Abike had always dreamt about her wedding and as soon as she got engaged, she started bragging to her friends about how perfect, fun, and forever remembered, the day will be. On Saturday the 13th of June, Abike got married to Doyin. Just as she predicted, it was a wedding that was going to be forever remembered, but not for how beautiful it was. The first issue occurred when they found out the cake hadn’t arrived, next the food wasn’t going to be enough and lastly the guests weren’t properly ushered-in which led to a lot of mix-up in the sitting arrangement and the hall having a lot of uninvited guests.
What caused the delay in the arrival of the cake? Well, the event planner mixed up the address of the venue; thereby sharing the wrong address with the baker who was now stuck in traffic at the other side of town with the cake. Also, after agreeing her fees with Abike, the event planner later realized she didn’t charge well enough for her fees, so in order to make up for that, she decided to cut some corners on the money budgeted for food and drinks. This was what led to a shortage of food for the guests. Lastly, being that this was just the second event she was managing, she didn’t place proper emphasis on security and ushering (Well, you can’t really blame her, her first wedding had less than 40 guests.).
Those who have gotten married, know the importance of having a good event planner to organize the activities on the big day. Well, the same logic can also be applied when writing a Will. In the event that you are no more, you don’t want your family and loved ones having issues claiming your property or transferring the ownership of your estate, so what do you do? You appoint an Executor. Just as you require a competent wedding planner to ensure everything goes well on your big day, you should also appoint an executor who is very competent to ensure that your wishes are well executed.
For those who don’t know, an Executor is someone who is nominated by a testator to carry out the final instructions on their Will. Some of the responsibilities of an executor are; locating the beneficiaries of a Will, applying to the court to carry out the administration of the testator’s estate, distribution of assets in the Will amongst the beneficiaries, settling conflicts that may arise during the distribution of the estate. As you can see, all these responsibilities are very important, so you should make sure you carefully select an executor.
The following are 5 traits you need to look out for when appointing your executor.
1. Integrity:
The truth is there is no work of life where every single one practising in that particular field is honest, and executors are not exempted. Just as how the Event planner kept some of the money budgeted for food and drinks to herself, there are times were someone appointed as an executor would make a decision which is unethical or immoral just for their personal gains. Before appointing someone as an executor, carry out a background check to make sure the person or organization has not been found guilty of fraud, malpractice, theft or unethical practices in the past.
2. Organizational Skills:
You need to make sure whoever you appoint as your executor is well organized and detailed, to ensure he/she follows all the necessary procedures in executing the instructions in your Will. If the executor isn’t well organised, he/she is likely to miss out some necessary details or even make mistakes that might be costly for your beneficiaries when inheriting your estate. The difference between an organised executor and a disorganised one can be likened to the mixup in the venue for the delivery of Abike’s wedding cake. The cake will still be delivered, just not at the right time.
3. Experience:
The experience of an executor is very important when deciding who your executor should be. A very experienced executor is familiar with the process involved and will find it easy to carry out his/her job effectively. An inexperienced executor might underestimate or overlook some vital details simply because they might misjudge its importance. So always take note of the executor’s experience, the longer the number of active years as an executor, the better. You don’t want your executor placing little emphasis on the simple things just like how the event planner who didn’t place emphasis on security which led to having unwanted guests.
4. Ability to Resolve Disputes Amicably:
Family members don’t always meet eye-eye on all issues and this is no exception when dividing a beneficiary’s estate because not everyone will be delighted with his or her share, therefore, such undelighted persons may want to cause trouble. As a result, your executor is expected to step in to ensure any disputes that might affect the execution of the wishes in your Will is properly resolved. Your executor should have the necessary patience, sternness and wisdom in handling disputes.
5. Commitment:
Regardless of the field, once an individual lacks commitment, he/she will most likely not deliver as expected on a task, the same logic applies to executors, When selecting an executor, ensure he or she is committed to executing your final wishes stated in the Will. A committed executor will never treat your estate plan as a mere job but instead as an avenue to fulfil someone’s wishes. If the event planner viewed her role as an avenue to make Abike’s wedding one of the most memorable days of her life as opposed to just a job, we can all assume the wedding might have ended better.
Always remember that when writing a Will, appointing the right executors will make a big difference in how well your assets are distributed amongst your beneficiaries. After all, what is the point of having a Will if your Wishes are not well executed? If you need an executor for your Will, why not appoint a reliable, experienced and trust-worthy executor like Leadway Capital and Trust. Feel free to reach us by mail at or call 01 – 2801420.
