The complete sequence
Probate duties overlap. Property and accounting work must be coordinated with notices, claims and other obligations before the estate can be distributed and closed. The required procedure depends on the estate and its form of administration.
Court authority establishes who may act. One track identifies, secures and values property and maintains records. A second track addresses required notices, debts, claims and other obligations. The Personal Representative and attorney reconcile those tracks before final distribution and closing. This is an explanation of coordinated duties, not a fixed timetable or a substitute for estate-specific deadlines.
Sources: RSMo 473.233, 473.543, 473.787 and 473.840; additional authorities appear in this guide. Open the full-size graphic. Credit: Jones Elder Law, LLC. Reviewed September 13, 2026. Please cite this guide when referencing the graphic.
The attorney reviews how each asset is titled, whether it has a surviving joint owner or beneficiary, whether it belongs to a trust, and whether another Missouri transfer procedure applies. That review determines which property belongs in the probate estate and which procedure should be used.
The attorney files the case in the proper Missouri Probate Division, presents the original will when one exists, identifies the people entitled to notice, and requests the appropriate form of administration. Filing in the wrong county or using the wrong procedure can delay authority and create additional expense.
The court appoints the Personal Representative and issues Letters. Before that appointment, being named in a will or being the closest family member does not provide legal authority over probate property.
The attorney coordinates the required notices. The Personal Representative and attorney identify, describe, and value the probate property. The inventory is due within 30 days after Letters are granted unless the court allows more time.
The Personal Representative takes control of probate assets, confirms insurance, secures real estate, protects cash, and prevents loss. The attorney advises what can be done under the Letters, the will, Missouri law, and any court order before property is sold, transferred, or encumbered.
The attorney tracks the claim period and reviews filed claims. The Personal Representative provides account records and information needed to decide whether a claim should be allowed, disputed, negotiated, or paid. Most creditor claims must be filed within six months after the first published notice, but direct notice and other limitation rules can affect a particular deadline.
The estate records must show what came in, what was paid, what changed in value, and what remains. The attorney uses those records to address fees, expenses, taxes, reserves, and the proposed shares. Distribution waits until the Personal Representative and attorney can confirm that the estate can satisfy its obligations and transfer the correct property to the correct people.
The attorney prepares the settlement, statement of account, consents, notices, receipts, or other documents required by the closing procedure. The Personal Representative completes the approved transfers and supplies proof. The applicable closing procedure determines how discharge occurs. In some independent estates, Missouri law provides discharge from further claim or demand by interested parties without a separate court order.
A house may need immediate insurance and maintenance. Claims, taxes, and a sale can proceed at the same time. Distribution is different: the Personal Representative should not hand out property merely because family members agree or the six month creditor period has ended. The attorney must first confirm that the estate can pay its obligations, document the proposed distribution, and complete the required closing steps.
Administration type
| Question | Independent administration | Supervised administration |
|---|---|---|
| How it begins | A will can authorize or direct independent administration. If the will does not prohibit it, all required heirs and devisees can consent to it. | A will can require court supervision. Supervised administration also applies when independent administration has not been authorized through the will or the required consents. |
| How work is approved | The Personal Representative can complete many authorized acts without requesting a separate court order each time. The estate still has filings, deadlines, fiduciary duties, and a formal closing procedure. | The Personal Representative returns to the court for approval of more actions. That oversight can provide structure when authority, property, proposed transactions, or distributions require closer review. |
| What disagreement changes | Independent administration does not eliminate the court’s power. An interested person can ask the court to address a problem, and Missouri law permits proceedings to restrain conduct or revoke independent authority when the circumstances support it. | Disagreement does not automatically decide every issue, but supervised administration gives the court a more active role in reviewing the estate’s actions and resolving contested questions. |
| What the attorney does | The attorney advises the Personal Representative on the legal questions involved in assets, inventory, claims, taxes, transfers, distribution, and closing. | The attorney prepares the additional petitions, notices, evidence, proposed orders, and settlements required for court review. |
The will is checked first. If it directs independent administration, that direction controls; if it prohibits independent administration, the estate remains supervised. When the will is silent, the attorney determines whose consent is required and whether independent administration is available. The choice affects how often court approval is needed, not whether the Personal Representative needs an attorney.
Authority comes before action
Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration show that the court appointed the Personal Representative. Banks, title companies, buyers, taxing authorities, and other institutions rely on current Letters before accepting that person’s authority to act for the estate.
The property does not become the Personal Representative’s property. The appointment creates a fiduciary duty to protect the estate and act for the people interested in it. The Personal Representative therefore works with the attorney before selling, transferring, borrowing against, or distributing probate property.
A person named in a will is only a nominee until the court appoints that person. A family member holding property does not necessarily own it. A beneficiary who will eventually inherit does not have present authority to sell or give it away.
