Reasonable diligence and honest judgment by an administrator
An administrator is not guilty of wilful neglect or default and is not liable for losses sustained to the estate if he or she, having exercised reasonable diligence makes an honest judgment, that it is in the interests of the estate to delay collecting debts due to the deceased, as distinct from merely standing by and doing nothing at all to collect the debts (Re Owens; Jones v Owens (1882) 47 LT 61). In the same way an administrator is not chargeable if, after the exercise of due diligence he or she forms an honest judgment that the deceased owed a debt and pays the same, rather than defending the claim … McGrath v Troy as administratrix of the estate of the Late Warren Terence Wade [2010] NSWSC 1470 White J at 55.