The case Long and Fever emphasises the need to avoid intermeddling in the estate. Which principle does this reinforce?

• A. The need for speed in administration
• B. The need to avoid intermeddling
• C. The need to distribute equally among heirs
• D. The need to appoint more executors

Answer: (B)

Intermeddling means dealing with the estate or its assets before you’re legally authorised as executor or administrator. Long and Fever teach that you must not touch the estate until probate or administration is granted. Acting early—collecting assets, paying debts, or distributing property—can expose you to personal liability and disrupt or complicate the proper, court-supervised process of administration. The principle being reinforced is to avoid intermeddling and to let the appointed personal representatives manage the estate under proper authority. It isn’t about speed, equal distribution, or appointing more executors; those ideas aren’t the focus of this rule.