Montana Probate Timeline
Montana informal probate usually runs 7 to 12 months. Notice to creditors is mandatory, and the court can act on an estate open after 2 years.
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A Montana informal probate usually runs 7 to 12 months from the application to the closing statement, and a formal or supervised case runs 9 to 18. Those ranges are planning estimates. The statutory floor is 6 months, measured from the date the personal representative was first appointed, because MCA 72-3-1004(1) blocks a sworn closing statement before then.
Montana sets two dates that most Uniform Probate Code states leave out. Publishing a notice to creditors is mandatory here, so the 4-month claim window runs in every administered estate. And an estate still open 2 years after the appointment lands in front of the district judge on a show-cause order under MCA 72-3-1015, with the personal representative's fee and the attorney's fee at stake. Everything else on this page hangs between those two dates. This page is general information about Montana law, current as of the Montana Code Annotated 2025, rather than advice about one estate, so confirm your own dates with the clerk of district court holding the file or a licensed Montana attorney.
Four Routes, Four Durations
Montana is a Uniform Probate Code state, and the route decides the duration before any fact about the family does. Every court route runs through the district court of the county where the decedent lived. MCA 72-1-103(9) makes the district court the probate court in all 56 counties, and the clerk of district court handles informal cases, so finding your county's clerk of district court is a lookup rather than a choice of court.
| Route | Typical duration | What ends it |
|---|---|---|
| Collection of personal property by affidavit (72-3-1101) | About 1 to 2 months | The successor hands a sworn affidavit to the bank or other holder, 30 days after the death. No court case is opened |
| Summary administration of a small estate (72-3-1103) | About 3 to 6 months | The personal representative distributes without notice to creditors and files a closing statement under 72-3-1104 |
| Informal probate (72-3-211 to 72-3-225) | 7 to 12 months | A verified closing statement under 72-3-1004, plus the accounting 72-3-1005 requires |
| Formal testacy or supervised administration | 9 to 18 months | An order of complete settlement under 72-3-1001 |
The first two are exits. The third is what happens when neither exit fits, and the fourth is what happens when somebody disagrees or asks a judge to watch.
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Take the 2-minute assessmentThe Affidavit Route Never Opens a Case
The quickest ending in Montana is the one with no court file. MCA 72-3-1101(1) requires a bank, a debtor or anyone holding the decedent's tangible personal property or securities to pay or deliver to the successor 30 days after the death, once the successor presents an affidavit stating four things: the value of the probate estate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $100,000; 30 days have elapsed since the death; no application or petition for a personal representative is pending or has been granted in any jurisdiction; and the successor is entitled to the property.
The $100,000 figure moved. Chapter 453, Laws of 2023 (SB 286) raised it from $50,000, so an older form or article quoting $50,000 is out of date. The measure is net and covers the whole probate estate, so a house counts toward it even though the affidavit cannot transfer a house. Nothing in part 11 of Title 72, chapter 3 moves real property by affidavit. A separate $5,000 figure in 72-3-1101(2) lets the Department of Revenue refund unclaimed property to a successor; that is a refund rule, not a second small-estate tier.
The second exit has no dollar figure at all. Under MCA 72-3-1103, where the inventory and appraisal show that the entire estate, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed the homestead allowance, exempt property, the family allowance, the costs of administration, reasonable funeral expenses and the reasonable medical and hospital expenses of the last illness, the personal representative may distribute right away without giving notice to creditors and close under 72-3-1104. That is the one administered route in Montana that skips the mandatory publication.
The Front End Runs on 120 Hours, or 30 Days
Nothing in Montana law puts a numeric deadline on getting the will to the courthouse. MCA 72-2-536 requires a person holding the will to deliver it "with reasonable promptness" after the death, on the request of an interested person, and makes a person who willfully fails to deliver it liable for the damage.
What does run on a clock is the appointment. MCA 72-3-225(1) lets the clerk of district court appoint the applicant once at least 120 hours have elapsed since the death, after making the findings in 72-3-222 and 72-3-223. Where the decedent was a nonresident, the clerk delays the order until 30 days after the death unless the personal representative appointed at the domicile is the applicant or the will directs that the estate be subject to Montana law.
Two Montana features matter here.
- The clerk, not a judge or a registrar, grants an informal case. MCA 72-1-103(24) defines informal proceedings as proceedings conducted without notice to interested persons by the clerk of court, and 72-3-212 has the clerk make the findings for informal probate of a will.
- Almost nobody gets notice before an informal case. Under 72-3-211 and 72-3-221, the applicant notifies only people who filed a demand for notice, an unterminated personal representative, and anyone with a prior or equal right to appointment who has not waived it in writing. A formal proceeding is different: 72-1-301 requires mailed or delivered notice at least 14 days before the hearing.
