Title 72, Title 72

Unless restricted by the court, a supervised personal representative has, without interim orders approving exercise of a power, all powers of personal representatives under this code, but the personal representative may not exercise the power to make any distribution of the estat…

Interim orders approving or directing partial distributions or granting other relief may be issued by the court at any time during the pendency of a supervised administration on the application of the personal representative or any interested person.

Unless otherwise ordered by the court, supervised administration is terminated by order in accordance with time restrictions, notices, and contents of orders prescribed for proceedings under 72-3-1001 and 72-3-1002.

No person is qualified to serve as a personal representative who is: (1) under the age of 18; (2) a person whom the court finds unsuitable in formal proceedings.

Whether the proceedings are formal or informal, persons who are not disqualified have priority for appointment in the following order: (1) the person with priority as determined by a probated will, including a person nominated by a power conferred in a will; (2) the surviving spo…

(1) An objection to an appointment can be made only in formal proceedings. (2) In case of objection the priorities stated in 72-3-502 apply, except that: (a) if the estate appears to be more than adequate to meet exemptions and costs of administration but inadequate to discharge …

(1) A person entitled to letters under 72-3-502(2) through (7) may nominate a qualified person to act as personal representative. (2) Any person entitled to letters may renounce the person's right to nominate or to an appointment by appropriate writing filed with the court. (3) W…

Conservators of the estates of protected persons or, if there is no conservator, any guardian except a guardian ad litem of a minor or incapacitated person may exercise the same right to nominate, to object to another's appointment, or to participate in determining the preference…

A personal representative appointed by a court of the decedent's domicile has priority over all other persons, except where the decedent's will nominates different persons to be personal representative in this state and in the state of domicile. The domiciliary personal represent…

Appointment of one who does not have priority, including priority resulting from renunciation or nomination determined pursuant to 72-3-504, may be made only in formal proceedings. Before appointing one without priority, the court must determine that those having priority, althou…

Sections 72-3-501 through 72-3-507 govern priority for appointment of a successor personal representative but do not apply to the selection of a special administrator.

By accepting appointment, a personal representative submits personally to the jurisdiction of the court in any proceeding relating to the estate that may be instituted by any interested person. Notice of any proceeding must be delivered to the personal representative or mailed to…

Prior to receiving letters, a personal representative shall qualify by filing with the appointing court any required bond and a statement of acceptance of the duties of the office.

(1) Bond is not required of a personal representative appointed in informal proceedings, except: (a) upon the appointment of a special administrator; (b) when an executor or other personal representative is appointed to administer an estate under a will containing an express requ…

(1) Any person apparently having an interest in the estate worth in excess of $5,000 or any creditor having a claim in excess of $5,000 may make a written demand that a personal representative give bond. The demand must be filed with the clerk and a copy mailed to the personal re…

(1) If bond is required and the provisions of the will or order do not specify the amount, unless stated in the application or petition, the person qualifying shall file a statement under oath with the clerk indicating the person's best estimate of the value of the personal estat…

(1) The following requirements and provisions apply to any bond required by this part: (a) Bonds must name the state as obligee for the benefit of the persons interested in the estate and must be conditioned upon the faithful discharge by the fiduciary of all duties according to …

Termination of appointment of a personal representative occurs as indicated in 72-3-522 through 72-3-526, inclusive. Termination ends the right and power pertaining to the office of personal representative as conferred by this code or any will, except that a personal representati…

(1) The death of a personal representative or the appointment of a conservator for the estate of a personal representative terminates the personal representative's appointment. (2) Until appointment and qualification of a successor or special representative to replace the decease…

Except as otherwise ordered in formal proceedings, the probate of a will subsequent to the appointment of a personal representative in intestacy or under a will that is superseded by formal probate of another will or the vacation of an informal probate of a will subsequent to the…

(1) An appointment of a personal representative terminates, as provided in 72-3-1004, 1 year after the filing of a closing statement. (2) An order closing an estate as provided in 72-3-1001, 72-3-1002, or 72-3-1003 terminates an appointment of a personal representative.

