Alaska Court System Self-Help

A Personal Representative is the person appointed by the court who handles the probate. The Personal Representative is responsible for all of the following:

• Gathering property owned by the person who died.
• Notifying creditors and heirs or devisees.
• Handling debts and taxes.
• Wrapping up the final business affairs of the person who died.
• Transferring property owned by the person who died to the right persons.
• Filing any documents required by the state or federal government.
• Filing all documents required by the court.
• Closing the probate when everything is done.

You can watch a very short presentation on the Role of the Personal Representative.

Typically, in formal or informal probate, the Personal Representative can act on their own without the approval of the court. The Personal Representative keeps the court informed of their progress by filing all required documents.

However, if an interested person thinks that the Personal Representative is not doing a good job, that interested person can petition the court to remove the Personal Representative or to open supervised administration. If the judge orders supervised administration in an informal probate, the case will proceed as a formal probate.

Formal probate with supervised administration involves the highest level of court oversight and is usually granted only when there are concerns about the actions of the Personal Representative. In supervised administration the court may be involved at each stage and may limit distributions from the estate. The estate must be closed with a court order that reviews the estate administration and approves the final settlement.

Any suitable individual 19 years or older. An organization, such as a bank or trust company, may also serve as the Personal Representative.

Alaska law lists the order of who may be appointed the personal representative based on highest to lowest “priority.” The order of priority depends on whether the person who died left a Will.

If the person who died left a valid will, the order of priority is:

1. A person named as the personal representative in the Will of the person who died.
2. The spouse of the person who died if they are named in the Will to receive property.
3. Any person who is named to receive property under the Will.
4. The surviving spouse of the person who died if the Will did not name their spouse to receive property.
5. Any heir of the person who died.
6. Any creditor of the person who died if it has been 45 days since the person's death.

If the person who died did not leave a valid will, the order of priority is:

1. The surviving spouse of the person who died.
2. Any heir of the person who died.
3. Any creditor of the person who died if it has been 45 days since the person's death.

If you want to appoint a Personal Representatives who does not have priority but the parties with higher priority do not consent, you can file a petition for formal probate.

Yes. The court can appoint two or more persons to serve together as Co-Personal Representatives. This can happen if the Will names them or, if there is no Will or the Will does not name a Personal Representative, the people request to be appointed as co-representatives.

Two people who have different priority can serve as Co-Personal Representatives if all people with equal or greater priority consent.

Generally, Co-Personal Representatives must act together. However, the Will could specify, or the Co-Personal Representatives could request, that the court allow a different decision-making arrangement.

In an emergency such as the other Co-Personal Representative cannot be contacted in a timely fashion and action is needed to preserve the estate, one Co-Personal Representative can take necessary action.

If one of the Co-Personal Representatives cannot serve or stops serving, the other Co-Personal Representative can still serve.

To ask the court to appoint you as a Co-Personal Representative, you can file:

• Request to Be Appointed as a Co-Personal Representative, P-333

Yes. You can be the Personal Representative even if you do not live in Alaska.

There may be some things that you cannot do unless there is an open probate case in court. Opening a probate case can give you legal authority to take some actions as the Personal Representative. If the person who died set up their finances, accounts, and assets so that they automatically transfer to named beneficiaries upon death, you may not need to open a probate case. So it really depends on whether you need authority from the court to take actions or access information about the estate of the person who died.

No. Alaska law lists the order of who may be appointed the personal representative based on highest to lowest “priority.” The order of priority depends on whether the person who died left a Will.

A Personal Representative must be 19 years old or older.

Yes, although usually either the Will or interested persons will waive bond. You can also ask the court to waive bond. If you are not excused from bond, you must file a bond before you are appointed.

A bond is a cash payment or pledge of property that guarantees the personal representative will fulfill their duties. However, the bond requirement is commonly waived by the Will or interested persons. You can also ask the court to waive bond. If you are not excused from bond, you must file a bond before you are appointed the Personal Representative.

You do not have to file bond if:

• The person who died waived bond in their Will.
• Each person eligible to inherit property under the will (devisee) files a Waiver of Bond Requirement, P-334, or if the person didn't leave a Will, Each heir of the person who died files a Waiver of Bond Requirement, P-334.
• The Personal Representative is a qualified organization.
• The court waived the bond requirement.

If you are not excused from bond, you must file a bond before you are appointed as Personal Representative. The bond is amount determined by one of the following:

1. The amount set out in the Will of the person who died; or
2. The amount set by the court; or
3. Your best estimate of:
   • The value of the personal property (not including real property) of the person who died; and
   • The income that will be generated by all of the property (including real property) of the person who died during the next year.

A bond is a cash payment or pledge of property that guarantees the personal representative will fulfill their duties. However, the requirement is commonly waived when there is:

• A Will and all devisees sign a written Waiver of Bond Requirement, P-334, or
• No Will and all heirs sign a written Waiver of Bond Requirement, P-334

You should file all the bond waivers with your request to start a probate case.

You can file a bond in the following ways:

• Deposit the full amount with the court, either in cash or property.
• Pledge property in an amount at least as high as the required bond.
• Ask the court to reduce the amount of bond if the person who died had assets in a bank or financial institution and they are held in a way which protects them from misuse.

In the bond you must:

• Describe the property you pledge.
• If someone else guarantees your bond, tell the court who will pay if you do not fulfill your duties as Personal Representative. This person is called a surety.
• Name the "State of Alaska" as the "obligee."
• Say that the bond is for the benefit of all persons interested in the estate.
• Say that the bond is conditioned on the faithful discharge by the Personal Representative of their duties.

The court will decide whether the bond, pledge and surety are acceptable.

You can ask the court to return the bond after you fulfill all of your duties as Personal Representative. You can also ask the court for a Certificate Discharging Liens Securing Fiduciary Performance which you can use to release the property if necessary.

Yes. If you have an interest in the property of the person who died which is worth more than $1,000, you may ask the court in writing to make the Personal Representative post bond. You must send the demand to the Personal Representative and file it with the court. But if the bond has already been waived, is set by the Will, or has been set by the court you cannot change this.

Once the Personal Representative receives your demand for bond, they cannot do anything as Personal Representative other than protect the estate until the bond is paid, the court waives the bond requirement, or the person demanding bond no longer has an interest in the estate. If the Personal Representative does not post bond within 30 days, you can ask the court to remove them as Personal Representative.