Steele v. McDonald, 202 S.W.3d 926 (Tex. App.—Waco 2006, pet. denied)
Independent Executor decided to discharge his attorney and proceed
pro se. The court determined the Independent Executor is precluded from
doing so because he is not a licensed attorney. The court explained that
only a licensed attorney may appear in court because the executor is
litigating rights in a representative capacity.
A well-reasoned dissent strongly disagrees. Generally, an independent
executor may do anything the decedent could have done if he were still
alive. Thus, it should follow that the executor should be able to appear
pro se with respect to estate matters. The judge explained that “[a]ll
over Texas estates are being probated, inventories prepared and filed,
and estates being closed without an attorney being involved.” Steele
dissent at 930. If the majority’s opinion is correct, all of this
conduct must cease which would drastically reduce the effectiveness and
efficiency of the independent administration system.
Moral: Under this case, all court appearances and filings by an
independent personal representative require a licensed attorney. Should
this case be left to stand, October 18, 2006 may well be remembered as
the day the Texas independent administration system began to die.