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Mississippi Executor Duties
Pillar GuideMississippi12 min read

Mississippi Executor Duties

Mississippi executor duties guide: get letters from chancery court, file the 90-day inventory, notice creditors, and file accounts with the chancery clerk.

By Settled Editorial

Mississippi executor duties begin with one step that comes before every other one. You get letters from the chancery court in the county where the person lived, and the chancery clerk records your appointment. Mississippi has no separate "probate court." Probate runs through chancery court, and the chancery clerk is your filing office. You take an oath, post any required bond, and the court grants you letters testamentary if there is a will or letters of administration if there is not. Those letters are your proof of authority. Banks, the tax collector, and title offices ask for them before they release anything.

After the court appoints you, you run a fixed sequence of duties on the calendar. You file an inventory within 90 days, notice creditors and let the 90-day claim window run, then file annual accounts and a final account with the court. This guide walks the practical order: get appointed first, then do the duties in deadline order. This is general information, not legal advice. Confirm each step with your local chancery clerk or a Mississippi attorney.

Use this guide with the Mississippi probate guide, the Mississippi intestate succession guide, the Mississippi creditor claims guide, and the Mississippi probate timeline.

Get Letters From Chancery Court First

Authority comes from the grant of letters, not from the will naming you. A named executor can find the original will, secure the house, and gather records before the court appoints anyone. But you cannot collect accounts, sign estate documents, or transfer title until the chancery court grants letters and the chancery clerk records them.

To get appointed you open the estate in the chancery court of the county where the person had a fixed place of residence at death. You take and subscribe an oath, and you give bond equal to the full value of the estate with sureties the court or clerk approves, unless the will or the court waives that bond. With a valid will, the court grants letters testamentary and you serve as executor. Without a will, the court grants letters of administration and you serve as administrator. The court prefers the surviving spouse first, then the next of kin entitled to distribution, when it picks an administrator. Both roles are the personal representative, and the duties below apply the same way. (Source: Miss. Code § 91-7-41, law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2023/title-91/chapter-7/section-91-7-41/; Miss. Code § 91-7-63, law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2023/title-91/chapter-7/section-91-7-63/.)

What a Mississippi Personal Representative Does

Once the court grants your letters, you are a fiduciary. You take possession of the personal estate, protect estate property, keep estate money separate from your own, follow the will or the intestacy rules, work with the chancery court, and distribute only when the estate is ready. Miss. Code § 91-7-47 spells out the core of the job for an executor or administrator with the will annexed: take possession of the personal estate, have proper appraisements made, return true inventories, collect the debts owed to the estate, pay the debts that are properly probated and registered, settle your accounts as often as the law requires, and pay the legacies as far as the estate allows.

Here is the core duty list in order:

  1. Take possession of the personal estate and have it appraised
  2. File a verified inventory within 90 days of your letters
  3. Notice creditors and let the 90-day claim window run
  4. Pay debts that are properly probated and registered
  5. File an account each year until the estate is ready to close
  6. File a final account and distribute the remaining assets

Not every estate needs full administration. Some assets pass by beneficiary designation, joint survivorship, or a payable-on-death term. A small estate may fit a simpler path. Real estate is its own case, covered below. Check whether full administration is even needed before you run the whole sequence. (Source: Miss. Code § 91-7-47, law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2023/title-91/chapter-7/section-91-7-47/.)

Duty 1: File the Inventory Within 90 Days

The inventory is your first hard deadline with the court. Under Miss. Code § 91-7-93 you file a verified inventory of the money and property the person owned at death within 90 days of the grant of your letters, unless the court or clerk allows more time. You list each item in reasonable detail, show its market value as of the date of death, and note the type and amount of any lien on it.

Build the inventory worksheet before the deadline. For each asset capture the owner name, the account or title number, the date-of-death value, any encumbrance, the beneficiary or joint-owner note, and the source document. The court can waive the inventory if the will waives it, and the chancellor can waive it in an intestate estate on the administrator's petition. Even after a waiver, the court can later order you to file one if a beneficiary or interested party asks and the chancellor finds it necessary. Confirm whether your estate needs the inventory and the exact due date with your chancery clerk. (Source: Miss. Code § 91-7-93, law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2023/title-91/chapter-7/section-91-7-93/.)

Duty 2: Notice Creditors and Run the 90-Day Claim Window

Mississippi puts a clock on creditors, and you start it. Under Miss. Code § 91-7-145 you make reasonably diligent efforts to identify people who may have claims, then mail each one a notice that a claim is barred unless it is probated and registered with the chancery clerk within 90 days after the first publication of the notice to creditors. You file an affidavit with the clerk stating that you made those diligent efforts.

Here is why the window matters. Under Miss. Code § 91-7-151, any claim that is not registered, probated, and allowed in the chancery court within 90 days after the first publication is barred, and no suit can be maintained on it, even if you knew the claim existed. So the 90-day registration window protects the estate from late claims when you handle the notice correctly. Do not guess at notice mechanics or which creditors count as known. Confirm the publication and mailing steps with your chancery clerk or a Mississippi attorney. (Source: Miss. Code § 91-7-145, law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2023/title-91/chapter-7/section-91-7-145/; Miss. Code § 91-7-151, law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2023/title-91/chapter-7/section-91-7-151/.)

