Ask a Lawyer - Archive

My mother, a resident of Long Island NY, passed away last June. I hired an estate attorney to help me settle the estate. I am the executor. Her estate was just under $1 million and the Estate Tax Return has been filed by the Attorney. I just filed her state and federal income taxes.

Here is my question: At what point can I end my relationship with this Estate Attorney? It has cost an absolute fortune and I need the relationship to end. She is saying we need to wait to hear whether the state will accept the return or require an audit and then there are continued court inventory items. Once we hear that the estate tax has been accepted - am I done?

Please advise. Thank you!!!

A client can discharge a lawyer at any time for any reason or no reason at all, the only condition being the right of the lawyer to be paid for work done up to the moment of discharge. The practicality of doing so now is determined by what work remains to be done. This lawyer has all the facts. If you hire a new lawyer, that person will have to be brought up to speed, perhaps a time consuming task. As for the "am I done?" question, depending on the identities of the beneficiaries of the estate, you might have to prepare an accounting to show what you received and what you did with it. If the beneficiaries are just you or you and any of your children, then a formal accounting is probably not necessary. If, however, there a number of non-relatives who are beneficiaries, then you have to give thought to doing a formal accounting.