Have estate resources gone missing?

 Posted on January 28, 2026 in Probate Litigation

Estate administration can take months to complete. During that time, beneficiaries and heirs may need to wait to receive property. They may only actually inherit assets after the personal representative has fulfilled their obligations to pay taxes and settle accounts with creditors.

Unfortunately, when the time comes to make distributions to those expecting to inherit, critical resources may have gone missing. Intended beneficiaries and expectant heirs may need to take legal action in cases where resources go missing from an estate and a personal representative cannot properly account for them.

Thorough records should be available

Financial record-keeping is one of the most important obligations associated with the state administration. Personal representatives should inventory assets at the beginning of the probate process. They should keep records of all assets that they distribute to individuals and any property that they liquidate through an estate sale or for the purpose of reimbursing creditors.

If records do not indicate what happened to valuable estate resources, then there may be reason to question whether the personal representative misappropriated those resources or failed to properly secure them. Concerned beneficiaries and heirs can take legal action in response to lost estate resources.

Personal representatives may sometimes be directly responsible for the value of those resources. Other times, the courts may agree to replace them with a different personal representative to prevent additional losses and misconduct.

Probate litigation is often the only way to effectively address misappropriation of estate resources. Reviewing asset inventories and financial records with a lawyer can help concerned parties determine if actionable misconduct may have occurred.