Letters of Administration v. Letters Testamentary
The difference is semantic, but of interest. In probate estate administration, the person appointed by the Surrogate to manage the estate is called an executor or an administrator. If the decedent died with a will, they are called an executor; if there was no will, they are called an administrator. Likewise, an executor receives Letters Testamentary and an administrator receives Letters of Administration. There is substantively no difference, as both bestow all of the powers under New Jersey law in the probate personal representative to marshal, protect, maximize, and distribute the estate.
There are also three other kinds of appointments by the Surrogate: Administration pro sequendum, substituted or successor administrators, and Administrators C.T.A.
Administration pro sequendum is a special kind of probate estate appointment for intestate probate estates. If a suit for wrongful death is to be brought on behalf of a probate estate, and the decedent did not have a Will, an Administrator Ad Prosequendum must be named. Most of the same requirements will apply for the person seeking to qualify as the Administrator Ad Prosequendum. You must know the name of the defendants in the wrongful death suit.
Substitute or Successor Administrators are exactly as their name implies: substituted or successors. Usually, an executor or administrator either is replaced or removed (voluntarily or involuntarily) and another person is appointed by the Surrogate or the Chancery court as the substituted or successor administrator. Most important to the successor or substitute administrator is obtaining the prior administrator or executor’s documents so they are fully apprised of the status of the probate file. Substituted and successor administrators are still responsible for ensuring taxes are filed and paid, creditors are satisfied, and beneficiaries are given their share of the probate estate, even if the probate estate the substituted or successor administrator inherits is a mess!
Lastly, an Administrator C.T.A. is appointed when a will fails to appoint an executor or when the executor has died or otherwise failed to serve prior to the application for probate. C.T.A. is an abbreviation for Cum Testatmento Annexo, which is Latin for “with the will attached.” Typically, persons named to administer the probate estate in a will are called executors, but Administrator C.T.A.’s are instead appointed when the failure to name such a representative or when that person has failed to act. In this situation, the intestate probate statutes would apply for the order of priority. Alternatively, someone else may be appointed with the properly signed renunciations. An Administrator C.T.A. is simply an administrator of the estate that must follow the terms of the will. Ergo, they are administrators, with the will attached!
If you need assistance being appointed and handling a probate estate, you can email me at Ranalli@ranalli-law.com. Your rights and privacy are 100% protected. I never share or sell your information or email. No one wants spam email and I respect your right to privacy. I am here to help you.
