Hi, mbolton, and welcome to WebAnswers.

If your distant relative is the executor named in your mother's will then she would first have to be qualified as the executor by the probate court and then sworn in by the clerk of that court.

Whatever debts of your mother that are PROVEN, including a claim by your distant relative claiming to be the executor, then it is the task of the executor to pay them, including a debt to her. But, there must be an accounting and the file of your mother's estate is open to the public for your examination.

If this person's debt is not listed, it does not get paid.

Now, at the same time, whoever is the executor is entitled to be paid for her work, although normally executors who are also family do not charge any fees.

So, has this person been qualified by the court to be the executor? In what state is the estate being probated? What kind of debt is this person claiming? Has it been included in the estate accounting?

Thank you for your question.