A personal representative may resign the position by filing a written statement of resignation with the clerk after the personal representative has given at least 15 days' written notice to the persons known to be interested in the estate. If no one applies or petitions for appoi…

(1) A person interested in the estate may petition for removal of a personal representative for cause at any time. Upon filing of the petition, the court shall fix a time and place for hearing. Notice must be given by the petitioner to the personal representative and to other per…

(1) Parts 2 and 3 of this chapter govern proceedings for appointment of a personal representative to succeed one whose appointment has been terminated. (2) After appointment and qualification, a successor personal representative may be substituted in all actions and proceedings t…

(1) The duties and powers of a personal representative commence upon appointment. The powers of a personal representative relate back in time to give acts by the person appointed that are beneficial to the estate occurring prior to appointment the same effect as those occurring a…

A person to whom general letters are issued first has exclusive authority under the letters until the person's appointment is terminated or modified. If, through error, general letters are afterwards issued to another, the first appointed representative may recover any property o…

(1) Not later than 30 days after appointment, every personal representative, except any special administrator, shall give information of the appointment to the heirs and devisees, including, if there has been no formal testacy proceeding and if the personal representative was app…

Except as to proceedings that do not survive the death of the decedent, a personal representative of a decedent domiciled in this state at death has the same standing to sue and be sued in the courts of this state and the courts of any other jurisdiction as the decedent had immed…

A personal representative shall proceed expeditiously with the settlement and distribution of a decedent's estate and, except as otherwise specified under this code or ordered in regard to a supervised personal representative, do so without adjudication, order, or direction of th…

(1) Except as otherwise provided by a decedent's will, a 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 presumptively…

(1) Within 9 months after appointment, a personal representative who is not a special administrator or a successor to another representative who has previously discharged this duty shall prepare an inventory of probate property owned by the decedent at the time of the decedent's …

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, the personal representati…

A personal representative is a fiduciary who shall observe the standards of care applicable to trustees under the laws of the state of Montana. A personal representative is under a duty to settle and distribute the estate of the decedent in accordance with the terms of any probat…

(1) A personal representative may not be surcharged for acts of administration or distribution if the conduct in question was authorized at the time. Subject to other obligations of administration and of this code, an informally probated will is authority to administer and distri…

(1) Unless otherwise provided in the contract, a personal representative is not individually liable on a contract properly entered into in the personal representative's fiduciary capacity in the course of administration of the estate unless the personal representative fails to re…

Except as restricted by this code or otherwise provided by the will or by an order in a formal proceeding and subject to the priorities stated in 72-3-901, a personal representative, acting reasonably for the benefit of the interested persons, may properly: (1) retain assets owne…

The property liable for the payment of unsecured debts of a decedent includes all property transferred by the decedent by any means that is in law void or voidable as against the decedent's creditors, and subject to prior liens, the right to recover this property, so far as neces…

Any sale or encumbrance to the personal representative, the personal representative's spouse, agent, or attorney, or any corporation or trust in which the personal representative has a substantial beneficial interest or any transaction that is affected by a substantial conflict o…

(1) If any exercise of power concerning the estate is improper, the personal representative is liable to interested persons for damage or loss resulting from breach of the personal representative's fiduciary duty to the same extent as a trustee of an express trust. (2) The rights…

(1) On petition of any person who appears to have an interest in the estate, the court by temporary order may restrain a personal representative from performing specified acts of administration, disbursement, or distribution or exercise of any powers or discharge of any duties of…

(1) A person who in good faith and without notice either assists a personal representative or deals with a personal representative for value is protected as if the personal representative properly exercised the personal representative's power. The fact that a person knowingly dea…

(1) 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 wi…

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 the successor personal representative may not exercise any power expressly made …

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: (1) when any corepresentative receives …

Persons dealing with a corepresentative, if actually unaware that another has been appointed to serve with the corepresentative or if advised by the personal representative with whom they deal that the personal representative has authority to act alone for any of the reasons ment…

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 coexecutors is not appointed, those appoi…