Executor vs Administrator

Both are "personal representatives." The distinction matters for procedure and bond requirements but not for the practical effect on title — both sign deeds out of the estate and both derive authority from court-issued letters.

An executor is named in the will. An administrator is appointed by the court when there's no will, or when the named executor is unable or unwilling to serve. The order of priority for administrator appointment is set by state statute, generally favoring the surviving spouse, then heirs, then creditors, then "any qualified person."

In a curative chain, the practical question is whether the deed-signer had current letters at the moment they signed. An "executor's deed" signed by someone whose letters had expired or been revoked is the same problem as a deed by a stranger.