You should not disburse any money to anyone until the fees are completely handled... that way everyone gets what is left after costs. In this case, if you already paid out their share of the insurance, you need to go back to them and ask for a check written out to the law firm for their share of the total amount. Shake them down!Why pay off the home? Why not have an estate sale to get rid of the stuff, get the house cleaned up and then sell it, and pay out any profits from that AFTER all the fees. If you hang onto the house, you are still staring at property taxes and upkeep. Quite frankly, you are due some kind of compensation in exchange for handling all of this. You were left holding the bag. Quit being a doormat.

all of the legal fees should be taken off the top of any money taken in by the sale of the home personal belongings etc.the estate has to pay these bills and that's where the money comes from.