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Maine Executor Duties
Pillar GuideMaine12 min read

Maine Executor Duties

Maine executor duties in order: get letters, notify heirs, file the 3-month inventory, clear the 4-month creditor window, pay debts, then close the estate.

By Settled Editorial

Maine executor duties begin the day the county Probate Court appoints you. You file the will and a petition with the Register of Probate in the county where the person lived, the court appoints you, and you receive your letters. Those letters are your proof of authority. Banks, the county Registry of Deeds, and the Bureau of Motor Vehicles want to see them before they release funds or record a transfer.

Once the court appoints you, you serve as a fiduciary for the estate. Maine holds you to the standards of care that apply to a trustee (18-C M.R.S. 3-703). You protect the property, keep estate money out of your own accounts, follow the will or the intestacy rules, and distribute only when the estate is ready. This guide walks the duties in the order Maine's deadlines demand. It is general information, not legal advice. Confirm each step with your county Register of Probate or a licensed Maine attorney.

Use this guide with the Maine probate guide, the Maine creditor claims guide, the Maine debt payment priority guide, the Maine executor bond guide, and the Maine probate accounting guide. For deadlines at a glance, see the Maine probate timeline. For your county office, see the Maine probate court directory.

Get Your Letters from the County Probate Court First

Maine keeps a separate, county-based Probate Court in each of its 16 counties. The elected Register of Probate runs the office and takes informal filings. The elected Judge of Probate hears formal and contested matters. It is not a Surrogate's Court, a Register of Wills, or a clerk of a unified court, so lead with the county Probate Court and Register of Probate when you look up a form or a fee.

Authority comes from your letters, not from the will naming you. A named executor can find the original will, secure the home, and gather account statements before appointment. But you cannot collect accounts, sign estate documents, or transfer title until the court issues your letters.

With a valid will you receive letters testamentary and serve as executor. Without a will you receive letters of administration and serve as administrator. Maine gives both roles one name: personal representative. Priority for appointment runs in a set order (18-C M.R.S. 3-203): the person named in a probated will, then the surviving spouse who is a devisee, other devisees, the surviving spouse, other heirs, and, 45 days after death, a creditor. A personal representative must be 18 or older and not found unsuitable by the court.

One freshness check: Maine's Probate Code is Title 18-C, effective September 1, 2019, which replaced the old Title 18-A. Any form or article still citing 18-A is out of date. Informal probate runs through the Register of Probate on an application; a contested or formal matter goes before the Judge of Probate.

What a Maine Personal Representative Does

Once you hold your letters, you are a fiduciary. The duties run in this order:

  1. Send written notice of your appointment to the heirs and devisees within 30 days
  2. Take possession or control of the estate's property
  3. Prepare and file the inventory within 3 months
  4. Publish notice to creditors and watch the 4-month claim window
  5. Pay valid debts in the order Maine sets
  6. Address the spouse's share and the allowances
  7. Distribute what remains and close the estate

Not every estate needs full administration. Some assets pass by beneficiary designation, joint ownership with survivorship, or a payable-on-death term. A small estate may fit the affidavit path instead: a successor can collect personal property (not real estate) 30 days after death, with no appointment at all (18-C M.R.S. 3-1201). Check whether full administration is even needed before you run the whole sequence.

Duty 1: Notify Heirs and Devisees Within 30 Days

Within 30 days after appointment, send written information of your appointment to the heirs and devisees by ordinary mail (18-C M.R.S. 3-705). The notice states that you are administering the estate without court supervision, that recipients may request information from you and may petition the court, your name and address, whether a bond was filed, and where the estate papers are on file. Keep a copy of what you sent and a list of who received it.

Duty 2: Take Control of the Estate's Property

You have the right to take possession or control of the decedent's property (18-C M.R.S. 3-709). Open a separate estate bank account and keep estate cash out of your own accounts, because commingling is a loss the court can charge back to you. You may leave real property or tangible personal property with the person presumptively entitled to it until you judge that you need possession for administration.

Secure the home, keep insurance in force, collect debts owed to the estate, and save every receipt and payment record. You may act without a court order for routine work (18-C M.R.S. 3-704 and 3-715): retain assets, sell property, pay taxes and expenses, and settle claims, acting reasonably for the people interested in the estate.

Duty 3: File the Inventory Within 3 Months

Within 3 months after appointment, prepare an inventory of the decedent's property (18-C M.R.S. 3-706). List each item with reasonable detail, its fair market value as of the date of death, and the type and amount of any encumbrance. File it with the court or mail it to interested persons who request it.

Build the worksheet as you collect assets. For each item, write down the owner name, the account or title number, the date-of-death value, any lien, and the source document. If an asset turns up after you file, report it in a supplementary inventory (18-C M.R.S. 3-708).

Duty 4: Publish Notice to Creditors and Watch the 4-Month Window

Publish a notice to creditors. A creditor must present a claim within 4 months after the date of first publication, or be barred (18-C M.R.S. 3-801). A creditor you give actual mailed notice gets the later of that 4-month window or 60 days after the mailed notice.

Independently, all claims arising before death are barred no later than 9 months after death, whether or not you publish a notice (the ultimate non-claim bar, 18-C M.R.S. 3-803). Save the publication dates and the proof. Pay too early, before the window runs, and a valid claim that lands later can fall on you personally. See the Maine creditor claims guide for how claims come in and how you allow or reject them.

