imposed on the administrator certain burdens of personal liability if his acts are not strictly in accordance with statute, or if he has taken undue risks in the handling of property in his control. This may be the case even though he was perfectly conscientious in the taking of these risks, hoping thereby to increase the amount which he might distribute. § 557. Service of the Public Accountant It is this frequent lack of fullness in giving detailed explanations of entries that is the usual cause of a public accountant's being called in where it had not been intended to use one. Carelessness and disorder are vices to which both testators and executors are subject, and frequently an accountant is employed because no one without his special training, and the patience which it engenders, could bring order out of the seeming chaos resulting from want of system in recording transactions as they arise.* The sole purpose of keeping estate books is to enable the representative to render an accounting. It is essential that books be kept, and that they be kept in even more detail than would seem to be warranted by the amounts involved were the accounts being kept by or for the decedent himself. The question comes up immediately as to whether an accountant should be employed. This must be decided for the individual case after a study of the complications which are likely to arise in the settlement of the estate, but it is safe to say that in a great many cases in which accountants are not employed, money for the heirs would have been saved had the books been kept from the start by, or under the supervision of, competent accountants. Too often the records are allowed to get into a muddle which costs infinitely more to unravel than would 4 Caldicott, Executorship Accounts. have been the cost of keeping the records properly from the start. This is one of the cases where a stitch in time saves nine. The public accountant is usually worthy of his hire, and while his fees may seem high it is safe to say, in the case of the men sent out by reputable firms, that the speed with which they work and the reasonable assurance of accuracy should more than make up any difference in per diem rates. The courts are coming to recognize this fact, and if an administrator asks that he be allowed the sevices of an accountant, the cost being charged to the estate of the deceased, the request is ordinarily granted. The expense is not likely to diminish the amount to be distributed below what it would be were the accounts improperly kept, with the result that they would have to be straightened out later at extra cost, perhaps with the attorneys for the parties at interest appearing again in court. Public accountants are being called upon more and more to assist in the administration of estates, and estate accounting has become a special branch of the accounting profession. § 558. Choice of the Accountant Care must be used in the selection of the accountant. Just as one would not choose an optician to operate for cancer or select a corporation adviser to defend a murderer, so in picking the accountant to handle a set of estate books one should make sure of getting a man who is familiar with probate practice and the forms of reports used in estate matters. If the accountant is to be of the greatest value he must have a knowledge of testamentary law, for the whole scheme of accounts used is different from that of the ordinary set of commercial books. An examination of Chapter LXVII will show that estate accountancy is a branch entirely alone. If the accountant who is employed is properly trained in estate work he can make himself a very valuable assistant to the attorney and to the representatives. Apart from the accounts an accountant can often render valuable aid to an executor by his training in administrative work. There are often trades to be carried on, financial arrangements to be made, and many things to be done at the moment with a knowledge and promptitude which arises from practice as liquidators and trustees." § 559. Extent of His Employment The service for which an accountant is usually employed varies with the size of the estate and the complications of the will. It is often wise to let him lay out the form in which the transactions are to be recorded, making the initial entries, and instructing the representative or his clerical assistant in the further use of the books. This is ordinarily inexpensive and materially reduces the amount of labor which will be required later, when the reports are to be prepared, whether by the representative or the accountant. Many estates employ public accountants for the following objects: I. To lay out the system and open the books, as above. 3. To prepare all reports. This has proved very satisfactory, for the executor by using care can keep the accounts of an estate in such form that a skilled accountant's service need be called for only once or twice a year. In other cases the accountant writes up all the books from the check stubs. If the executor, in filling out the stubs, gives the full details of the source of receipts and the nature of and cause for all payments, the skilled accountant 'Caldicott, Executorship Accounts. can readily prepare the proper entries to be made on the journa and ledger, thus providing all the information that may be required. The danger in this method comes from the magnitude of the "if." Too often the details will not have been recorded, and unless the accountant's visits are so frequent that all transactions can still be remembered, there may be an insurmountable difficulty in supplying the needed information. The degree to which the services of the accountant will prove desirable depends largely on the complexity of the affairs of the decedent, on the number of bequests under the will or the number of heirs if there is no will, on the number of financial transactions, and on the experience of the executor in such matters. § 560. Purpose of Part VI It will be the purpose of this part of the present work to explain the manner of keeping the accounts of estates under the care of administrators, executors, and trustees so as to give the information that may be required in presenting the accounts of estates before the court to be passed upon. The systems of accounting which are suggested are in accord with the best modern practice. In these, one thing especially has been sought-simplicity. There is no reason why probate accounting should be complicated. The forms herein presented have been found in practice to be easy to handle, facilitating the current bookkeeping, and enabling the representative to analyze currently the receipts and disbursements, thus obviating the necessity for extensive analysis at the close of the administration. While the same general principles apply to the work of the administrator, the executor, and the trustee, there are enough differences to warrant separate treatment. The authors are assuming that the elements of ordinary double-entry bookkeeping are known to those for whom they 6 write. Anyone who knows nothing of bookkeeping should study some good elementary work before undertaking this. Elementary bookkeeping is of itself a subject of considerable magnitude which could hardly be embraced in a work of this kind. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Why should accurate records be kept of all transactions in the settlement of an estate? 2. How much information as to the duties of an executor or administrator has the average man or woman? What effect should this lack of information have on the selection of executors? 3. Why should those concerned inform themselves better? What two things have increased the complexity of administration? 4. What is the law as to estate accounting in your state? What occurs if proper records are not kept? 5. What is the essence of fiduciary accounting? What takes the place of the proprietory idea? 6. What is the reason that estate books must maintain the separation of corpus and income? 7. What responsibility is assumed by the representative? What is said of a minor's rights? 8. Why are full explanations of all entries desirable? Why is this more important in estate accounting than in ordinary bookkeeping? 9. Why are professional accountants often employed? When is this procedure advisable? Will the court usually allow this expense to be charged against the estate? 10. Can one accountant do as good work as another in estate accounting? II. To what varying extents may an accountant's assistance be had? On what does the amount of professional assistance required depend? 12. What is the purpose of this part of the book? Why are simple methods desirable? What amount of knowledge of accounts should be possessed by those who use this book? Such as "Fundamentals of Accounting" by Koopman and Kester. |