Who cannot serve as an administrator in a will if they caused the death?

Prepare for the New Brunswick Bar Exam. Study with flashcards and multiple choice questions, each question has hints and explanations. Get ready for your exam!

The role of an administrator in a will is to manage and distribute the deceased's estate according to the terms laid out in the will or, if there is no will, by state intestacy laws. When someone causes the death of the person whose estate is to be administered, they are generally disqualified from serving in this capacity. This is grounded in the legal principle that one cannot benefit from their wrongdoing.

In this context, personal representatives are often seen as fiduciaries who must act in the best interest of the estate and its beneficiaries. If a personal representative is found to have played a role in causing the testator's death, it raises significant ethical and legal concerns regarding their ability to fulfill their fiduciary duties impartially and effectively. Hence, such a person cannot serve as an administrator of the estate.

Other choices like beneficiaries, executors, and trustees typically do not have the same disqualifying factors unless they were involved in causing the death directly. The specific role of a personal representative inherently involves a degree of responsibility that is compromised if they are implicated in causing the death, which makes this choice particularly significant.

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