Nevada Executor Duties

Nevada executor duties start with one step that comes before all the others. You petition the District Court, and the county clerk who acts as Clerk of the District Court issues your letters. With a will those are Letters Testamentary. Without a will they are Letters of Administration. Nevada has no separate "probate court," so you file everything with the county clerk of the district court for the county where the person lived. Those letters are your proof of authority. Banks, the DMV, and title offices ask for certified letters before they release anything.

After the court appoints you, you become a fiduciary for the estate. You file an inventory and appraisement, publish and mail a notice to creditors, then account to the court before you distribute. This guide walks the practical sequence in deadline order. This is general information, not legal advice. Confirm each step with the county clerk of the district court and, where the estate is complex or contested, a licensed Nevada attorney.

Use this guide with the Nevada probate guide, the Nevada creditor claims guide, the Nevada probate costs guide, and the Nevada probate timeline. For your local court and clerk, see the Nevada District Court directory.

Get Your Letters From the District Court First

Authority comes from the court's letters, not from the will naming you. A named executor can locate the original will, secure the home, and gather records before being appointed. But you cannot collect accounts, sign estate documents, or transfer title until the District Court issues your letters and you qualify.

To get appointed you petition the District Court in the proper county, file the original will if there is one, and give the required notice of hearing. If you have custody of a will, Nevada law requires you to deliver it to the clerk of the district court within 30 days after you learn of the death. That is NRS 136.050. After the hearing the court appoints the personal representative and the county clerk issues certified letters. With a will you are the executor. Without a will you are the administrator. Both roles are called the personal representative, and the duties below apply the same way.

Nevada has no state probate tax. Your opening costs are the district court filing fee collected by the county clerk, publication of notice, and any bond premium. The court may require a bond unless the will waives it or the heirs and devisees consent, and the court can reduce or dispense with it. Confirm the current filing-fee total and bond rules with the county clerk where you file. See the Nevada probate costs guide for the fee detail. (Source: NRS 136.050, leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-136.html; NRS Chapter 142, leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-142.html.)

What a Nevada Personal Representative Does

Once you hold certified letters, you are a fiduciary. NRS Chapter 143 sets your powers and duties. You have the right to possession of all the estate's real and personal property, and you must make a reasonable effort to preserve and maintain it, keep estate money separate from your own, collect what the estate is owed, follow the will or the intestacy rules, report to the District Court, and distribute only when the estate is ready. NRS 143.035 holds you to reasonable diligence, and NRS 143.037 sets a target of closing the estate within 18 months after your appointment, so do not let an open estate drift.

The main duty list runs in this order:

1. File an inventory and appraisement within 120 days after your letters issue
2. Publish and mail the notice to creditors, then handle claims in the claim period
3. Pay valid debts, taxes, and expenses from estate assets
4. File an account with the court showing what you received, paid, and hold
5. Distribute the remaining assets under court order after the account is settled

Not every estate needs full administration. Some assets pass by beneficiary designation, joint survivorship, or a payable-on-death or transfer-on-death term. A small estate may fit a faster path, and Nevada offers several. If the gross estate after encumbrances does not exceed $500,000, the court may order summary administration under NRS 145.040. If the gross estate does not exceed $150,000, the court may set it aside without administration to the surviving spouse or minor children under NRS 146.070. At least 40 days after death, a successor may collect personal property by affidavit if the Nevada estate does not exceed $25,000, or $150,000 when the surviving spouse is the claimant, under NRS 146.080. Check whether full administration is even needed before you run the whole sequence. See the Nevada small estate affidavit guide.

Duty 1: File the Inventory and Appraisement Within 120 Days

The inventory and appraisement is your first big filing with the court. You file it with the clerk within 120 days after your letters issue, and the court can extend that time for good cause. It lists all the assets of the decedent that have come into your hands, with date-of-death values. Many assets must be appraised, and the court can appoint an appraiser for property that needs one. This is NRS 144.010.

