8 Key Personal Representative Duties in Florida With Deadlines
A Florida personal representative is a fiduciary under Fla. Stat. §733.602 and must promptly collect, protect, and inventory the decedent’s probate assets, notify creditors and beneficiaries, pay valid debts and taxes in the correct order, and distribute what remains. Fla. Stat. §733.617 sets the rules for how the personal representative gets paid for this work. Most estates beyond the simplest, cleanest ones benefit from a probate attorney’s help along the way.
TL;DR:
- Personal representatives must deposit the original will within 10 days of learning of death and open an estate bank account before handling any estate funds.
- They are held to trustee-level standards of care, requiring loyalty, prudence, and strict adherence to court and legal directives throughout probate.
- Compensation includes a statutory commission based on estate value, with additional pay for complex services like real estate sales or litigation, requiring careful documentation.
- Deadlines such as filing inventory within 60 days and publishing notice to creditors promptly are critical to avoid personal liability.
- Legal help is essential when estate disputes, tax complexities, or potential personal liability issues arise, especially in contested wills or significant property cases.
Personal Representative Duties in Florida: A Step-by-Step Checklist
The job starts the moment you’re named in a will, but your legal authority doesn’t. You cannot pay bills, sell property, or access accounts until the court issues Letters of Administration. Acting too soon is one of the most common mistakes new personal representatives make.
Here’s the order most Florida estates actually follow:
- Deposit the original will with the clerk of court within 10 days of learning of the decedent’s death, per procedural guidance found in county personal representative handbooks.
- Secure the property. Change locks if needed, obtain multiple certified death certificates, and locate wills, trusts, deeds, and safe-deposit box records.
- Petition the court for Letters of Administration, then get an EIN from the IRS and open a dedicated estate bank account.
- Inventory and appraise every probate asset, from real estate to retirement accounts to household items of value.
- Maintain insurance on estate property and collect any income the estate generates, like rent.
- Publish notice to creditors in a local newspaper and serve known creditors directly.
- Review claims as they arrive and pay them in the statutory priority order, not first come, first served.
- Pay taxes and administrative expenses, then petition for discharge and distribute what’s left according to the will or Florida’s intestacy law.
The Florida Bar’s consumer pamphlet on probate echoes this same sequence: identify, gather, value, and safeguard assets before anything else moves forward.
Pro Tip: Open the estate bank account before you touch a single dollar. Depositing an inheritance check into your own personal account, even briefly, is the fastest way to raise questions about commingling later.
The Legal Standard Every Personal Representative Must Meet
Florida law doesn’t leave your obligations to guesswork. Fla. Stat. §733.602 spells out the standard, and it’s stricter than most new personal representatives expect.
A personal representative is a fiduciary who shall observe the standards of care applicable to trustees. A personal representative is under a duty to settle and distribute the estate of the decedent in accordance with the terms of the will and applicable law as expeditiously and efficiently as is consistent with the best interests of the estate.
That single sentence carries a lot of weight. “Standards of care applicable to trustees” means courts hold you to the same careful, loyal, prudent conduct expected of someone managing money that isn’t theirs. You can’t favor yourself, favor one beneficiary over another without legal basis, or drag out administration for convenience.
Your authority to act comes from three sources working together:
- The Letters of Administration issued by the probate court
- The probated will, which directs how assets should ultimately pass
- Court orders authorizing specific actions, such as selling real property or settling a disputed claim
Some actions, like selling homestead property or resolving a contested claim, require you to go back to the judge for approval first. Acting outside that authority, even with good intentions, can expose you to personal liability for losses the estate suffers.
How Much Can a Personal Representative Be Paid in Florida?
Serving as a personal representative is real work, and Florida law recognizes that. Fla. Stat. §733.617 entitles you to a commission based on the estate’s compensable value, the total value of the probate assets you administer, and that commission is payable from estate funds without needing a judge’s advance sign-off.
Beyond the standard commission, you can seek additional pay for extraordinary services, including:
- Selling estate real property
- Defending or pursuing litigation on the estate’s behalf
- Handling complex tax filings or audits
- Continuing to operate a decedent’s business during administration
If you’re also an attorney serving as personal representative, Florida imposes extra disclosure rules. You generally cannot collect both a full attorney fee and a full personal representative commission for overlapping work without disclosing that arrangement to interested parties, and some fee combinations require a waiver.
Keep dated invoices, time logs, and receipts for everything. A court presumes your commission is reasonable under the statute, but that presumption is far easier to defend with a paper trail than without one.
The Florida Probate Timeline: Deadlines That Actually Matter
Missing a deadline doesn’t just slow things down. It can expose you to personal liability if a beneficiary or creditor argues your delay caused them harm. The timeline below reflects the milestones Florida courts and county handbooks consistently flag as critical.
| Milestone | Deadline | Governing guidance |
|---|---|---|
| Deposit original will with clerk | Within 10 days of learning of death | County probate handbooks |
| File inventory of estate assets | Within 60 days of Letters issuing | Fla. Stat. §733.602 |
| Publish notice to creditors | Promptly after Letters issue | Fla. Stat. Ch. 733 |
| Creditor claim window | Generally 3 months from first publication | Fla. Stat. Ch. 733 |
| Distributions after claims period | Typically after the 3-month claim window closes | County probate handbooks |
| Final accounting and petition for discharge | After debts, taxes, and claims are resolved | Fla. Stat. Ch. 733 |
A practical way to think about the sequence:
- Weeks 1 to 2: Deposit the will, secure property, gather documents.
