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Executor Disputes: What Happens When Executors Cannot Agree?
A practical Victorian guide for co-executors facing deadlock — how the law treats joint decision-making, what the Court can do when executors cannot agree, and the steps that can prevent disputes from developing in the first place.
Many Wills appoint more than one executor. The reasoning is usually sound — shared responsibility, shared workload, and the comfort of having two trusted people overseeing the estate together. But where co-executors fall out, the estate has a real problem. The administration cannot move forward, beneficiaries cannot receive their entitlements, and the costs quickly mount.
This article looks at how Victorian law treats joint executors, why disputes between them happen, what options exist when they cannot agree, and how to avoid the problem in the first place.
Multiple Executors
A Will may appoint two or more executors. They take their authority jointly. Most major decisions — selling property, transferring shares, paying out beneficiaries, commencing or compromising litigation — require all executors to act together. Some routine matters can be attended to by one executor, but the safe assumption is that the Will-maker expected the executors to function as a team.
That structure works well where the executors trust each other and share an approach. It can fail badly where they do not.
Deadlock Situations
Deadlock arises when a decision is needed and the executors cannot agree. Common examples include:
- whether to sell or retain a property forming part of the estate;
- the marketing strategy, agent or reserve for an estate property sale;
- whether to make an interim distribution to beneficiaries;
- whether to engage particular lawyers, accountants or valuers;
- whether to defend a family provision claim or settle it;
- whether to release a beneficiary from a debt owing to the estate; and
- how to deal with personal effects, jewellery and items of sentimental value not specifically mentioned in the Will.
Where the executors are also major beneficiaries, the deadlock can become entangled with their own entitlements, which makes it harder to resolve.
Disputes About Estate Assets
Assets are often at the centre of executor disputes. One executor may insist that a family home is sold to fund distributions; the other may want to keep it because of sentimental attachment, or because they hope to acquire it themselves. Disputes about valuations, hidden assets, or assets allegedly removed before death can deepen the divide.
The executors' duty is to the estate as a whole. Personal preferences should not drive decisions about estate property, and an executor who pushes a personal position too far risks exposing themselves to a removal application or an order to bear costs personally.
Sale of Property
Sale of real estate is the most common flashpoint. Where the Will gives the executors a power of sale and one executor wishes to sell while the other refuses, the options include:
- a directions application asking the Court to authorise the sale and to settle the marketing and reserve terms;
- an application for the appointment of an independent administrator to take carriage of the sale; or
- an application to remove the obstructing executor where their position is unreasonable and is causing loss to the estate.
Distribution Decisions
Distributions cannot be made until debts, taxes, potential family provision claims and the executor's year (or its equivalent for the estate) have been properly worked through. Even then, executors sometimes disagree about timing, the form of distribution (in-specie vs cash), and whether interim distributions are appropriate.
These disputes often look procedural but reflect deeper issues — disagreement about strategy, about the beneficiaries' positions, or about the executors' own interests. Resolving the underlying disagreement is usually more productive than fighting about the mechanics.
Litigation Decisions
Decisions about litigation — whether to defend a family provision claim, whether to pursue a debt owed to the estate, whether to challenge a contested asset — are squarely within the executors' joint responsibility. Where they cannot agree, the safest course is usually a directions application: the Court can sanction a particular course of action and protect the executors from later criticism.
For more on the executor's role in claims against the estate, see our companion article on defending a family provision claim.
Mediation Options
Many co-executor disputes are well suited to mediation. The issues are usually a mix of legal and personal; the people involved often have a long shared history; and the financial cost of running the disputes formally is disproportionate to the amounts at stake.
A structured mediation — with the executors, their respective lawyers and an experienced mediator — can produce a workable protocol for the rest of the administration, even where the executors will not socially reconcile.
Court Intervention
Where mediation does not resolve the dispute, the Supreme Court of Victoria can intervene in several ways:
- Directions. The Court can direct the executors how to proceed on a particular question. This is the least invasive remedy and works well for one-off issues.
- Appointment of an additional or substitute executor. An independent professional executor can be appointed to break the deadlock and take carriage of the administration.
- Removal. Where one executor's conduct is the source of the problem, the Court can remove them under section 34 of the Act. Our companion article on removing or replacing an executor in Victoria explains that process in detail.
- Passing of accounts. The Court can order the executors to file and pass accounts, providing transparency and accountability where the beneficiaries are concerned about the administration.
Practical Ways to Avoid Disputes
Most co-executor disputes are avoidable. At the estate-planning stage:
- choose executors who can work together — shared history of cooperation matters more than family symmetry;
- be realistic about whether co-executors are necessary at all — a single competent executor with a well-chosen backup is often a better arrangement;
- consider an independent professional executor where the family is divided or where the estate is complex;
- spell out specific powers in the Will — for example, a clear power of sale of the family home and a clear direction about timing;
- record the testator's reasons for non-obvious decisions; and
- talk to the proposed executors before signing the Will and make sure they understand and accept the role.
For Victorians thinking about appointment of executors and broader estate planning, see our companion guide on why every Victorian adult needs a Will and our overview of testamentary trusts.
When Legal Advice Should Be Obtained
Executors should obtain legal advice as soon as a material disagreement emerges. Early advice often de-escalates the situation: a clear explanation of the executors' joint obligations, the cost trajectory of continued disagreement and the available alternatives tends to focus minds.
Where a beneficiary becomes aware of a deadlock between executors that is affecting the administration, they should also obtain advice. Beneficiaries have rights — including the right to call for accounts and to apply for directions in some circumstances — and an early letter, properly framed, often produces the cooperation that the executors themselves could not.
For an overview of the executor's underlying obligations, see the duties of an executor in Victoria and our step-by-step guide to probate in Victoria.
Related Reading
- Removing or Replacing an Executor in Victoria
- The Duties of an Executor in Victoria
- Family Provision Claims in Victoria
- Probate in Victoria
- Testamentary Trusts Explained
Frequently Asked Questions
Can one co-executor act alone?
Generally no. Co-executors must act jointly. Most dealings with real estate, share transfers, sales of significant assets and distributions to beneficiaries require all executors to sign. Some routine administrative steps can be taken by one, but the default position is that executors act together.
What happens when co-executors deadlock?
Where executors cannot agree on a decision that the administration requires, the estate stalls. Either executor can ask the Supreme Court of Victoria for directions, for the appointment of an independent administrator, or for the removal of one of them. Mediation between the executors, often with their lawyers, resolves many of these deadlocks without proceedings.
Can one executor force a sale of property?
Not unilaterally. A sale of estate real estate requires the agreement of all executors. Where one executor refuses to sell — for example, because they wish to acquire the property themselves — the other can apply to the Court for directions or for the appointment of a sole executor or administrator.
Who pays for the dispute?
Costs of legitimate directions applications are often paid out of the estate. Costs of disputes driven by an executor's misconduct or unreasonable position may be ordered personally against that executor. Costs of disputes between executors that should have been resolved by negotiation are vulnerable to being denied indemnity from the estate.
How can disputes between executors be prevented?
Choosing executors carefully is the most important step. Two executors with a history of conflict, very different financial situations, or competing personal interests in the estate are a foreseeable problem. Where co-executors are appointed, a clear, well-drafted Will and an early conversation with the lawyer administering the estate go a long way.
Contested Wills & TFM Claims
Co-Executors Cannot Agree?
We advise Victorian executors and beneficiaries on deadlock, directions applications and the practical steps that resolve co-executor disputes without unnecessary cost to the estate.
This article is general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Please obtain advice tailored to your circumstances.