Nevada adds one community property step. Under NRS 144.040, the inventory must identify which property is community property and which is the decedent's separate property, because only the decedent's half of the community plus the separate property forms the estate you administer. Build your inventory worksheet before the form is due. For each asset capture the owner name, the account or title number, the date-of-death value, any lien, whether it is community or separate, the beneficiary or joint-owner note, and the source document. You may file a redacted inventory that protects account numbers, Social Security numbers, and values, with the full version available to the court and interested persons on request. If a new asset turns up later, you file a supplemental inventory. File the inventory with the county clerk of the district court where you were appointed. (Source: NRS 144.010 and NRS 144.040, leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-144.html.)

Duty 2: Give Notice to Creditors and Work the Claim Period

Nevada protects you through the creditor claim process, so do not skip it. After you are appointed, you publish a notice to creditors and mail it to known creditors in the manner the statute requires. That starts a fixed window for creditors to file claims with the clerk.

Here is the timing. In a general administration, a creditor must file a claim within 90 days after the first publication of the notice to creditors. That is NRS 147.040. If the court grants summary administration under Chapter 145, the period drops to 60 days. A creditor who gets mailed notice has at least 30 days after the mailing or the 90 days after first publication, whichever is later. You review each claim, then allow or reject it. This matters because of your own risk: if you pay or distribute too early and a valid claim comes in, you can be personally liable. See the Nevada creditor claims guide for the claim, allowance, and rejection steps. (Source: NRS 147.040, leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-147.html; NRS 147.010, leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-147.html.)

Duty 3: Pay Debts, Taxes, and Expenses in the Right Order

After the claim period, you pay the estate's valid obligations from estate assets. Nevada has no state estate tax and no state inheritance tax, so most estates do not owe a state death tax. Federal estate tax can still apply to very large estates, and final personal and fiduciary income tax returns may be due.

Pay in the order the law sets, not in the order claims arrive. Administration expenses, funeral costs, last-illness costs, and certain priority claims come before general unsecured debts. Do not guess at priority when the estate may not cover every claim. If the estate could be short, get the payment order right before you write checks, because paying a lower-priority claim first can leave you personally exposed.

Duty 4: Account to the Court

Accounting is how you show the District Court what you received, what you paid, and what remains. You file an account with the clerk, supported by proof of the receipts and payments you report. The court reviews the account, and interested persons get notice and a chance to object before the court settles it.

Most estates file a final account that sets up distribution, and longer or contested estates file interim accounts along the way. Keep clean records from day one: every receipt, every disbursement, every bank statement, and every voucher. A complete account is what lets the court approve your distribution and, at the end, discharge you. See the Nevada probate timeline for how the account fits the overall sequence.

Duty 5: Distribute Only After the Court Approves

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

1. Have you published and mailed the notice to creditors and run the claim period?
2. Is the inventory and appraisement filed with the court?
3. Are valid debts, taxes, and expenses paid in the correct priority?
4. Has the court reviewed and settled your account?
5. Is there a court order directing the distribution you are about to make?
6. Are final income tax returns filed or accounted for?
7. Do you have signed receipts from the people receiving property?

Distributing before the court settles your account and orders distribution can expose you to personal liability, so wait for the order. A named beneficiary in the will is not a green light to distribute on day one. Claims, taxes, and title issues can come first. When the estate is ready, you distribute under the probated will or, with no will, under the Nevada intestacy rules in NRS Chapter 134, and you report the distribution to the court. See the Nevada intestate succession guide for who inherits without a will.

Community Property Changes the Spouse's Share

Nevada is a community property state, and that changes what a surviving spouse already owns. Property a couple acquires during marriage, other than by gift or inheritance, is generally community property. When one spouse dies, the survivor already owns an undivided one-half of the community property. Only the decedent's one-half is part of the estate you administer. Under NRS 123.250, when a married person dies without disposing of their half by will, that half goes to the surviving spouse, so the survivor ends up with all of the community property.

