Title: In re Estate of Perry

State: vermont

Issuer: Vermont Supreme Court

Document:

ENTRY ORDER

                      SUPREME COURT DOCKET NO. 90-483

                              JUNE TERM, 1991


In re Estate of Perry             }          APPEALED FROM:
                                  }
                                  }
                                  }          Probate Court
                                  }          Westminster District
                                  }
                                  }
                                  }          DOCKET NO. 90-102


             In the above entitled cause the Clerk will enter:

     Appellant, an attorney and the ancillary administrator of the Perry
estate, appeals from a decree of distribution in which the probate court
ordered him to pay the heirs of the estate $1,000 in imputed interest
because of his failure for more than fifteen months to place approximately
$22,000 of estate funds into an interest-bearing account for the benefit of
the heirs.  Appellant argues that the court erred because (1) he had no duty
to place estate funds in an interest-bearing account absent a request by the
parties or an order by the court to do so, and (2) he had no reason to
believe that there would be significant delays in distribution of the funds.
We conclude that the probate court did not abuse its discretion, given the
circumstances of this case.

     An administrator may be charged with interest on estate funds received
by him when he unreasonably or unnecessarily allows them to remain idle.
Riley v. McInlear's Estate, 61 Vt. 254, 264, 17 A. 729, 733 (1889); Slade v.
Slade, 10 Vt. 192, 195 (1838).  Whether an administrator will be charged
with interest on such funds depends on the particular facts and circum-
stances of each case, Riley, 61 Vt. at 263-64, 17 A.  at 733; Slade, 10 Vt.
at 195, and lies within the discretion of the trial court.  See, e.g., In re
Estate of Kugler, 117 Wis. 2d 314, 322,