Title XXXI — TRUSTS AND ESTATES OF DECEDENTS AND PERSONS UNDER DISABILITY

473.477. Executor or administrator not to purchase, exception. — No executor or administrator shall purchase any property belonging to the estate which is sold either at public or private sale, unless written consent thereto is filed by the distributees. ­­-------- (RSMo 1939 § 1…

473.480. Validity of proceedings. — No proceedings for sale, mortgage, lease, exchange or conveyance by an executor or administrator of property belonging to the estate shall be subject to collateral attack on account of any irregularity in the proceedings if the court which orde…

473.483. Sales of perishable property. — Every executor or administrator may sell at private or public sale all goods and chattels of the decedent that are liable to perish, be consumed or rendered worse by the keeping upon obtaining order of the court so to do. Approval of the c…

473.487. Sale, mortgage or lease of personal property. — An executor or administrator may file a petition to sell, mortgage or lease any personal property belonging to the estate. The petition shall set forth the reasons for the application and describe the property involved. The…

473.490. Sale of real estate on court's motion, when. — 1. If, upon any settlement of the executor or administrator, it appears that the personal property of an estate is not sufficient for the payment of claims, legacies or allowances to the surviving spouse or unmarried minor c…

473.493. Petition to sell, mortgage or lease real estate — notice — order. — 1. An executor or administrator may file a petition to sell, mortgage or lease any real property belonging to the estate. The petition shall set forth the reason for the application and describe the prop…

473.497. Creditor or other person may file petition, when. — If the executor or administrator does not make such application, a creditor or other person interested in the estate may file a like petition, giving twenty days' notice to the executor or administrator. On the filing o…

473.500. Order for sale, mortgage or lease of property, content — duration — reappraisal, when. — The order shall describe the property to be sold, mortgaged or leased and may designate the sequence in which the several parcels shall be sold, mortgaged or leased. An order for sal…

473.507. Notice of public sale of real estate. — In all public sales of real estate made under this law, the executor or administrator shall cause a notice containing a particular description of the real estate to be sold and the street address or approximate direction and distan…

473.510. Public sale of real estate, where made, adjournment. — 1. All public sales of real estate, made by order of the court, shall be made at the courthouse door of the county in which the real estate is situated, or at such other place in the county as may be fixed by the cou…

473.513. Report of sale — objections — approval. — 1. Within ten days after making a sale, mortgage or lease of real estate, the executor or administrator shall make a full report of his proceedings, with the certificate of appraisement if a new appraisement is required by the co…

473.517. New sale ordered, when. — If the report and proceedings of the executor or administrator are not approved by the court, his proceedings shall be void. When from any cause no sale, mortgage or lease is made, the court with or without further notice to heirs or devisees, m…

473.520. Conveyance executed, contents — effect. — 1. Upon approval of a sale, mortgage or lease in accordance with section 473.513, the executor or administrator shall execute, acknowledge and deliver a conveyance to the grantee or mortgagee or a lease to the lessee according to…

473.523. Execution of conveyance or lease where personal representative resigns, dies or has letter revoked. — When a personal representative resigns or dies, or his letters are revoked after the sale, exchange, mortgage or lease of real estate, and before executing a conveyance …

473.527. Taxes not liens in hands of transferee. — The lien of the state for estate taxes shall not extend to any interest acquired by a purchaser, mortgagee, or lessee through any transfer made by an executor or administrator under a power contained in a will or under order of t…

473.530. Brokers', abstracting, and auctioneers' fees. — In connection with the sale, mortgage, lease or exchange of property, the court may authorize the executor or administrator to pay, out of the proceeds realized therefrom or out of the estate, the customary and reasonable a…

473.533. Platting of real estate. — Whenever in the opinion of the court, it is to the interest of the estate to divide any lands belonging to the estate into village or town lots, the court, upon application of the executor or administrator, may make an order causing the same to…

473.537. Exchange of property. — Whenever it appears upon the petition of the executor or administrator or of any person interested in the estate to be to the best interests of the estate to exchange any real or personal property of the estate for other property, the court may au…

473.540. Settlements required, when. — 1. Every personal representative shall file in the court a statement of his accounts with proper vouchers, for settlement at the following times, unless the court otherwise orders: (1) Annually on the anniversary date of the date of letters …

473.543. Settlements, contents — vouchers for disbursement — evidence, checks and drafts. — 1. Each settlement filed by a personal representative shall state the period for which it is made and, among other things, shall contain a just and true account of all moneys collected by …

473.550. Interest to be accounted for. — All interest received by executors or administrators on debts due to the decedent are assets in their hands. They shall not use the money of the decedent for their own private purposes. If they do so, they shall be liable to the estate for…

473.553. Settlement docket, contents. — The clerk of the court shall keep a docket and enter therein a list of all personal representatives, the date of their letters and the time at which they are required to file their settlements. ­­-------- (RSMo 1939 § 214, A.L. 1955 p. 385 …

473.557. Notice of time for settlement. — The clerk shall notify each executor or administrator by ordinary mail of the day on which each of his settlements is required to be filed at least forty days before such date. Failure to receive the notice herein required shall not excus…

473.560. Failure to file settlement, citation. — If any executor or administrator fails to appear and file settlement on the day for which his settlement is docketed, the court shall continue the settlement to some future day and issue a citation to the executor or administrator …