Once appointed, the personal representative has 30 days to tell the family. MCA 72-3-603(1) requires information about the appointment, delivered or sent by ordinary mail, to every heir and devisee whose address is reasonably available, and 72-3-603(2) lists what it must say, including whether bond has been filed and which court holds the papers. Montana executor duties covers the 30-day notice to heirs and the other dated duties that follow it.
Publication Is Mandatory, and It Sets the Middle of the Case
MCA 72-3-801(1) says a personal representative, upon appointment, shall publish a notice once a week for 3 successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county. The notice announces the appointment and the personal representative's address and tells creditors to present their claims within 4 months after the date of the first publication or be forever barred.
Written notice runs on a different pair of numbers. Under 72-3-801(2), the personal representative may mail or deliver a notice to a particular creditor, and that creditor has the later of 4 months from the published notice or 30 days from the mailing or delivery.
MCA 72-3-803(1) then fixes the real bar date. Claims that arose before the death are barred unless presented within the earlier of 1 year after the death or the windows opened by 72-3-801. Because publication is required, the 4-month window is the date that usually controls. The 1-year outer bar catches the estate where the notice ran late, or where no personal representative was ever appointed. Montana notice to creditors sets out how a claim is presented and what happens to a late one.
Here is an ordinary informal estate where publication starts in the week the letters issue.
| Step | Statute | When |
|---|---|---|
| Earliest informal appointment | 72-3-225(1) | 120 hours after the death (30 days for a nonresident) |
| First publication of the notice to creditors | 72-3-801(1) | Week of appointment, then weekly for 3 weeks |
| Information to heirs and devisees | 72-3-603(1) | Within 30 days of appointment |
| Published claim window closes | 72-3-801(1) | 4 months after first publication |
| Silence on a claim counts as allowance | 72-3-805(1) | 60 days after the claim window closes |
| Earliest verified closing statement | 72-3-1004(1) | 6 months after appointment |
| Inventory due | 72-3-607(1) | Within 9 months of appointment |
| Show-cause notice if still open | 72-3-1015(1) | 2 years after appointment |
Months One Through Nine
Montana gives the personal representative far longer for the inventory than the uniform code does. MCA 72-3-607(1) sets the deadline at 9 months after appointment, where the uniform text says 3. The inventory lists the probate property the decedent owned at death in reasonable detail, with each item's fair market value on the date of death and the type and amount of any encumbrance. Under 72-3-607(3), the personal representative either sends a copy to the heirs, devisees and unpaid allowed creditors who ask for one, or files the original with the court and sends copies on request. An empty court docket is not proof that nothing was done.
Two shorter clocks sit inside that window.
- A surviving spouse's list. Under 72-3-607(6), a spouse whose elective-share right has not expired can demand a list of all probate and nonprobate property, and the personal representative has 90 days from the demand to mail it.
- Claim decisions. Under 72-3-805(1), a creditor whose claim is disallowed has 60 days after the notice of disallowance is mailed to petition the court or sue, provided the notice warns of the bar. Running the other way, a personal representative who mails nothing on a claim for 60 days after the claim window closes is treated as having allowed it. Under 72-3-805(5), an allowed claim then starts earning interest at the legal rate 60 days after the time for presenting it expired, unless a contract sets a different rate.
The family allowance runs alongside all of this. MCA 72-2-414(1) gives the surviving spouse and dependent children a reasonable allowance during administration, which may not continue for longer than 1 year if the estate cannot pay its allowed claims.
How a Montana Estate Ends
An informal administration ends on paper. MCA 72-3-1004(1) lets the personal representative close by filing a verified statement, no earlier than 6 months after the original appointment, saying three things: that the time limit for presenting creditors' claims has expired; that the estate has been fully administered, with presented claims, administration expenses and taxes paid, settled or disclosed and the assets distributed; and that a copy of the statement and a full written account went to the distributees and to every known creditor whose claim is neither paid nor barred.
Montana adds a step the uniform closing statement does not carry. MCA 72-3-1005(1) says that before an estate may be finally closed, the personal representative shall either file with the court or deliver to all interested persons a sworn accounting of the money received and spent, the claims presented and the claimants' names. Under 72-3-1005(3), no accounting is needed where the personal representative is the sole residual beneficiary. The final accounting covers what that document has to show.
Two clocks then run behind the closing statement. MCA 72-3-1011 bars claims against the personal representative for breach of fiduciary duty 6 months after the closing statement is filed, leaving fraud, misrepresentation and inadequate disclosure outside the bar. And 72-3-1004(2) ends the appointment itself 1 year after the filing if no proceeding involving the personal representative is pending.
