Under Section 54 of the Administration of Estates Act, the Master of the High Court has the authority to remove an executor who is guilty of gross inefficiency, maladministration, or failing to perform their fiduciary duties.
You cannot simply "fire" an executor. You must lodge a formal complaint. Use this free tool to generate a legally formatted complaint letter to submit to the Master's Office to request their immediate removal.
Review the draft below. Download the PDF, sign it, attach your supporting evidence (emails, timelines), and email/deliver it to the Master's Office.
TO: THE MASTER OF THE HIGH COURT
Branch:
RE: FORMAL COMPLAINT AND REQUEST FOR REMOVAL OF EXECUTOR IN TERMS OF SECTION 54 OF THE ADMINISTRATION OF ESTATES ACT 66 OF 1965
ESTATE LATE:
ESTATE NUMBER:
Dear Master,
I, the undersigned, , acting in my capacity as an interested party and/or beneficiary in the aforementioned estate, hereby lodge a formal complaint against the appointed executor, .
I respectfully request that the Master considers the immediate removal of the executor from office in accordance with Section 54 of the Administration of Estates Act 66 of 1965.
This request for removal is based primarily on the following grounds:
""
The executor has failed to adequately perform their fiduciary duties, resulting in severe prejudice to the administration of the estate and the beneficiaries. Despite numerous attempts to resolve this matter directly, the executor has failed to rectify the situation.
(Please find attached to this letter my supporting documentation, timeline of events, and relevant correspondence proving this claim).
Given the severity of the situation, I urgently request that your office issues a formal directive to the executor requesting them to provide reasons why their Letters of Executorship should not be revoked, and that their removal be processed without further delay.
I await your urgent response and acknowledgment of receipt.
Yours faithfully,
__________________________
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