473.563. Settlement after citation, penalty. — If, after service of the citation, the executor or administrator appears and files his settlement he shall be fined for his failure to file settlement at the proper time in a sum not exceeding one hundred dollars, unless he satisfies…

473.567. Failure to settle after citation, letters revoked. — If the executor or administrator fails to appear as required by the citation or, appearing, fails or refuses to file settlement, or to show cause why settlement should be continued, the court, in addition to the fine p…

473.570. Settlement, payment of claims — apportionment where assets insufficient. — After every settlement, when the best interests of the estate require it, on application of any interested person, the court shall ascertain the amount of money of the estate which has come to the…

473.573. Creditor may have execution, when. — If an executor or administrator fails to pay any claim ordered to be paid, in accordance with an order under section 473.570 when demanded, the clerk of the court, on application of the creditor, and being satisfied that the demand ha…

473.577. Scire facias against sureties, when. — If an execution is returned unsatisfied, the creditor may sue out of the court a scire facias against any one or more of the sureties of the executor or administrator, referring to the bond, the order of payment, the execution and r…

473.580. Proceedings on scire facias. — The scire facias may be directed to and served in any county in this state, and if, upon return thereof, good cause to the contrary is not shown, the court shall render judgment against the surety for the amount unpaid and costs and award e…

473.583. Petition for final settlement and distribution. — At the time of filing of a final settlement the executor or administrator shall petition the court to allow and approve his settlement and if the estate is in a proper condition to be closed, he shall also petition the co…

473.587. Notice of final settlement. — When an estate is in a condition to be closed before filing his final settlement and petition for distribution, the personal representative shall give, or cause to be given, at least twenty-nine days' notice by publication in the manner prov…

473.590. Objections to settlement, when filed — form — hearing — approval. — Within twenty days after the filing of the final settlement and petition for distribution, or such longer time as may be ordered by the court, any interested person may file written objections thereto. T…

473.593. Credit for uncollectible debts shown in inventory. — At his final settlement, the court shall give credit to the executor or administrator for any debt charged in the inventory as due to the estate, if the court is satisfied that the debt was not really due to the estate…

473.597. Conclusiveness of order approving final settlement. — Upon the approval of the final settlement of an executor or administrator, the executor or administrator and his sureties, subject to the right of appeal and to the power of the court to vacate its final orders, shall…

473.600. Accounting for assets received and disbursed after final settlement. — Receipts and disbursements of the executor or administrator, subsequent to the filing of his final settlement, shall be reported to the court before discharge. A settlement thereof, together with an e…

473.603. Settlement on death, resignation, or removal of personal representative. — 1. If a personal representative dies, resigns, becomes legally disabled or his letters are revoked, he or his legal representatives or conservator shall file final settlement and shall account for…

473.607. Proceedings to compel settlement — judgment, enforcement. — 1. On the application of any successor or surviving personal representative or of any interested person the court may order any personal representative or his legal representatives or any other person to file an…

473.610. Distribution, when required. — Executors and administrators shall not be compelled to make distribution or pay legacies until six months after the date of the letters, unless the legacies specified would be perishable, or subject to injury if retained six months. ­­-----…

473.613. Partial distribution. — 1. Subject to the provisions of section 473.618, upon application of the executor or administrator at any time, or on application of any distributee after the expiration of six months from the date of letters, the court may order the executor or a…

473.617. Decree of final distribution. — 1. After the expiration of the time limit for the filing of claims, the executor or administrator, if the estate is in a condition to be closed, shall file his final settlement and at the same time petition the court to decree the final di…

473.618. Notice to judgment creditors of distribution — contents of request. — 1. Any judgment creditor of a distributee desiring notice of any partial or final distribution or both, may, at any time subsequent to the granting of letters testamentary or of administration, file wi…

473.620. Order in which assets are appropriated — abatement. — 1. When it is necessary that there be an abatement of the shares of the distributees, they shall, subject to the provisions of the will, abate, without any preference or priority as between real and personal property,…

473.623. Contribution between devisees. — When it is necessary under the provisions of section 473.620 that there be an abatement of specific devises, whether of real or personal property, the court may by order determine the manner in which such abatement shall be accomplished, …

473.627. Advancements to be determined. — All questions of advancements made, or alleged to have been made by an intestate to any heir may be heard and determined by the court at the time of the hearing on the petition for final distribution or at any time prior thereto. The amou…

473.630. Right of retainer. — When a distributee of an estate is indebted to the estate, the amount of the indebtedness if due, or the present worth of the indebtedness, if not due, may be treated as an offset by the executor or administrator against any testate or intestate prop…

473.633. Interest on general legacies. — 1. All legacies, other than residuary ones or chattels, shall bear interest from twelve months after the date of the death of the testator at a rate equal to that allowed by law on money due upon order of the court. If the court finds that…

473.637. Distributees to refund, when — judgment. — If after the payment of the legacies or distributions, it becomes necessary that the same, or any part thereof, be refunded for the payment of claims, the court on application filed within five years from the payment of the lega…

473.640. Partition of personal property in kind. — If personal property which is to be distributed may be divided in kind, the court may order a partition thereof among the parties entitled; and for that purpose the court may appoint not more than three commissioners, disinterest…

473.643. Property sold to effect partition, when. — 1. If personal property cannot be divided in kind with advantage to the distributees, and it is not to their advantage that the same be sold by the personal representative, then, upon the application of a majority of those entit…