The formal ending is MCA 72-3-1001. The personal representative may petition for an order of complete settlement at any time, and any other interested person may petition 1 year after the original appointment, but the court cannot hear the petition until the time for presenting pre-death claims has expired.
The Two-Year Rule Is Montana's Own
MCA 72-3-1015 puts an outside date on the whole administration. If an estate has not been closed within 2 years from the appointment of the personal representative, the supreme court administrator notifies the district judge, and the judge shall order the personal representative and the personal representative's attorney to appear and show cause why the estate is still open.
The consequence is discretionary. Under 72-3-1015(2), if the judge finds that good cause does not exist, the judge may order the estate closed within 30 days and may order that neither the personal representative nor the attorney receive a fee or other compensation from the estate. Good cause is a question for the judge, so a pending lawsuit, a contested will or an unsold ranch is the kind of reason to put on the record well before the second anniversary.
What Pushes a Montana Estate Past a Year
- A surviving spouse's election. MCA 72-2-241(1) requires the elective-share petition within 9 months after the death or 6 months after the will is probated, whichever expires later, and 72-2-241(2) lets the spouse ask for more time within the 9 months. A petition filed after 9 months without an extension loses the nonprobate transfers from the augmented estate. Montana surviving spouse rights covers how the share is measured.
- A will contest. MCA 72-3-122(1)(c) allows a proceeding to contest an informally probated will within the later of 12 months from the informal probate or 3 years from the death.
- The inventory running to month nine. Nothing forces it earlier than 72-3-607(1) does, and an estate that uses the full 9 months rarely closes before it.
- Real property that has to be sold. The market sets that pace, and the affidavit route cannot touch land.
- Supervised administration. Distribution waits for court orders, and the estate closes by order under 72-3-1001 rather than by statement.
- A contested or late claim. A disallowed claimant who petitions within the 60 days of 72-3-805(1) keeps that claim alive until the court rules.
The Outer Limits
MCA 72-3-122(1) bars an informal or formal probate or appointment proceeding more than 3 years after the death, other than a proceeding to probate a will already probated at the testator's domicile or one in an estate that already had an appointment. The exceptions are narrow: a case dismissed because the fact of death was in doubt, the estate of a missing person who had a conservator, the contest window above, and the title-clearing route in 72-3-122(1)(d). That last one lets an appointment happen after 3 years when no earlier proceeding occurred, but the personal representative can only confirm title in the successors, and claims other than administration expenses can no longer be presented.
Recipients stay exposed a little longer than the estate does. MCA 72-3-1013(1) bars a claim to recover from a distributee, or to recover property improperly distributed, at the later of 3 years after the death or 1 year after the distribution, while every claim of the decedent's creditors is barred 1 year after the death. An action to recover property received through fraud sits outside the bar under 72-3-1013(2). How Montana probate works walks the whole proceeding from the application to the discharge.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does probate take in Montana?
Seven to twelve months for an ordinary informal probate, and nine to eighteen months where the case is formal or supervised. Those ranges are planning estimates rather than court statistics. The fixed part is the floor: MCA 72-3-1004(1) blocks the sworn closing statement until 6 months after the original appointment of a general personal representative, and the published notice to creditors under 72-3-801(1) gives claimants 4 months from the first publication.
When can a Montana personal representative close the estate?
No earlier than 6 months after the date of the original appointment, under MCA 72-3-1004(1). The verified closing statement must also say the time limit for presenting creditors' claims has expired, and 72-3-1005 requires a sworn accounting filed with the court or delivered to all interested persons before the estate is finally closed, unless the personal representative is the sole residual beneficiary. The appointment itself ends 1 year after the closing statement is filed if nothing involving the personal representative is pending.
Does a Montana personal representative have to publish notice to creditors?
Yes. MCA 72-3-801(1) says the personal representative, upon appointment, shall publish a notice once a week for 3 successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county. Creditors then have 4 months after the first publication to present claims. A creditor who also gets a mailed notice has the later of those 4 months or 30 days from the mailing. Whatever happens with notice, 72-3-803(1)(a) bars every pre-death claim 1 year after the death at the latest.
What happens if a Montana estate is not closed within two years?
MCA 72-3-1015 is a Montana rule the uniform code does not have. If an estate has not been closed within 2 years from the appointment of the personal representative, the supreme court administrator notifies the district judge, and the judge orders the personal representative and the personal representative's attorney to show cause why the estate is still open. If the judge finds no good cause, the judge may order the estate closed within 30 days and may bar both of them from taking a fee or other compensation from the estate.
How soon after a death can a Montana probate case be filed?
