Title 15, Probate, Trusts, and Fiduciaries
0 chapters · 926 sections in this title.
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-702 Priority among different letters
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A person to whom general letters are issued first has exclusive authority under the letters until his appointment is terminated or modified. If, through error, general letters are afterwards issued to another, the first appointed representative may recover any property of the est…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-703 General duties - relation and liability to persons interested in estate - duty to search for a designated beneficiary agreement - standing to sue
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(1) A personal representative is a fiduciary who shall observe the standards of care applicable to trustees as described by part 8 of article 5 of this title 15. A personal representative is under a duty to settle and distribute the estate of the decedent in accordance with the t…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-704 Personal representative to proceed without court order - exception
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A personal representative shall proceed expeditiously with the settlement and distribution of a decedent ‘s estate and, except as otherwise specified or ordered in regard to a supervised personal representative, do so without adjudication, order, or direction of the court, but he…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-705 Duty of personal representative - information to heirs and devisees
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(1) Not later than thirty days after appointment, every personal representative, except any special administrator, shall give information of his or her appointment to the heirs and devisees, including, if there has been no formal testacy proceeding and if the personal representat…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-706 Duty of personal representative - inventory and appraisement
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(1) Within three months after his appointment, a personal representative who is not a successor to another representative who has previously discharged this duty shall prepare an inventory of property owned by the decedent and subject to disposition by will or intestate successio…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-707 Employment of appraisers
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The personal representative may employ qualified and disinterested appraisers to assist him in ascertaining the fair market value as of the date of the decedent's death of any asset the value of which may be subject to reasonable doubt. Different persons may be employed to apprai…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-708 Duty of personal representative - supplementary inventory
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If any property not included in the original inventory comes to the knowledge of a personal representative or if the personal representative learns that the value or description indicated in the original inventory for any item is erroneous or misleading, he shall make a supplemen…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-709 Duty of personal representative - possession of estate
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Except as otherwise provided by a decedent's will, every personal representative has a right to, and shall take possession or control of, the decedent's property; except that any real property or tangible personal property may be left with or surrendered to the person presumptive…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-710 Power to avoid transfers
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The property liable for the payment of unsecured debts of a decedent includes all property transferred by him by any means which is in law void or voidable as against his creditors, and, subject to prior liens, the right to recover this property, so far as necessary for the payme…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-711 Powers of personal representatives - in general
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Until termination of his appointment a personal representative has the same power over the title to property of the estate that an absolute owner would have, in trust however, for the benefit of the creditors and others interested in the estate. This power may be exercised withou…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-712 Improper exercise of power - breach of fiduciary duty
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If the exercise of power concerning the estate is improper, the personal representative is subject to the provisions of section 15-10-504 and is liable to interested persons for damage or loss resulting from breach of his or her fiduciary duty to the same extent as a trustee of a…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-713 Sale, encumbrance, or transaction involving conflict of interest - voidable - exceptions
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(1) Any sale or encumbrance to the personal representative, his spouse, agent, or attorney, or any corporation or trust in which he has a beneficial interest, or any transaction which is affected by a conflict of interest on the part of the personal representative, is voidable by…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-714 Persons dealing with personal representative - protection
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(1) A person who in good faith either assists a personal representative or deals with him for value is protected as if the personal representative properly exercised his power. The fact that a person knowingly deals with a personal representative does not alone require the person…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-715 Transactions authorized for personal representatives - exceptions
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(1) Except as restricted or otherwise provided by the will or by an order in a formal proceeding and subject to the priorities stated in section 15-12-902, a personal representative, acting reasonably for the benefit of the interested persons, may properly: (a) Exercise any of th…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-716 Powers and duties of successor personal representative
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A successor personal representative has the same power and duty as the original personal representative to complete the administration and distribution of the estate, as expeditiously as possible, but he shall not exercise any power expressly made personal to the executor named i…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-717 Corepresentatives - when joint action required
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If two or more persons are appointed corepresentatives and unless the will provides otherwise, the concurrence of all is required on all acts connected with the administration and distribution of the estate. This restriction does not apply when any corepresentative receives and r…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-718 Powers of surviving personal representative
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Unless the terms of the will otherwise provide, every power exercisable by personal corepresentatives may be exercised by the one or more remaining after the appointment of one or more is terminated, and if one of two or more nominated as personal corepresentatives is not appoint…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-719 Compensation of personal representative. (Repealed)
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Source: L. 73: R&RE, p. 1591, � 1. C.R.S. 1963: � 153-3-719. L. 2001: Entire section amended, p. 888, � 5, effective June 1. L. 2011: Entire section repealed, (SB 11-083), ch. 101, p. 317, � 27, effective August 10.
