Executor of an Estate in Alabama: Duties, Powers & Pay

Being named executor in a loved one's will is an honor, and an immediate source of practical questions. What do you actually have to do? Where do you go first? What documents do you need? Critically: you cannot touch a single estate asset until the Alabama probate court formally appoints you and issues your legal authority to act.

At Colvin & Sawyer Law Offices, we guide executors and administrators across Birmingham, Mountain Brook, Hoover, Vestavia Hills, and throughout Alabama through every stage of the probate process, beginning with that very first court filing.

Executor, Administrator, or Personal Representative?

These terms get used interchangeably and they are not the same thing.

Term	What it means
Executor	Named in a will and appointed by the court
Administrator	Appointed when there is no will, or no named executor can serve
Personal representative	The broader legal term covering both

Alabama statutes generally use "personal representative." For the duties that apply to both roles, see personal representative duties in Alabama.

What Does an Executor Actually Do in Alabama?

Getting appointed is the beginning. The job itself runs through the whole administration:

• Secure the estate. Lock the house, maintain insurance and utilities, protect valuables, and gather documents. Do not start distributing or discarding belongings because you were named in the will.
• Inventory and value the assets. Real estate, accounts, investments, vehicles, personal property, business interests, and debts owed to the deceased.
• Notify heirs, beneficiaries, and creditors, including publication and actual notice to creditors who are known or reasonably ascertainable.
• Pay valid debts, expenses, and taxes, including coordinating the final personal income tax return.
• Manage estate property during administration, including selling it where appropriate and authorized.
• Keep detailed records of every receipt and disbursement.
• Distribute what remains under the will once obligations are accounted for.
• File a final accounting and close the estate.

What Assets Does the Executor NOT Control?

An executor controls probate assets only. Property that passes outside probate is not yours to administer: assets in a funded trust, accounts with payable-on-death designations, securities registered transfer-on-death, retirement accounts and life insurance with living named beneficiaries, and property held with valid survivorship rights. See what passes outside probate in Alabama.

How Much Does an Executor Get Paid in Alabama?

You may have heard "executors get 5 percent." That shorthand is misleading. Alabama Code Section 43-2-848 entitles a personal representative to reasonable compensation, with the ordinary-services ceiling expressed as two separate 2.5 percent calculations:

• Up to 2.5% of the value of property received and under the personal representative's possession and control, plus
• Up to 2.5% of disbursements

The court may allow additional reasonable compensation for extraordinary services, and it may also set compensation below the maximum based on factors like the difficulty of the administration, the skill required, and the results obtained. It is not a flat percentage of the gross estate, and it is not simply whatever the executor decides to take.

Compensation vs. Reimbursement

These get confused constantly and cause real family friction. Compensation is payment for your work as executor. Reimbursement is repayment of legitimate estate expenses you paid out of your own pocket, such as filing fees, publication costs, or maintaining the property. Reimbursement is not income and is not part of your fee. Document both carefully.

Family members frequently renounce compensation entirely. That is a personal choice, not a requirement.

What an Executor Cannot Do

• Change the will or cut a beneficiary out. The will controls; the executor executes it.
• Treat estate property as their own, including using the deceased person's debit card or living in estate property rent-free without authority.
• Distribute assets early before obligations are accounted for. Doing so can create personal liability.
• Pay whoever asks first. Claims have to be valid and properly presented.
• Sell property without proper authority under the will, statute, or court approval.
• Ignore beneficiaries or refuse to account for what has happened.

Who Has More Power, the Executor or the Beneficiary?

The executor controls administration. Beneficiaries do not direct day-to-day decisions or take estate property on their own. But that authority is not ownership, it is a fiduciary role, and beneficiaries have real rights: to be notified as the process requires, to receive an accounting, and to ask the court to intervene when something is wrong.

Warning Signs of Executor Misconduct

• Prolonged silence and no accounting
• Estate funds mixed with personal accounts
• Property sold quietly or below value, especially to a relative
• Distributions to some beneficiaries but not others
• No visible movement in the case for long stretches

An executor can be removed by the court and held personally liable for losses caused by breaching their duties. If you are a beneficiary and something looks wrong, start by reviewing the probate docket and requesting an accounting, then get independent counsel if your interests and the executor's diverge.

Executors and Bank Accounts

This generates more questions than almost anything else.

• Can you use the deceased person's debit card? No. Stop using it immediately, even for what feel like estate expenses. It is not your account.
• Can you withdraw money from their account? Once you have Letters Testamentary, you can collect estate funds and move them into the estate account as part of administration. Not before.
• What about joint accounts? An account held jointly with survivorship rights may pass to the surviving owner and not be an estate asset at all.
• POD accounts? These pass to the named beneficiary outside probate and are not under executor control.

Can an Executor Sell Estate Property?

Often yes, but authority matters. Whether you can sell a house depends on the will's terms, the estate's circumstances, Alabama statutes, and in some cases court approval. Vehicles and personal property are usually simpler, but the same principle applies: authority first, then sale, with proper documentation of value. For real estate specifically, see transferring property after death in Alabama.

How Long Does an Executor Have, and How Long Can They Hold Money?

Alabama's creditor claim period sets the floor. Claims must be presented within six months after letters are granted or five months after first publication, whichever is later, so estates do not close quickly. Beyond that, an executor must settle and distribute the estate as expeditiously and efficiently as is consistent with the estate's best interests. Holding funds indefinitely without explanation is not normal. See how long Alabama probate takes.

Common Executor Mistakes

• Distributing assets before debts and expenses are resolved
• Running estate money through a personal account
• Paying claims in the wrong order or paying invalid ones
• Failing to secure or insure estate property
• Discarding or giving away belongings without authority
• Not documenting expenses and reimbursements
• Going silent on beneficiaries
• Selling property without proper authority
• Missing creditor or court deadlines
• Treating non-probate assets as if they were estate property

How Do You Become Executor of an Estate in Alabama?

Being named in a will does not make you the executor. The probate court appoints you. Here is the sequence.

Step 1: Locate the Original Will

Alabama probate courts require the original will, a photocopy is not sufficient. The original is typically kept in a fireproof safe, with the deceased's attorney, or in a safe deposit box. Alabama law allows the named executor to access a safe deposit box for the limited purpose of retrieving the will even before formal appointment.

Step 2: File the Petition to Open the Estate

File a petition with the probate court in the county where the deceased lived. For most Birmingham-area families this is Jefferson County Probate Court or Shelby County Probate Court.

Step 3: Present the Will for Probate

The original will must be presented to the court along with the petition. The court reviews the will to confirm it meets Alabama's legal requirements. If the will is self-proved (signed before a notary), the process is typically faster.

Step 4: Receive Letters Testamentary

Once the court approves your petition and admits the will, it issues Letters Testamentary, the document that gives you legal authority to act on behalf of the estate. Get multiple certified copies, you will need them for banks, financial institutions, and government agencies.

Step 5: Open an Estate Bank Account

Open a separate bank account in the name of the estate. All estate funds should flow through this account. Commingling estate funds with personal funds is a serious fiduciary breach.

Step 6: Notify Creditors and Begin Administration

Publish the required creditor notice, notify known creditors, prepare the estate inventory, and begin administration. From this point, your duties as described in: What Is a Personal Representative in Alabama? Most executors find that having an Alabama probate attorney handle the court filings and creditor process removes the risk of a costly misstep during administration.

What If There Is No Will?

When someone dies without a will in Alabama, the court appoints an administrator and issues Letters of Administration. Alabama's intestate succession laws determine who has priority, typically the surviving spouse first, then adult children. The authority and duties are the same as an executor. See: Alabama Intestate Succession.