Colorado Probate Accounting

One of the core duties of a Colorado personal representative is keeping and sharing a clear financial record of the estate. Heirs and devisees have a legal right to know what the estate held, what came in and what went out, and how the final distributions were calculated. A personal representative who fails to account properly faces court proceedings, personal liability, and possible removal.

Colorado adopted the Uniform Probate Code, so most estates run informally and unsupervised. That freedom shapes how accounting works here. This guide explains the inventory, the difference between informal and supervised accounting duties, what an accounting must contain, when interested persons can demand one, and how the estate is closed. Colorado probate is handled by the District Court of the county where the person lived, except in the City and County of Denver, where the standalone Denver Probate Court has probate jurisdiction.

Why Accounting Matters

The accounting requirement is rooted in the personal representative's fiduciary duty. Under C.R.S. 15-12-703, a Colorado personal representative is a fiduciary held to the standards of care that apply to a trustee, and must settle and distribute the estate for the benefit of creditors and beneficiaries rather than personal gain. You are managing someone else's property. Transparency is part of the job, not a favor.

Accounting also protects you. A well-documented account shows that you followed the rules, paid claims in the correct priority order, and distributed assets as the will or Colorado law directs. Without records, you are exposed to claims that you mismanaged or misapplied estate funds. Colorado underscores this by requiring you to furnish a full written account to the affected distributees before the estate closes (C.R.S. 15-12-1003).

The Inventory

Before any closing account is due, you prepare an inventory of the estate property. Under C.R.S. 15-12-706, the personal representative must prepare an inventory within three months after appointment, listing each item with reasonable detail, its fair market value as of the date of death, and the type and amount of any lien or encumbrance.

The inventory is the starting point for every later accounting. It is where you fix the beginning value that receipts and disbursements are measured against.

Colorado gives you a choice on where the inventory goes. You may send a copy to interested persons who request it, or file the original with the court. If the heirs are unknown, you also mail a copy to the Colorado attorney general within the same three months. You may hire disinterested appraisers for hard-to-value assets under C.R.S. 15-12-707, and you list them on the inventory. If property turns up later or a value proves wrong, C.R.S. 15-12-708 requires a supplementary inventory.

Informal vs. Supervised Accounting Duties

Colorado's accounting obligations differ sharply depending on whether the estate is unsupervised or supervised.

Unsupervised (Informal) Administration

Most Colorado estates open informally through the court registrar and run unsupervised. In an unsupervised estate, the personal representative is generally not required to file periodic accountings with the court. Instead, the duty runs to the people with a stake in the estate:

The information of appointment sent to heirs and devisees within 30 days must tell them that interested persons may request an accounting (C.R.S. 15-12-705).
Any interested person may request an accounting, and the closing statement itself confirms that a full written account was furnished to the affected distributees (C.R.S. 15-12-1003).

In practice, an unsupervised personal representative shares an inventory and a written account with the heirs and devisees rather than answering to a judge. Regular updates throughout administration are good practice and reduce the chance that a beneficiary demands a formal reckoning.

Supervised Administration

Supervised administration is the escalation path. Under C.R.S. 15-12-501 and 15-12-502, when the court orders supervised administration the personal representative acts under continuing court supervision and generally cannot distribute the estate without court approval. That closer oversight comes with a court-facing accounting: the personal representative answers to the District Court (or Denver Probate Court), and the estate is settled and distributed under a court order rather than a self-filed statement.

The court reviews the filing and may hold a hearing. This is one reason supervised administration is slower and more involved than the ordinary informal track.

What Goes in a Probate Accounting

Whether prepared for the distributees or reviewed by the court, a proper Colorado estate accounting has four main components.

1. Beginning Inventory Value

The starting point for the accounting period: either the value from the filed or furnished inventory, or the ending balance from the previous accounting.

2. Receipts

All assets and income the estate received during the period:

Cash collected from bank, investment, and other financial accounts
Income earned by estate assets after death, such as interest, dividends, and rent
Proceeds from the sale of estate property
Insurance proceeds paid to the estate
Tax refunds received

3. Disbursements

All payments made from estate funds:

Funeral and last-illness expenses paid
Debts and creditor claims paid, noting the priority of each
Attorney fees and personal representative compensation
Court docket fees, appraisal costs, and publication costs
Tax payments
Any partial distributions made during administration

4. Distributions and Ending Balance

The assets or amounts distributed to each beneficiary, and the property remaining on hand. The final account should reconcile so that everything the estate received is accounted for as paid out, distributed, or still held.

When Beneficiaries Can Demand an Accounting

Colorado structures the right to an account around the personal representative's fiduciary duty rather than a single fixed-deadline demand statute. The information of appointment tells heirs and devisees that they may request an accounting (C.R.S. 15-12-705), and the closing statement confirms that a full written account went to the affected distributees (C.R.S. 15-12-1003).