Duty 3: File Annual Accounts With the Court

After the inventory, accounting is how you show the chancery court what you received, what you paid, and what remains. Under Miss. Code § 91-7-277 you present an account under oath at least once each year, or more often if the court requires it. The account states every disbursement and its amount, and shows the money you received and the source of each receipt.

Missing the yearly account has a real cost. Under § 91-7-277, failure to account annually is a breach of the administration bond, which can be sued on, and the court can remove you for it. The court can extend the time on application and good cause. Once the court reviews an account and finds it just and true, it approves the account as a correct annual settlement. The court can waive annual accounts if the will waives them or, in an intestate estate, on the administrator's petition, but it can later order them if a beneficiary asks and the chancellor finds it advisable. Confirm your account schedule with your chancery clerk. (Source: Miss. Code § 91-7-277, law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2023/title-91/chapter-7/section-91-7-277/.)

Duty 4: File the Final Account and Close the Estate

Distribution comes last, and only after the estate can support it. When you have paid the debts and collected the assets, Miss. Code § 91-7-291 makes you file a final settlement of the administration unless the court orders otherwise on cause shown. The final account states the balances from each annual account, all other charges and disbursements, amounts received that no prior account covered, and the kind and condition of every asset still in your hands.

Before you hand anything to a beneficiary, walk this checklist:

  1. Has your inventory been filed or properly waived?
  2. Did the creditor notice go out and the 90-day claim window run?
  3. Are debts that were probated and registered paid as far as the estate allows?
  4. Has the court reviewed and approved your accounts?
  5. Are final income tax returns filed or accounted for?
  6. Does your final account support every receipt, payment, and proposed distribution?

A named beneficiary in the will is not a green light to distribute on day one. Debts, taxes, and the claim window can come first. Distributing before the court approves the final settlement can expose you to personal liability for a later valid claim, so confirm the court's approval before you hand anything over. When the estate is ready, you distribute under the probated will or, with no will, under the Mississippi intestacy rules. (Source: Miss. Code § 91-7-291, law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2023/title-91/chapter-7/section-91-7-291/.)

Real Estate and the Estate

Mississippi treats real estate differently from a bank account. Title to solely owned real property generally passes to the heirs or devisees at the moment of death, so you usually do not "administer" it the way you handle personal property. Under § 91-7-47, an executor or administrator with the will annexed has a right to possess the real estate only so far as needed to execute the will.

The main reason real estate gets pulled into the administration is when it has to be sold to pay estate debts. That can require a separate court process, and deed language, liens, and title-company requirements come into play. If the estate is short on cash and the value is in the house, get title and deed review before you act.

How a Mississippi Executor Gets Paid

Mississippi does not set a fixed statutory percentage for executor or administrator pay. Under Miss. Code § 91-7-299, the court allows you compensation for your trouble, in partial or final settlements, in the sum the court deems proper. The court weighs the value and worth of the estate and the degree of difficulty of the duties you discharged.

So plan on reasonable compensation that the chancery court signs off on, not a flat rate you set yourself. The court reviews and approves the amount on settlement based on the work, the size of the estate, and the difficulty of the job. Talk to your chancery clerk or attorney about what your court typically allows for an estate like yours, and see the Mississippi probate costs guide for how commissions, filing fees, and attorney fees are paid from the estate. (Source: Miss. Code § 91-7-299, law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2023/title-91/chapter-7/section-91-7-299/.)

Common Questions

Do I go to a probate court in Mississippi?

No. Mississippi has no separate probate court. Probate runs through the chancery court of the county where the person lived, and the chancery clerk is the filing office for the inventory, accounts, and creditor claims.

What is the first deadline after I get letters?

File a verified inventory of the estate within 90 days of the grant of your letters under § 91-7-93, unless the court or clerk allows more time or waives the inventory.

How long do creditors have to file a claim?

Creditors must probate and register a claim with the chancery clerk within 90 days after the first publication of the notice to creditors under § 91-7-151. A claim filed after that window is generally barred.

How much does a Mississippi executor get paid?

The chancery court allows reasonable compensation under § 91-7-299, based on the value of the estate and the difficulty of the work. Mississippi does not fix a statutory percentage.

Can I distribute as soon as I get letters?

No. Wait until the inventory, creditor notice and the 90-day claim window, debt payment, and the court's approval of your final settlement are handled. Distributing too early can make you personally liable for a later valid claim.

This guide is general information about Mississippi estates. It is not legal advice. Confirm anything that affects your situation with the chancery clerk, the chancery court, or a licensed Mississippi attorney.

Sources

Prefer to talk it through? Connect with a probate attorney

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

Information current as of June 14, 2026

This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Probate laws and procedures in Mississippi can change. Consult with a qualified attorney for advice specific to your situation. Full disclaimer.

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