Administrator: Which description best fits?

• A. Executor
• B. Heir
• C. Administrator
• D. Trustee

Answer: (C)

An administrator is the court-appointed person who handles settling an estate when there is no will or no executor named. Their duties include gathering the decedent’s assets, inventorying and safeguarding them, paying debts and taxes, and then distributing the remaining assets to the rightful heirs or beneficiaries under the law. This role fits the description because it describes someone authorized by the court to administer the probate process in situations where there isn’t a named, able executor to carry out the will or there is no will at all. It’s different from an executor, who is named in a will to follow its terms; and from a trustee, who manages property held in a trust for beneficiaries; and from an heir, who is someone entitled to inherit but does not administer the estate. For example, when someone dies intestate (without a will), the court appoints an administrator to collect assets, pay claims, and distribute the estate to the decedent’s heirs under state law.