Dear Prudence,
After my mother died in 2011, paying out the final $80K of her estate to me and three siblings (as explained by my brother, the executor) was delayed in case there were late bills and/or taxes that needed to be paid. No problem—made sense. Now, though, the executor-brother, after writing in October to say the money was ready to be disbursed, has only sent a payment to one sibling (who had frequently asked him about it). I’ve had no previous reason to distrust him, but when I asked a month ago, he claimed he’d been working dawn to dusk six days a week (he’s self-employed) and had been unable to get to the post office.
He’s also ignored a respectful email from the other unpaid sibling, who, like me, is beginning to smell a rat; we know the executor-brother has tastes that may exceed his income. Frankly, I’m not happy about the idea of politely forgoing $20K of my inheritance. And while it’s not my place to worry if my executor-brother is being financially irresponsible, I am concerned about how all this affects my dear sister-in-law, who I am certain knows nothing about what’s going down. How should I proceed?