If you have to hire a probate litigation attorney to demand an estate accounting does he/she get paid from the estate?

The probate laws set forth specific time limits for a personal representative to prepare an inventory and an accounting, and if those time limits have already been exceeded, and if these documents have not yet been furnished to you, and if you can't yet see them coming on the horizon, it would seem that you should be a bit more agressive in demanding them. We certainly wouldn't want the estate consumed by attorneys' fees, but on the other hand, if the personal representative of the decedent's estate is truly misbehaving, it would be foolish for a beneficiary to not seek the help of a lawyer. If it is indeed you, rather than the personal representative, who is in the more meritorious position, the probate court will be quite accomodating in reimbursing you for your attorney's fees from the estate assets. Since judges like to be friendly to lawyers (and vice versa), the personal representative's attorney will also almost certainly be able to be paid from the estate assets. Consequently, the most likely outcome for an individual beneficiary like you is that you will end up shouldering (by shrinkage of the estate ) your proportionate share of all attorneys' fees (if your share of the estate is 1/6, you'll end up paying 1/6 of ALL the attoneys' fees). If litigation isn't necessary, the total attorneys' fees will be much less, but it may be a bit more difficult for you to be reimbursed for your attorney's fees. Good luck!