The application can go in at once, but MCA 72-3-225(1) lets the clerk of district court make an informal appointment only after at least 120 hours have passed since the death. Where the decedent was a nonresident, the clerk delays the appointment until 30 days after the death, unless the personal representative appointed at the decedent's domicile is the applicant or the will directs that the estate be subject to Montana law.
Is there a deadline to open probate in Montana?
Three years after the death, under MCA 72-3-122(1), with narrow exceptions. A proceeding to contest an informally probated will can start within the later of 12 months from the informal probate or 3 years from the death. After 3 years with no earlier proceeding, 72-3-122(1)(d) still allows an appointment, but the personal representative can only confirm title in the successors, and claims other than administration expenses can no longer be presented.
Related Guides
- Montana Probate Guide
- Montana Executor Duties
- Montana Creditor Claims
- Montana Probate Accounting
- Montana Surviving Spouse Rights
- Montana Probate Courts by County
Sources:
- Title: MCA 72-3-225, Duty of clerk to make appointment -- effect. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 2326, Ch. 56, L. 2009), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0020/section_0250/0720-0030-0020-0250.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-211, Informal probate -- notice requirements. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 2321, Ch. 56, L. 2009), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0020/section_0110/0720-0030-0020-0110.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-221, Informal appointment -- notice requirements. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 2323, Ch. 56, L. 2009), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0020/section_0210/0720-0030-0020-0210.html
- Title: MCA 72-1-301, Notice -- method and time of giving. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 2307, Ch. 56, L. 2009), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0010/part_0030/section_0010/0720-0010-0030-0010.html
- Title: MCA 72-2-536, Duty of custodian of will -- liability. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 35, Ch. 494, L. 1993), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0020/part_0050/section_0360/0720-0020-0050-0360.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-603, Notice of appointment to heirs and devisees. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 2349, Ch. 56, L. 2009), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0060/section_0030/0720-0030-0060-0030.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-607, Inventory -- appraisal. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 2, Ch. 564, L. 2023), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0060/section_0070/0720-0030-0060-0070.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-801, Notice to creditors. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 2365, Ch. 56, L. 2009), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0080/section_0010/0720-0030-0080-0010.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-803, Nonclaim -- limitations on presentation of claims -- exceptions. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 75, Ch. 313, L. 2019), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0080/section_0030/0720-0030-0080-0030.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-805, Allowance and disallowance of claims -- interest on allowed claims. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 2368, Ch. 56, L. 2009), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0080/section_0050/0720-0030-0080-0050.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-1001, Formal proceedings terminating administration -- testate or intestate -- order of complete settlement. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (enacted Sec. 1, Ch. 365, L. 1974), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0100/section_0010/0720-0030-0100-0010.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-1004, Closing estate by sworn statement of personal representative. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 21, Ch. 9, Sp. L. May 2000), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0100/section_0040/0720-0030-0100-0040.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-1005, Final accounting required to close estate. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 2384, Ch. 56, L. 2009), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0100/section_0050/0720-0030-0100-0050.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-1011, Limitation on actions against personal representative. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (enacted Sec. 1, Ch. 365, L. 1974), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0100/section_0110/0720-0030-0100-0110.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-1013, Limitation on actions against distributees. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 79, Ch. 313, L. 2019), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0100/section_0130/0720-0030-0100-0130.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-1015, Estate to be closed within two years. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 2387, Ch. 56, L. 2009), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0100/section_0150/0720-0030-0100-0150.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-1101, Collection of personal property by affidavit. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 1, Ch. 453, L. 2023), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0110/section_0010/0720-0030-0110-0010.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-1103, Small estates -- summary administration procedure. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 16, Ch. 582, L. 1989), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0110/section_0030/0720-0030-0110-0030.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-1104, Small estates -- closing by sworn statement of personal representative. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 23, Ch. 9, Sp. L. May 2000), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0110/section_0040/0720-0030-0110-0040.html
- Title: MCA 72-3-122, Time limit on probate, testacy, and appointment proceedings -- exceptions. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 58, Ch. 313, L. 2019), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0030/part_0010/section_0220/0720-0030-0010-0220.html
- Title: MCA 72-2-241, Proceeding for elective share -- time limit. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (redesignated by Sec. 103, Ch. 313, L. 2019), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0020/part_0020/section_0410/0720-0020-0020-0410.html
- Title: MCA 72-2-414, Family allowance. Publisher: Montana State Legislature, Montana Code Annotated 2025. Publication Date: Not listed (last amended Sec. 59, Ch. 494, L. 1993), accessed 2026-09-27. URL: https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0720/chapter_0020/part_0040/section_0140/0720-0020-0040-0140.html
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