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-720 Expenses in estate litigation. (Repealed)
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Source: L. 73: R&RE, p. 1591, � 1. C.R.S. 1963: � 153-3-720. L. 2001: Entire section amended, p. 888, � 6, effective June 1. L. 2011: Entire section repealed, (SB 11-083), ch. 101, p. 317, � 27, effective August 10. 15-12-721. Proceedings for review of employment of agents and co…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-721 Proceedings for review of employment of agents and compensation of personal representatives and employees of estate. (Repealed)
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C.R.S. 15-12-721Statutes current through Chapter 65 of the 2026 Regular Session, effective as of April 20, 2026. The text of this section is not final. It will not be final until compared to, and updated from, the text provided by the Colorado Office of Legislative Legal Services…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-722 Failure to comply with court orders - penalty. (Repealed)
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Source: L. 75: Entire section added, p. 597, � 31, effective July 1. L. 2008: Entire section repealed, p. 484, � 7, effective July 1.
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-723 Assets concealed or embezzled
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If any personal representative, heir, legatee, creditor, guardian, or conservator or other person interested in the estate of any deceased person or protected person complains to the court, in writing, that any person is suspected to have concealed, embezzled, carried away, or di…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-801 Notice to creditors
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(1) Unless one year or more has elapsed since the death of the decedent, a personal representative shall cause a notice to creditors to be published in some daily or weekly newspaper published in the county in which the estate is being administered, or if there is no such newspap…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-802 Statutes of limitations
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(1) Unless an estate is insolvent, or would thereby be rendered insolvent, the personal representative, with the consent of all successors whose interests would be affected, may waive any defense of limitations available to the estate. If the defense is not waived, no claim which…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-803 Limitations on presentation of claims
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(1) (a) All claims against a decedent's estate that arose before the death of the decedent, including claims of the state of Colorado and any subdivision thereof, whether due or to become due, absolute or contingent, liquidated or unliquidated, founded on contract, tort, or other…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-804 Manner of presentation of claims
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(1) Before a claim may be presented, the decedent's estate must first have been commenced in a court of appropriate jurisdiction by the filing of an application or petition pursuant to part 3 or 4 of this article. A claimant may thereafter present a claim only by: (a) Filing a wr…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-805 Classification of claims
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(1) The personal representative shall pay allowed claims against the estate of a decedent in the following order: (a) Property held by or in the possession of the deceased person as fiduciary or trustee of a trust, which shall include a resulting trust, as long as the reasonable …
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-806 Allowance of claims
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(1) The personal representative may mail a notice to any claimant stating that the claim has been disallowed. If the personal representative fails to mail notice to a claimant of action on his or her claim within sixty-three days after the time for original presentation of the cl…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-807 Payment of claims
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(1) One year after the decedent's death, the personal representative shall proceed to pay the claims allowed against the estate in the order of priority prescribed, after making provision for family and exempt property allowances, for claims already presented which have not yet b…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-808 Individual liability of personal representative
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(1) Unless otherwise provided in the contract, a personal representative is not individually liable on a contract properly entered into in his fiduciary capacity in the course of administration of the estate unless he fails to reveal his representative capacity and identify the e…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-809 Secured claims
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(1) Payment of a secured claim is upon the basis of the amount allowed if the creditor surrenders his security; otherwise payment is upon the basis of one of the following: (a) If the creditor exhausts his security before receiving payment, (unless precluded by other law) upon th…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-810 Claims not due and contingent or unliquidated claims
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(1) If a claim which will become due at a future time or a contingent or unliquidated claim becomes due or certain before the distribution of the estate, and if the claim has been allowed or established by a proceeding, it is paid in the same manner as presently due and absolute …
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-811 Counterclaims
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In allowing a claim the personal representative may deduct any counterclaim which the estate has against the claimant. In determining a claim against an estate a court shall reduce the amount allowed by the amount of any counterclaims and, if the counterclaims exceed the claim, r…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-812 Execution and levies prohibited
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No execution may issue upon nor may any levy be made against any property of the estate under any judgment against a decedent or a personal representative, but this section shall not be construed to prevent the enforcement of mortgages, pledges, or liens upon real or personal pro…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-813 Compromise of claims
