A. The duties and powers of a personal representative commence upon his appointment. The powers of a personal representative relate back in time to give acts by the person appointed which are beneficial to the estate occurring prior to appointment the same effect as those occurring thereafter. B. Prior to appointment, a person named personal […]
A person to whom general letters are rightly issued first has exclusive authority under the letters until his appointment is terminated or modified. If, through error, general letters are issued to another, the first rightly appointed representative may recover any property of the estate in the hands of the representative subsequently appointed, but the acts […]
A. A personal representative is a fiduciary who shall observe the same standards of care applicable to trustees. A personal representative is under a duty to settle and distribute the estate of a decedent in accordance with the terms of any probated and effective will and the Uniform Probate Code and as expeditiously and efficiently […]
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 district court. However, the personal representative may invoke the jurisdiction of the district court, in proceedings authorized […]
A. Not later than thirty days after appointment, every personal representative, except a special administrator, shall give notice of the appointment to the heirs and devisees, including, if there has been no formal testacy proceeding and if the personal representative was appointed on the assumption that the decedent died intestate, the devisees in any will […]
A. Within three months after his 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 property owned by the decedent at the time of his death, listing it with reasonable detail and indicating as to each listed […]
The personal representative may employ one or more qualified and disinterested appraisers to assist the personal representative 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. The name and address of any appraiser shall be indicated on […]
A. 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 supplementary inventory or appraisement showing the estimated value as of […]
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 presumptively entitled thereto unless or until, in the judgment of the personal […]
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. Subject to prior liens, the right to recover this property, so far as necessary for the payment of unsecured debts of the decedent, […]
A. Until termination of a personal representative’s 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 creditors whose claims have been allowed and others interested in the estate. This power may be exercised without notice, […]
If the 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. The rights of purchasers and others dealing with a personal representative shall be […]
A. Any sale or encumbrance to the personal representative, his spouse, agent or attorney, or any corporation or trust in which he has a substantial beneficial interest, or any transaction which is affected by a substantial conflict of interest on the part of the personal representative, is voidable by any interested person except one who […]
A. 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 to inquire into the existence of a power or […]
A. 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 45-3-902 NMSA 1978, a personal representative, acting reasonably for the benefit of the interested persons, may properly: (1) retain assets owned by the decedent pending distribution or liquidation, including […]
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 personally to any personal representative named in the will. History: 1953 Comp., § 32A-3-716, enacted by Laws 1975, […]
A. If two or more persons are appointed co-representatives, the concurrence of all is required, unless the will provides otherwise, on all acts connected with the administration and distribution of the estate. This restriction does not apply when: (1) any co-representative receives and receipts for property due the estate; (2) the concurrence of all cannot […]
Unless the terms of the will otherwise provide, when one or more of several personal representatives fails or refuses to qualify as a personal representative or when one or more of several personal representatives, after appointment, dies, becomes disabled or is removed, the remaining personal representatives shall proceed to administer the estate and have all […]
A personal representative is entitled to reasonable compensation for his services. If a will provides for compensation of the personal representative and there is no contract with the decedent regarding compensation, he may renounce the provision before qualifying and be entitled to reasonable compensation. A personal representative also may renounce his right to all or […]
If any personal representative or person nominated as a personal representative defends or prosecutes any proceeding in good faith, whether successful or not, he is entitled to receive from the estate his necessary expenses and disbursements including reasonable attorneys’ fees incurred. History: 1953 Comp., § 32A-3-720, enacted by Laws 1976 (S.S.), ch. 37, § 11; […]
