should establish a timeline and let the beneficiaries know at the outset. The timeline should be periodically reviewed and any changes communicated.

Beneficiaries who are kept in the dark tend to assume the worst. If you fail to set reasonable expectations and communicate regularly, you could end up having to answer annoying phone calls from beneficiaries or more serious ones from their lawyers.

Lesson learned: Keeping beneficiaries happy means keeping them in the loop.

5. Adopting a cavalier attitude

Being an executor is serious business. The role involves a number of duties and obligations. Still, executors often fail to live up to the expected standards. Examples of inappropriate behaviour include:

• commingling estate money with your own;
• failing to keep proper documentation in respect of every estate-related expenditure and receipt of funds;
• failing to collect all debts owed to the estate;
• selling estate property without first obtaining reliable appraisals; failing to secure and protect all estate assets;
• failing to actively pursue the administration; and
• taking compensation in the absence of a fee agreement or beneficiary approval.

A beneficiary is justified to complain about any of these acts.

Lesson learned: Failing to take the job seriously and properly discharge duties and obligations may result in personal liability.

Being a good executor and avoiding these common blunders won’t just save the estate money; it’ll also save you time, hassles, and possible legal troubles.