Readers’ forum: Should I advise my client to declare income?

My client and her brother are entitled to half shares in the residue of the estate of their late mother who died in October 2020.

The solicitors who acted as executors have only recently made a final distribution and have provided what I regard as inadequate estate accounts. In particular they have apparently received dividend income as well as interest income of more than £500 in one year but do not appear to have submitted income tax returns or paid any income tax.

What do I do about that? I could declare the income on my client’s tax return (presumably for the year in which it is received) with no tax credit and the ‘right tax’ would eventually be paid – but is that the correct answer? Also the solicitors have credited my client with £900 of interest in respect of the money...