[WSBAPT] Beneficiary Issues

[Mark Anderson]

Dear All:
Short version: By his conduct, a beneficiary under a will has caused the Estate to incur substantial attorney fees in dealing with real property owned by the Estate.  May those fees be charged against the beneficiary's distribution from the Estate?
Long version: While he was alive, Albert owned real property improved with a residence (i.e., Albert's house).  Albert brought his Father onto title to the house as an accommodation party so Albert could refinance.  Albert made all of the house payments and Father never lived there.  Although Albert refinanced again, Father was never taken off title.
Father died.  Father had a Trust and a pour over will, but any interest Father may have had in Albert's house was never transferred into the Trust.  Father had eighteen (!) putative heirs and potential beneficiaries of the Trust (for brevity's sake, I will just call all of them "heirs").
Then Albert died with a will that left everything to Becky, Charlie, and Edward, each of whom is also one of Father's heirs.  Albert's major asset was his house.  Becky was the PR of Albert's Estate.
To remove Father from title to Albert's house so it could be sold with a clean title, a TEDRA Agreement was formulated and circulated to all heirs.  Under the TEDRA agreement, the heirs would quit claim their potential interests in the property to Albert's Estate.  All of the heirs signed the TEDRA agreement and quitclaim deed except Edward (reminder - he is one of the devisees under Albert's will).  Edward refused to sign primarily because of personal conflicts that he had with Becky as to how the Estate assets were to ultimately be distributed.  Despite numerous reminders, Edward somehow lost sight of the fact that Father still needed to be removed from the title to Albert's house before it could be sold.
After substantial time and after all attempts to reason with Edward as to the efficacy of the TEDRA agreement failed, Becky was forced to initiate a quiet title action to clean up the title to Albert house.  Becky named Edward as a defendant in the quiet title action, as well as John/Jane Doe unknown heirs.  Only now does Edward say he "would not be opposed" to executing a quitclaim deed like the other heirs.
Needless to say, the Estate has incurred substantial attorney fees because of Edward's conduct.  Becky wants those attorney fees to be taken out of Edward's distribution from the Estate.  Can Becky do this and, if so, how?
Thanks.
Mark B. Anderson
ANDERSON LAW FIRM PLLC
821 Dock Street, Suite 209, PMB 4-12
Tacoma, Washington 98402
+1 253-327-1750
+1 253-327-1751 (fax)
marka at mbaesq.com<mailto:marka at mbaesq.com>
www.mbaesq.com<http://www.mbaesq.com/>
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