The High Court has ruled that a solicitor executor may recover his costs of defending proceedings brought by the sole residuary beneficiary of an estate, after the beneficiary did not pursue his bid to remove the executor and the estate administration was completed.
Mr Justice Mark Sanfey delivered the judgment on 12 October 2021. The dispute concerned the estate of Oliver Sherry, who died in December 2015. His will named solicitor Daire Murphy as executor and left the residue to Kieran Crowley, described in the will as Sherry’s “assistant”. The estate’s net value was recorded at €1,819,424 in the grant of probate issued in February 2018.
Crowley’s 2019 special summons sought, among other reliefs, transfer of the deceased’s Dublin 4 property, accounts of the estate, completion of its administration within three months, and—if necessary—Murphy’s removal as executor. Crowley alleged delay, failures to protect estate assets and answer queries, and breach of trust and fiduciary duty. Murphy disputed those allegations and said that issues including the deceased’s disorganised affairs, tax matters, the property’s title and a possible family challenge to the will had affected the administration.
The case did not proceed to a decision on whether Murphy should be removed. By November 2020, the parties accepted that administration was almost complete. Murphy undertook to finish it within three months, and Crowley contested who should bear the costs. In June 2021, they told the court that the administration was complete, subject to a precautionary liberty for Crowley to apply, and asked the judge to decide costs.
The judge considered whether the proceedings were justified and whether they had brought about the completion of the estate. He noted there was no independent expert evidence that the time taken or the way the estate was administered justified the relief sought. Nor was there evidence establishing loss to the estate, Murphy’s responsibility for failed property sales, or the amount of any alleged loss.
The court found that the administration had taken longer than Crowley wanted and that Murphy might sometimes have answered queries or acted more quickly. But it was not satisfied that the proceedings were the event that caused the executor to complete his work. The judge said they were not an appropriate means of expediting an administration that was largely complete when the action began. He also found that Crowley had not established a breach of trust.
The court said there was no sufficient evidence to disallow any portion of Murphy’s costs and saw no reason why he should not recover his costs of the proceedings or his necessary fees and costs in administering the estate. The parties were directed to try to agree appropriate orders. If they could not, each could submit no more than 500 words within 14 days, after which the court would make orders without further reference to them. The judgment did not set a final costs amount.