The decedent's separate property is different and descends under NRS Chapter 134. With a surviving spouse and one child, the separate estate splits one-half to the spouse and one-half to the child. With a spouse and more than one child, the spouse takes one-third and the children share the rest. Do not apply a common-law share table to a Nevada estate. See the Nevada intestate succession guide for the full breakdown. (Source: NRS 123.250, leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-123.html; NRS Chapter 134, leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-134.html.)

How a Nevada Executor Gets Paid

Nevada sets the personal representative's commission by statute. Under NRS 150.020, you are entitled to a commission on the amount of the estate accounted for, on a tiered scale: 4 percent of the first $15,000, 3 percent of the next $85,000, and 2 percent of all amounts above $100,000. The commission is calculated on the value of the estate accounted for, not on assets that pass outside probate.

The court can allow additional compensation for extraordinary services when the statutory commission is not enough to reasonably pay you for the work. All compensation is subject to court approval and is paid from the estate. The attorney for the personal representative is compensated separately under NRS 150.060. Confirm the figures for your estate, because the percentages apply to the accounted-for value and the court has the final say. See the Nevada probate costs guide. (Source: NRS 150.020, leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-150.html; NRS 150.060, leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-150.html.)

Common Questions

Do I go to a probate court in Nevada?

No. Nevada has no separate probate court. You file in the District Court for the county where the person lived, and the county clerk who serves as Clerk of the District Court issues your letters and accepts your filings.

What is the first deadline after I get my letters?

File the inventory and appraisement with the clerk within 120 days after your letters issue under NRS 144.010, and publish and mail the notice to creditors so the claim period can run.

How long do creditors have to file a claim?

In a general administration, 90 days after the first publication of the notice to creditors under NRS 147.040. The period is 60 days if the court grants summary administration under Chapter 145.

How much does a Nevada executor get paid?

A statutory commission under NRS 150.020: 4 percent of the first $15,000, 3 percent of the next $85,000, and 2 percent above $100,000 of the estate accounted for, plus court-approved extraordinary compensation in some cases.

Can I distribute as soon as I am appointed?

No. Wait until the inventory is filed, the creditor claim period has run, debts and taxes are paid, your account is settled, and the court orders distribution. Distributing too early can make you personally liable for a later valid claim.

This guide is general information about Nevada estates. It is not legal advice. Confirm anything that affects your situation with the county clerk of the district court or a licensed Nevada attorney.

Sources

• Title: Nevada Revised Statutes Title 12, Wills and Estates of Deceased Persons (Chapters 132 to 156). Publisher: Nevada Legislature. Publication Date: Current official code, accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/
• Title: NRS 136.050, Delivery of will after death; liability for nondelivery; record of will; inspection of records. Publisher: Nevada Legislature. Publication Date: Current official code, accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-136.html
• Title: NRS Chapter 142, Bonds and Oaths of Personal Representatives. Publisher: Nevada Legislature. Publication Date: Current official code, accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-142.html
• Title: NRS Chapter 143 (including NRS 143.020, 143.030, 143.035, 143.037), Powers and Duties of Personal Representatives. Publisher: Nevada Legislature. Publication Date: Current official code, accessed 2026-06-23. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-143.html
• Title: NRS 144.010 and NRS 144.040, Inventory and appraisement: Filing within 120 days; community and separate property. Publisher: Nevada Legislature. Publication Date: Current official code, accessed 2026-06-23. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-144.html
• Title: NRS 147.010 and 147.040, Notice to creditors and time to file claims. Publisher: Nevada Legislature. Publication Date: Current official code, accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-147.html
• Title: NRS 150.020 and 150.060, Compensation of personal representatives and their attorneys. Publisher: Nevada Legislature. Publication Date: Current official code, accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-150.html
• Title: NRS 123.250, Vesting of community property on death of spouse. Publisher: Nevada Legislature. Publication Date: Current official code, accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-123.html
• Title: NRS Chapter 134, Succession (intestate). Publisher: Nevada Legislature. Publication Date: Current official code, accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-134.html

It is not legal advice.