What do you mean, by "the estate is insolvent" ?  Its liabilities exceeded its assets?  Or it has no money left after distributing funds to beneficiaries?  In that case the executor might be liable for the debt, unless funds could be clawed back from the beneficiaries.  It's odd that an attorney would be fighting the bank over a debt when the estate was insolvent to start with.  Maybe he's a family member.