Time and expense
This is a planning estimate, not a promise or a universal statutory minimum. The ordinary creditor filing period runs six months from the first published notice, subject to rules affecting particular claims. After that period, the attorney and Personal Representative still must resolve claims, complete tax work, confirm the final accounting, approve fees and expenses, prepare distribution, obtain receipts or consents, and finish the closing procedure. A real estate sale, a business, missing records, disputed claims, or family conflict adds time.
A small estate affidavit follows a different procedure. It can be faster than a full administration, but collecting and transferring the property can still take months rather than weeks.
Missouri law provides a minimum percentage schedule for compensation of the Personal Representative. The estate attorney is allowed minimum compensation under the same schedule. The percentages apply in tiers to the personal property administered and to proceeds from real property sold under a Probate Division order.
The court can allow compensation above the statutory minimum when the reasonable value of the work supports it. The estate may also pay court charges, publication, bond premiums, appraisals, tax preparation, property expenses, and other professional costs required by its assets and problems.
Read a fuller explanation of Missouri probate costs, statutory fees, and timing.
Complete records, prompt decisions, secured property, early identification of title and tax problems, and coordination with the attorney prevent repeated filings and corrective work. Early distributions, missing account records, unpaid insurance, and informal family agreements commonly make the estate harder and more expensive to finish.
An organized legal process
The Probate Resolution Program™ organizes the legal filings, Personal Representative responsibilities, property decisions, creditor work, accounting, communication, and closing requirements around the facts of the estate. The purpose is to show the Personal Representative what must happen next, what information the attorney needs, and how each decision affects distribution and closing.
That structure matters because probate problems rarely stay in one box. A house sale affects insurance, value, cash flow, taxes, accounting, and the final shares. A claim affects reserves and the timing of distribution. The program keeps those connected decisions in one attorney led process.
Different records start different clocks. The inventory deadline generally runs from the grant of Letters under RSMo section 473.233. Ordinary closing requirements refer to first publication, completion of administration, and later notices and filings. Counting every period from the date of death produces avoidable errors.
Supervised settlement rules and the independent statement-of-account procedure address the six-month-and-ten-day point after first publication and the remaining work. Reaching that point does not prove that all claims, taxes, property transfers, accounting, and distributions are complete. The estate’s actual procedure and court orders still control.
A practical file should identify the date of death, application date, date Letters were granted, first publication, individual notices, inventory deadline, and the closing dates advised by the attorney. Keep filed copies and proof of notice with that timeline. The inventory and closing guide explains the records behind the final steps.
RSMo section 473.780 governs independent administration authorized by the will or required consents, and addresses situations involving people under disability. A family should not assume that an informal majority vote is enough. The admitted will, interested people, and statutory conditions must be examined.
RSMo section 473.787 requires a nonlawyer independent Personal Representative to obtain legal advice and services on the specified estate questions. RSMo section 473.153 also addresses court appearances by a Personal Representative and compensation. The separate independent-administration fee provision requires court authorization for compensation above the referenced statutory minimum.
When evaluating a quoted fee, distinguish attorney compensation, Personal Representative compensation, and outside costs such as publication, bond, appraisal, and tax work. A percentage schedule does not make every estate’s total cost identical.
Common process questions
A full probate administration will not be completed in two or three months. The creditor filing period runs six months from first publication, and the estate still needs time to resolve claims, taxes, accounting, distribution, and closing. For planning purposes, an uncomplicated full estate often requires seven months or more; property, claims, taxes, and disputes can extend that estimate. A small estate affidavit uses a different procedure and can be faster, but completion can still take months.
No. The will can nominate a person to serve. The Probate Division appoints the Personal Representative and issues Letters. Until then, the nominee has no authority over probate property merely because the will names that person. Obtain the court-issued Letters before asking a financial institution to recognize estate authority. The nominee should preserve property and records in the meantime without treating an expected appointment as permission to distribute or use estate assets.
No. The end of the creditor filing period is one checkpoint. The Personal Representative and attorney must still determine which claims and expenses will be paid, complete required tax work, retain enough cash for unfinished obligations, prepare a correct accounting, determine each beneficiary’s share, and follow the estate’s closing procedure before final distribution.
A nonlawyer Personal Representative cannot appear in court without an attorney. Missouri law also requires a nonlawyer Independent Personal Representative to secure an attorney’s advice and services on the legal questions involved in opening the estate, property administration, inventory, claims, taxes, distribution, and closing.
No. A will can direct or prohibit independent administration. When the will does not prohibit it, the required heirs and devisees can consent to independent administration. Independent administration reduces the number of separate court approvals, but it remains a probate proceeding with legal duties, filings, deadlines, and closing requirements.