- Weeks 2 to 6: Obtain Letters, get an EIN, open the estate account, begin the inventory.
- By day 60 after Letters: File the inventory and have creditor notice published.
- Months 3 to 5: Review and pay claims in priority order as the claims window runs.
- After claims resolve: File the final accounting, petition for discharge, and distribute remaining assets.
Estates that qualify for summary administration move through a shorter version of this process, but the underlying duties don’t disappear, they just compress.
Common Mistakes That Create Personal Liability
Most personal representative disputes trace back to the same handful of errors, and nearly all of them are preventable.
- Commingling funds. Never deposit estate money into your personal account, even temporarily. Use the dedicated estate account for every transaction.
- Distributing too early. Handing out inheritance money before the creditor claims window closes can leave you personally responsible if a valid claim surfaces afterward.
- Self-dealing without disclosure. Buying estate property yourself, hiring your own business to do estate work, or favoring one beneficiary requires transparency and often court approval.
- Sloppy records. A contemporaneous ledger showing what came in, what went out, and why is your strongest defense if a beneficiary later challenges your accounting.
- Waiting too long to call an attorney. Disputes rarely improve with delay. Early legal guidance is almost always cheaper than a contested accounting hearing.
Pro Tip: Treat every estate transaction like it might be reviewed by a judge someday, because it might be. Write down the reasoning behind judgment calls, not just the numbers.
When You Actually Need a Probate Attorney
Not every estate requires a lawyer at every step, but certain situations make legal help essential rather than optional. From what we see working with personal representatives across Pinellas County, the estates that run into trouble almost always share one of these traits:
- A will is contested, or a family member disputes distributions
- The estate includes tax complexity, a business interest, or significant real property to sell
- Creditors file disputed or questionable claims
- There’s any realistic risk of personal liability for the representative
A probate attorney typically handles pleadings, prepares accountings, defends against improper creditor claims, manages tax filings, and guides the estate through closing procedures. Given that Fla. Stat. §733.617 lets attorney fees and personal representative commissions both come from estate assets, hiring counsel early is often far less costly than the alternative: personal exposure for an avoidable mistake.
A Local Perspective on Getting Started
If you’re a new personal representative, do three things first: secure the property, deposit the original will within 10 days, and open your estate bank account before spending a dime. Tampa Bay probate involves county-specific clerk procedures that trip up even careful people. When your situation gets complicated, reach out.
— Oldham Law PLLC
How Oldham Law PLLC Helps Personal Representatives in Tampa Bay
Handling an estate alone means learning Florida probate law under pressure, often while grieving. Oldham Law PLLC gives Pinellas County personal representatives a faster, less costly path than muddling through Chapter 733 solo: direct access to attorneys who handle estate administration, inventories, accountings, creditor claims, and probate litigation every week, not once a decade.
Our attorneys serve clients throughout St. Petersburg, Pinellas Park, and the wider Tampa Bay area, and several team members bring prior experience as prosecutors and insurance defense lawyers, giving us a sharper read on where estate disputes tend to go wrong. Whether you need help opening an estate, resolving a creditor dispute, or closing out a complex administration, our probate practice can step in at any stage. Contact Oldham Law PLLC today to talk through your specific estate and get a clear next step, not just a checklist.
Primary Sources for Florida Personal Representatives
- Florida Statutes §733.617 — Compensation of personal representative
- Consumer Pamphlet: Probate in Florida — The Florida Bar
- Personal Representatives Handbook — 17th Judicial Circuit
- IRS — Frequently asked questions on estate taxes
Sources
- Florida Statutes §733.617 — Compensation of personal representative
- Consumer Pamphlet: Probate in Florida — The Florida Bar
- Personal Representatives Handbook — 17th Judicial Circuit
FAQ
What Are Five Duties of a Personal Representative?
Under Florida law, the core duties are collecting and safeguarding estate assets, notifying creditors and beneficiaries, paying valid debts and taxes in priority order, filing an inventory and accountings, and distributing remaining assets under Fla. Stat. §733.602.
How Much Can a Personal Representative Charge in Florida?
Compensation is based on the estate’s compensable value under Fla. Stat. §733.617, with additional reasonable fees allowed for extraordinary services like selling property or handling litigation.
Is a Personal Representative the Same as an Executor in Florida?
Yes. Florida law uses “personal representative” for what other states call an executor or executrix; the role and duties are the same under Chapter 733.
What’s the Difference Between a Power of Attorney and a Personal Representative?
A power of attorney only has authority while the person who granted it is alive, while a personal representative’s authority begins only after death, once the probate court issues Letters of Administration.
Do I Need a Lawyer to Serve as a Personal Representative in Florida?
Florida generally requires an attorney for formal administration unless the personal representative is the sole beneficiary, and even where not required, complex estates benefit significantly from counsel to avoid personal liability.