An interested person who believes the personal representative has not accounted, or has mishandled the estate, can petition the court. Because the personal representative is held to trustee-level fiduciary standards under C.R.S. 15-12-703, a court can compel an accounting, review conduct, and impose consequences for a breach.

A sound account should let a reasonable person trace every dollar in and every dollar out. When in doubt, provide more line-item detail, not less.

The Final Accounting and Closing the Estate

Colorado offers two closing paths, and they carry different accounting mechanics.

Closing Statement (Unsupervised)

Most unsupervised personal representatives close with a verified closing statement under C.R.S. 15-12-1003. You may file it no earlier than six months after your original appointment or one year after the death, whichever occurs first. This is an earliest-filing date, not a hard deadline.

In the closing statement you verify that you fully administered the estate, that you paid or otherwise settled claims and expenses, that you distributed the assets, that you sent a copy to all distributees and to known unpaid or unbarred creditors, and that you furnished a full written account to the distributees whose interests are affected. If no proceeding involving you is pending one year after you file the statement, your appointment terminates automatically. Claims against the personal representative for breach of fiduciary duty are generally barred six months after the closing statement is filed (C.R.S. 15-12-1005).

Formal Settlement (Supervised or Contested)

When you want a binding court order instead, or when the estate is supervised or contested, closing runs through the court. A formal proceeding for complete settlement is available under C.R.S. 15-12-1001, and supervised administration is settled under court order per C.R.S. 15-12-501 and 15-12-502. Here the court reviews the accounting, resolves any objections, and issues an order approving distribution and discharging the personal representative.

Protecting Yourself as Executor

Keep records from day one. Open a dedicated estate bank account and run every estate transaction through it. Never mix estate funds with personal funds. Keep receipts, invoices, and documentation for each transaction.

Date everything. Note when you received a claim, when you paid a bill, and when you made a distribution. Timelines matter in accounting disputes.

Communicate with the heirs and devisees. An informed beneficiary is far less likely to petition for a formal accounting. A brief periodic update prevents most disputes.

Furnish the written account before closing. The closing statement requires it. Do not treat the account as optional in an unsupervised estate; it is a condition of a clean close.

Document difficult decisions. If you disallowed a creditor's claim, negotiated a debt, or decided not to pursue a doubtful asset, write down your reasoning at the time. A contemporaneous memo is far more credible than a later explanation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a Colorado personal representative have to file an accounting with the court?

Usually not in an unsupervised estate. Colorado runs most estates informally, and the account is furnished to the affected distributees rather than filed with the court (C.R.S. 15-12-1003). In supervised administration, the personal representative answers to the District Court or Denver Probate Court, and closing runs through a court order (C.R.S. 15-12-501 and 15-12-502).

Can beneficiaries waive a formal accounting?

The distributees can accept the written account furnished under the closing statement without forcing a formal court settlement. If a distributee objects or the estate is supervised or contested, the matter can move to a formal proceeding for complete settlement under C.R.S. 15-12-1001.

What if the personal representative refuses to account?

An interested person can petition the court. Because a Colorado personal representative is held to trustee-level fiduciary standards under C.R.S. 15-12-703, the court can compel an accounting and, if the personal representative mishandled the estate, hold them liable for resulting losses.

How detailed does the accounting need to be?

Detailed enough that a reasonable person can trace every dollar in and every dollar out. Line-item detail by transaction is better than summary totals.

Colorado Personal Representative Duties - the appointed person's full task list
Colorado Probate Guide - how a Colorado estate moves through court
Colorado Probate Timeline - how the inventory and creditor deadlines run
Colorado Estate Creditor Claims - notice to creditors and claim priority
Colorado Probate Costs - docket fees and reasonable compensation

Sources

Sources:

Title: Colorado Revised Statutes 2025, Title 15 (Probate, Trusts, and Fiduciaries), including C.R.S. 15-12-703 (fiduciary standard), 15-12-705 (information to heirs and devisees), 15-12-706 to 15-12-708 (inventory and supplementary inventory), 15-12-501 and 15-12-502 (supervised administration), 15-12-1001 (formal complete settlement), 15-12-1003 (verified closing statement), and 15-12-1005 (limitations on claims against the personal representative). Publisher: Colorado Office of Legislative Legal Services. Publication Date: 2025 edition, accessed 2026-07-01. URL: https://olls.info/crs/crs2025-title-15.pdf
Title: Colorado Revised Statutes, official public access page. Publisher: Colorado General Assembly. Publication Date: Current official code, accessed 2026-07-01. URL: https://leg.colorado.gov/colorado-revised-statutes
Title: Colorado Judicial Branch - Probate (court services overview and JDF forms). Publisher: Colorado Judicial Branch. Publication Date: Current, accessed 2026-07-01. URL: https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/court-services/probate

This guide provides general information about Colorado probate accounting for personal representatives. Whether and how you must account depends on your specific estate and whether it is supervised, so confirm the current rules with the District Court or Denver Probate Court handling the estate or a licensed Colorado attorney. It is not legal advice.