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When a claim against the estate has been presented in any manner, the personal representative may, if it appears to be in the best interest of the estate, compromise the claim, whether due or not due, absolute or contingent, liquidated or unliquidated. Source: L. 73: R&RE, p. 159…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-814 Encumbered assets
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If any assets of the estate are encumbered by mortgage, pledge, lien, or other security interest, the personal representative may pay the encumbrance or any part thereof, renew or extend any obligation secured by the encumbrance, or convey or transfer the assets to the creditor i…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-816 Final distribution to domiciliary representative
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(1) The estate of a nonresident decedent being administered by a personal representative appointed in this state shall, if there is a personal representative of the decedent's domicile willing to receive it, be distributed to the domiciliary personal representative for the benefi…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-901 Successors' rights if no administration
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(1) (a) As used in this subsection (1), will probated in this state means a will that is declared to be valid by an order of informal probate by the registrar, or an adjudication of probate by the court. (b) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (c) of this subsection (1) and…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-902 Distribution - order in which assets appropriated - abatement
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(1) (a) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section and except as provided in connection with the share of the surviving spouse who elects to take an elective share, shares of distributees abate, without any preference or priority as between real and personal property, i…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-903 Right of retainer
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Unless a contrary intent is indicated by the will, the amount of a noncontingent indebtedness of a successor to the estate if due, or its present value if not due, shall be offset against the successor's interest; but the successor has the benefit of any defense which would be av…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-904 Interest on general pecuniary devise
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General pecuniary devises bear interest at the legal rate beginning one year after the first appointment of a personal representative until payment, unless a contrary intent is indicated by the will. Source: L. 73: R&RE, p. 1598, � 1. C.R.S. 1963: � 153-3-904.
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-905 Penalty clause for contest
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A provision in a will purporting to penalize any interested person for contesting the will or instituting other proceedings relating to the estate is unenforceable if probable cause exists for instituting proceedings. Source: L. 73: R&RE, p. 1598, � 1. C.R.S. 1963: � 153-3-905.
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-906 Distribution in kind - valuation - method
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(1) A specific devisee is entitled to distribution of the thing devised to him. (2) (a) Any exempt property or family allowance or devise payable in money may be satisfied by value in kind, if: (I) The person entitled to the payment has requested distribution in kind; (II) The pr…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-907 Distribution in kind - evidence
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If distribution in kind is made, the personal representative shall execute an instrument or deed of distribution assigning, transferring, or releasing the assets to the distributee as evidence of the distributee's title to the property. Source: L. 73: R&RE, p. 1599, � 1. C.R.S. 1…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-908 Distribution - right or title of distributee
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Proof that a distributee has received an instrument or deed of distribution of assets in kind, or payment in distribution, from a personal representative is conclusive evidence that the distributee has succeeded to the interest of the estate in the distributed assets, as against …
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-909 Improper distribution - liability of distributee
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Unless the distribution or payment no longer can be questioned because of adjudication, estoppel, or limitation, a distributee of property improperly distributed or paid, or a claimant who was improperly paid, is liable for return of the property improperly received and its incom…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-910 Purchasers from distributees protected
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If property distributed in kind or a security interest therein is acquired for value by a purchaser from or lender to a distributee who has received an instrument or deed of distribution from the personal representative, or is so acquired by a purchaser from or lender to a transf…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-911 Partition for purpose of distribution
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When two or more heirs or devisees are entitled to distribution of undivided interests in any real or personal property of the estate, the personal representative or one or more of the heirs or devisees may petition the court, prior to the formal or informal closing of the estate…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-913 Distributions to trustee
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(1) Before distributing to a trustee, the personal representative may require that the trust be registered if the state in which it is to be administered provides for registration and that the trustee inform the beneficiaries as provided in section 15-5-206. (2) If the trust inst…
Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-12-914 Disposition of unclaimed assets
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(1) If any heirs or devisees of any intestate or testator are unknown, or if known and there is no person qualified to receive devises or distributive shares of such heirs or devisees at the time of making final settlement of the estate, or if such heirs or devisees refuse to rec…