Can an executor be removed?

Yes, an executor can be removed. The Master of the High Court can remove an executor on application, and so can the High Court. The Administration of Estates Act 66 of 1965 gives the Master that power where the executor fails to perform their duties, is disqualified from holding the office, or acts in a way that is against the interests of the estate or the heirs.

That said, most families who want an executor removed do not actually need to remove anyone. They need the executor to answer the phone, produce an account and finish the job. Removal starts the estate again from the beginning with someone new, which usually costs more time than it saves. So the sensible order is to complain in writing first, then object to the account, and only then apply to remove.

What counts as a reason to remove

The Master is not looking for a family that is unhappy. It is looking for an executor who cannot or will not do the work, or who should never have been appointed. In broad terms, the grounds are these.

Failure to perform. The executor does not report, does not open an estate account, does not advertise, does not lodge a liquidation and distribution account, does not answer the Master's queries, or simply goes quiet for a long stretch with no explanation.

Disqualification. The executor is insolvent, has been convicted of a crime involving dishonesty, has become mentally incapable, or has left the country without arranging for the estate to be administered.

Acting against the interests of the estate. The executor is using estate money for their own purposes, selling assets to themselves or to family at a low price, favouring one heir over another, refusing to pay a valid creditor, or is personally at odds with the estate because they are also a claimant against it.

Conflict of interest. The executor is on both sides of a transaction, or is defending a claim that they themselves brought against the estate.

Simply being slow is not enough on its own. Deceased estates are slow by nature. Read how long it takes to wind up a deceased estate so you can judge whether the delay is unusual or normal. Disagreeing with a decision the executor was entitled to make is also not enough. Nor is disliking the executor.

How it works step by step

1. Write to the executor. Set out exactly what you want, ask for a written report on the estate and a date by which the account will be lodged, and give a fair deadline. Keep a copy. This letter is the foundation of everything that follows.
2. Write to the Master if the deadline passes. Quote the estate reference number, attach your letter to the executor and their reply or lack of one, and set out the facts. Ask the Master to call for a report from the executor. The Master can require the executor to explain.
3. Object to the liquidation and distribution account. Once the executor lodges the account, it lies open for inspection at the Master's office and at the magistrate's office for the area, and an interested party may lodge a written objection with the Master during that period. This is the cheapest and most effective moment to raise a real problem, because the Master must consider the objection before the account is confirmed.
4. Apply to the Master to remove the executor if the failure continues. Set out the grounds, attach the correspondence, and explain what harm the estate has suffered. The Master will give the executor a chance to answer.
5. Apply to the High Court where the Master will not act, where the facts are disputed, or where you also need an urgent order, for example to stop an asset being sold.
6. A new executor is appointed. The Master issues fresh letters of executorship. The estate does not start over completely, but the new executor must satisfy themselves about everything already done.

An executor can also resign. If the person is willing to step down, ask them to do so in writing to the Master. That is far quicker than removal and avoids a fight nobody wants.

A worked example

The names and figures are illustrative only.

Lerato's uncle Petrus was appointed executor of her mother's estate. Eleven months after the letters of executorship were issued, nothing has happened. Petrus does not return calls. Lerato hears from a neighbour that the family car has been sold and that Petrus is driving a newer one.

Lerato writes to Petrus by email and registered post. She asks for a written report on what has been collected and paid, a copy of the estate bank statement, and a date for the liquidation and distribution account. She gives him 21 days.

He does not reply. She writes to the Master, quotes the estate reference number, attaches her letter and the proof of posting, and sets out three facts: no account has been lodged in eleven months, no report has been given to the heirs, and an estate asset appears to have been sold without the heirs being told what it fetched. She asks the Master to call for a report.

The Master writes to Petrus requiring an explanation. Petrus produces a bank statement showing the car sold for R48 000, which went into the estate account, and lodges the account two months later. The problem was communication, not dishonesty. Lerato reads the account while it lies open for inspection and lodges no objection.

Had the money not been in the estate account, Lerato's next step would have been an application to the Master to remove Petrus, on the grounds that he had failed to perform and had dealt with an estate asset against the interests of the estate.

What to do this week

1. Get the estate reference number. Every letter to the Master needs it.
2. Write to the executor. Ask for a written report, a copy of the estate bank statement and a date for the account. Set a deadline of two or three weeks.
3. Send it in a way you can prove. Email plus registered post. Keep the proof of posting.
4. Write down a timeline of what has happened and when, with dates. The Master reads facts, not feelings.
5. Find out whether the account has been lodged, by phoning the Master's office with the reference number.
6. Ask when the account lies open for inspection, so you do not miss the window to object.
7. Do not take estate assets into your own hands, however justified it feels. It weakens your position immediately.

Documents to gather

• the estate reference number and the letters of executorship
• a copy of the will, or the next-of-kin affidavit if there is no will
• every letter, email and message between you and the executor
• proof that you are an heir, creditor or otherwise an interested party
• the liquidation and distribution account, if one has been lodged
• estate bank statements, if you have been given them
• proof of any asset that has been sold, transferred or is missing
• a dated timeline of events, one line per event
• proof of any loss the estate has suffered

Realistic timeline

Writing to the executor and getting a reply, or not, takes about a month. A letter to the Master asking for a report typically produces movement within a couple of months, because the executor must answer. An objection to the account is decided by the Master after the inspection period closes, which adds a further stretch depending on the office.

An application to the Master to remove an executor takes months rather than weeks, because the executor must be given a chance to respond. A High Court application takes longer still and is the most expensive route. In every case, appointing a new executor adds time to the estate, because the new appointee has to check everything the old one did.

Common mistakes and what they cost

• Complaining by phone only. The Master acts on documents. A call leaves no record and no deadline.
• Missing the inspection period. Once the account is confirmed, your options narrow sharply and usually move to court. Objecting while the account lies open is far cheaper.
• Confusing slow with dishonest. An accusation of theft that turns out to be a delay damages your credibility on the real complaint.
• Attacking the executor's fee instead of the conduct. Fee complaints are a separate issue and rarely justify removal. See the executor fees and estate duty calculator and what an executor does and how much they charge.
• Going straight to the High Court. Court is sometimes necessary, but starting there when the Master could have handled it wastes money the estate will end up paying.
• Removing an executor who was about to finish. If the account is nearly done, removal can add another year.
• Not identifying yourself as an interested party. The Master needs to know why you have standing to complain. Say plainly that you are an heir under the will, or an intestate heir, or a creditor.

If you cannot afford an attorney

You do not need an attorney to complain to the Master. The Master's office deals with the public directly, and a plain letter with the estate reference number, a timeline and copies of your correspondence is enough to start. Objections to a liquidation and distribution account are also lodged directly by an interested party, in writing, during the inspection period.

Small estates administered under section 18(3) letters of authority have no executor and no executor's fee. If the person holding the letters of authority is the problem, the same complaint route applies.

Legal Aid South Africa on 0800 110 110 assists people who pass its means test. University law clinics in most large centres help with estate complaints and will often write the letter for you. For the cost of instructing an attorney if you decide you need one, see what a wills and estates attorney costs.

Frequently asked questions

The three questions families ask most are whether the heirs can simply vote the executor out, whether the executor has to show them the bank statements, and whether removal means starting again. The heirs cannot vote an executor out, because the appointment comes from the Master and only the Master or a court can undo it. An executor must account to the Master, and heirs are entitled to see the liquidation and distribution account when it lies open. Removal does not restart the estate, but it does slow it down. The answers below cover the rest.