2023 Revised Code of Washington › Title 11 - Probate and Trust Law › Chapter 11.68 - Settlement of Estates Without Administration. › 11.68.114 - Declaration of completion of probate—Special powers of personal representative to hold reserve and deal with taxing authorities—Notice of filing of declaration—Discharge from liability.

RCW 11.68.114
Declaration of completion of probate—Special powers of personal representative to hold reserve and deal with taxing authorities—Notice of filing of declaration—Discharge from liability.
(1) The personal representative retains the powers to: Deal with the taxing authority of any federal, state, or local government; hold a reserve in an amount not to exceed three thousand dollars, for the determination and payment of any additional taxes, interest, and penalties, and of all reasonable expenses related directly or indirectly to such determination or payment; pay from the reserve the reasonable expenses, including compensation for services rendered or goods provided by the personal representative or by the personal representative's employees, independent contractors, and other agents, in addition to any taxes, interest, or penalties assessed by a taxing authority; receive and hold any credit, including interest, from any taxing authority; and distribute the residue of the reserve to the intended beneficiaries of the reserve; if:
(a) In lieu of the statement set forth in RCW 11.68.110(1)(e), the declaration of completion of probate states that:
The personal representative has completed the administration of the decedent's estate without court intervention, and the estate is ready to be closed, except for the determination of taxes and of interest and penalties thereon as permitted under this section;
and
(b) The notice of the filing of declaration of completion of probate must be in substantially the following form:
CAPTION
NOTICE OF FILING OF
OF
DECLARATION OF COMPLETION
CASE
OF PROBATE
NOTICE IS GIVEN that the attached Declaration of Completion of Probate was filed by the undersigned in the above-entitled court on the . . . day of . . . . , . . . .; unless you petition the above-entitled court under chapter 11.96A RCW to enforce your rights, to review the reasonableness of the fees, and/or to compel the personal representative to close the estate under RCW 11.68.100, within thirty days after the date of the filing of the Declaration of Completion of Probate:
(i) The schedule of fees set forth in the Declaration of Completion of Probate will be deemed reasonable and the payment of those fees will be approved;
(ii) The Declaration of Completion of Probate will be final and deemed the equivalent of a Decree of Distribution entered under chapter 11.76 RCW;
(iii) The acts that the personal representative performed before the Declaration of Completion of Probate was filed will be deemed approved, and the personal representative will be automatically discharged without further order of the court with respect to all such acts; and
(iv) The personal representative will retain the power to deal with the taxing authorities, together with $. . . . for the determination and payment of all remaining tax obligations. Only that portion of the reserve that remains after the settlement of any tax liability, and the payment of any expenses associated with such settlement, will be distributed to the persons legally entitled to the reserve. The personal representative (and any bond ensuring the proper action of the personal representative) will be discharged from liability for the settlement of any tax obligations and the distribution of the reserve, and the personal representative's powers will cease, thirty days after the personal representative has mailed to those persons who would have shared in the distribution of the reserve had the reserve remained intact and has filed with the court copies of checks or receipts showing how the reserve was in fact distributed, unless a person with an interest in the reserve petitions the court earlier within the thirty-day period for an order requiring an accounting of the reserve or an order determining the reasonableness, or lack of reasonableness, of distributions made from the reserve.
. . . .
Personal Representative's Name
(2) If the requirements in subsection (1) of this section are met and if no party as defined in RCW 11.96A.030 entitled to notice under RCW 11.68.110 petitions the court under chapter 11.96A RCW to enforce the party's rights, to review the reasonableness of the fees, and/or to compel the personal representative to close the estate under RCW 11.68.100, within 30 days from the date of filing a declaration of completion of probate, the personal representative is discharged from all liability other than liability relating to the settlement of any tax obligations and the actual distribution of the reserve, at the final date on which a beneficiary could petition the court under subsection (1) of this section, which date is referred to in this section as the "effective date of the declaration of completion." The personal representative is discharged from liability for the settlement of any tax obligations and the distribution of the reserve, the personal representative's powers cease, and the declaration of completion of probate will be final and deemed the equivalent of a decree of distribution entered under chapter 11.76 RCW with respect to the distribution of the reserve, 30 days after the personal representative has mailed to those persons who would have shared in the distribution of the reserve had the reserve remained intact and has filed with the court copies of checks or receipts showing how the reserve was in fact distributed, unless a person with an interest in the reserve petitions the court earlier within the 30-day period for an order requiring an accounting of the reserve or an order determining the reasonableness, or lack of reasonableness, of distributions made from the reserve. If the personal representative has been required to furnish a bond, any bond furnished by the personal representative is automatically discharged upon the final discharge of the personal representative.
[ 2021 c 140 § 4016; 1998 c 292 § 203; 1997 c 252 § 70.]
NOTES:
Application—2021 c 140 §§ 4003-4017, 4023, 4024, and 4026: See note following RCW 11.48.130.
Retroactive application—1998 c 292: See note following RCW 11.54.070.
Effective dates—1998 c 292: See RCW 11.11.903.
Application—1997 c 252 §§ 1-73: See note following RCW 11.02.005.