Duty 5: Pay Debts in the Order Maine Sets

When claims come in, pay them in the order Maine sets (18-C M.R.S. 3-805), not in the order the bills arrive. If the estate cannot cover everything, that order decides who gets paid and who does not, and paying a lower rank first can leave you exposed. Do not guess the order. See the Maine debt payment priority guide and confirm the ranking before you release estate funds.

Duty 6: Address the Spouse's Share and Allowances Before You Distribute

Maine gives a surviving spouse and certain children protections that come before general distribution. The homestead allowance (18-C M.R.S. 2-402), exempt property (18-C M.R.S. 2-403), and a family allowance (18-C M.R.S. 2-404 and 2-405) each index by the year of death and are in addition to what the will or intestacy leaves. A surviving spouse may also claim the elective share, 50% of the marital-property portion of the augmented estate (18-C M.R.S. 2-202), with a firm deadline of 9 months after death or 6 months after the will is probated, whichever is later (18-C M.R.S. 2-211).

A name in the will is not a green light to distribute on day one. Debts, taxes, the spouse's election, and the allowances can come first. See the Maine surviving spouse rights guide before you set anything aside. When the estate is ready, you distribute under the probated will or, with no will, under the Maine intestate succession rules.

Real Property Passes to the Heirs and Devisees

Maine real estate is its own case. Title passes to the heirs or devisees at death, subject to administration (18-C M.R.S. 3-101), and you may leave the property with the person presumptively entitled to it until you need it for the estate (18-C M.R.S. 3-709). Probate confirms the chain of title; it does not convey the land.

The main reason to bring real property into administration is a sale needed to pay estate debts. That sale can call for a separate step, and deed language, liens, and title-company requirements come into play. Deeds record with the county Registry of Deeds, a separate office from the Registry of Probate. A Maine transfer on death deed is one way an owner can pass real property outside probate before death.

How a Maine Personal Representative Gets Paid

Maine sets no statutory fee schedule, unlike some neighboring states. You are entitled to reasonable compensation for your services (18-C M.R.S. 3-719), set by agreement or reviewed by the court. If the will fixes your compensation and you made no contract with the decedent about it, you may renounce that provision before you qualify and take reasonable compensation instead. You may also renounce your compensation entirely by written filing. Keep time records so a court reviewing the estate can see the work behind your fee. To estimate a reasonable amount before you decide whether to take or waive it, use the Maine executor compensation calculator.

Close the Estate with a Closing Statement

Distribution comes last, and only after the estate can support it. Before you hand anything to an heir or beneficiary, walk this checklist:

  1. Were the heirs and devisees notified within 30 days?
  2. Is the inventory filed or mailed to those who asked for it?
  3. Has the 4-month creditor window run since first publication?
  4. Are valid claims paid in the order Maine sets?
  5. Are the spouse's share and the allowances addressed?
  6. Are the final income tax returns filed or accounted for?
  7. Do you have signed receipts from the people who received property?

Close an informal estate by filing a sworn closing statement after the estate is fully administered (18-C M.R.S. 3-1003). A formal or supervised estate closes through the court instead. See the Maine probate accounting guide for what goes in the filing.

Common Questions

Which office handles probate in Maine?

The county Probate Court, one in each of Maine's 16 counties. You file with the Register of Probate, who takes informal appointments and records, and the Judge of Probate hears formal and contested matters. Maine's Probate Court is a separate county court, not part of the District or Superior Court system. Find your office in the Maine probate court directory.

What is my first deadline after the court appoints me?

Send written notice of your appointment to the heirs and devisees within 30 days (18-C M.R.S. 3-705), then prepare and file the inventory within 3 months of appointment (18-C M.R.S. 3-706). Soon after, publish notice to creditors, which starts the 4-month claim window (18-C M.R.S. 3-801).

How long do creditors have to file claims in Maine?

Four months after the first publication of your notice to creditors (18-C M.R.S. 3-801). A creditor you give mailed notice gets the later of that window or 60 days after the notice. All pre-death claims are barred no later than 9 months after death (18-C M.R.S. 3-803). See the Maine creditor claims guide.

How much does a Maine personal representative get paid?

Maine has no statutory fee schedule. You are entitled to reasonable compensation (18-C M.R.S. 3-719), set by agreement or reviewed by the court. If the will fixes your fee, you may renounce it before you qualify and take reasonable compensation instead, and you may waive compensation by written filing.

Can I distribute as soon as the court appoints me?

No. Wait until you notify the heirs and devisees, file the inventory, let the 4-month creditor window run, pay valid debts in the order Maine sets, address any spouse's share and the allowances, and handle the taxes. Distributing early can leave you personally liable for a valid claim that lands later.

This guide is general information about Maine estates. It is not legal advice. Confirm anything that affects your situation with your county Register of Probate, the Judge of Probate, or a licensed Maine attorney.

Sources:

It is not legal advice.

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Settled Estate is not a law firm and does not give legal advice.

Information current as of July 21, 2026

Settled Estate is not a law firm, and this content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Probate laws and procedures in Maine can change. Consult with a qualified attorney for advice specific to your situation. Full disclaimer.

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