DC Probate Rules: Small Estates, Representatives, and Deadlines

Probate in the District of Columbia is handled by the Superior Court’s Probate Division, and the DC probate rules sort every estate onto one of two tracks based on value: a simplified small-estate proceeding for estates worth $80,000 or less, and a standard administration for everything above that. Standard estates then run as either supervised or unsupervised, deadlines govern notice and creditor claims, and a surviving spouse or domestic partner receives statutory allowances that come off the top before most creditors are paid.

Small Estates and the $80,000 Line

An estate valued at $80,000 or less qualifies as a small estate under D.C. Code § 20-351 and uses a simplified proceeding.¹ The threshold was raised from $40,000 by the Strengthening Probate Administration Amendment Act.²

A small estate petition requires a statement that the filer has conducted a diligent search for property and debts, a list of known creditors with claim amounts, and disclosure of any pending lawsuits involving the decedent.³ Filing fees are modest: no fee for estates under $500, and $15 for estates between $500 and $2,500.⁴

Estates above $80,000 take the standard track, with more detailed reporting, court oversight, and higher fees. Calculating the estate’s value carefully at the outset matters, because that number controls almost every procedural requirement that follows.

Supervised vs. Unsupervised Administration

Standard-track estates run under one of two modes. The difference is how closely the court watches the personal representative.

In supervised administration, the court keeps continuing authority over the proceeding. The personal representative cannot distribute assets without a court order approving the distribution, and the court can direct the representative’s actions at any time.⁵ Supervised representatives must file verified written accounts of how they managed and distributed estate property.⁶

In unsupervised administration, the representative is not required to file inventories or accounts with the court and generally operates without continuing court oversight.⁵ The court can intervene if the representative fails to meet filing requirements or if an interested person raises an issue, but day-to-day management is handled independently.

Any interested person, or the representative themselves, can petition to convert an unsupervised case to supervised administration at any time before the estate closes, and the court can order supervision on its own for good cause.⁷ That conversion option acts as a safety valve when beneficiaries lose confidence in how the estate is being handled.

Who Can Serve as Personal Representative

DC law sets a priority order for appointment. The court generally follows this sequence:

The executor named in the will.
A surviving spouse, domestic partner, or children, where there is no will or the will does not name an executor.
Residuary legatees under the will.
Grandchildren, then parents of the decedent.
Siblings, then next of kin.
The largest creditor who applies, or any other person willing to serve.

Within the same priority class, relations of whole blood are preferred over half-blood of equal degree, and descendants are preferred over ascending relatives in a collateral line.⁸

Who Is Disqualified

Some people cannot serve, no matter where they fall on the priority list. The court will not grant letters to anyone who is under 18, has a mental illness under DC law or is under conservatorship, has a felony conviction with a sentence that has not expired or expired within the past 10 years (unless pardoned on the basis of innocence), is a noncitizen who has not been lawfully admitted for permanent residence, or is a judge or court-system employee who is not the decedent’s surviving spouse, domestic partner, or a relative within the third degree.⁸

The felony bar is narrower than many assume. It applies only while the sentence is active or for 10 years after it expires, and a pardon based on innocence removes it altogether.

Representatives Living Outside DC

A personal representative who lives outside the District can still serve, but must file an irrevocable power of attorney with the Register of Wills designating a DC resident as agent for service of process.⁸ That gives the court a local contact even if the representative is across the country.

Bond Requirements

Unless the will waives the bond or all interested persons provide a written waiver, each personal representative must post a surety bond for the benefit of beneficiaries and creditors.⁹ The bond functions as insurance against mismanagement. If the will excuses the bond, none is required, except to protect interested persons who are not competent adults and did not have anyone waive on their behalf.

Even when no bond is initially required, any person with an estate interest over $1,000, or any creditor with a claim over $1,000, can demand that the representative post one. The court may then hold a hearing on whether a bond is warranted.⁹ Once all known assets have been distributed and all known claims satisfied, the bond requirement automatically ends.

Opening the Estate

Probate starts with a petition filed with the Register of Wills, together with the original will (if one exists) and a certified copy of the death certificate. The petition identifies all known beneficiaries and heirs with their names and addresses, and gives an estimated fair market value of the decedent’s property.

There is no hard statutory deadline for filing. If no petition is filed within a reasonable time, the Register of Wills can file one with court approval.¹⁰ Delay still creates practical problems with creditor claims, asset management, and potential challenges from interested persons.

Filing Fees

Fees for standard administrations run on a sliding scale based on estate value:

Under $2,500: no fee.
$2,500 to $9,999: $12.50 plus 0.5% of the amount over $2,500.
$10,000 to $99,999: $50 plus 0.3% of the amount over $10,000.
$100,000 to $499,999: $320 plus 0.2% of the amount over $100,000.
$500,000 to $999,999: $1,120 plus 0.1% of the amount over $500,000.
$1,000,000 and over: $1,620 plus 0.5% of the amount over $1,000,000.

Fees are payable in advance to the Register of Wills.⁴

Letters of Administration

Once the court accepts the petition and appoints a personal representative, it issues Letters of Administration (or Letters Testamentary if there is a will). The letters are the representative’s proof of legal authority to act for the estate.¹¹ Banks, brokerages, and title companies will not release assets or process transactions without seeing them. The letters state whether the administration is supervised or unsupervised and whether the representative’s powers are limited.

Notice, Inventory, and the Creditor Claim Window

Within 20 days of appointment, the personal representative must publish a notice of appointment in a legal periodical or newspaper of general circulation in the District, once a week for two successive weeks.¹² The notice gives the representative’s name and address, states whether the administration is supervised or unsupervised, and directs creditors to present their claims. A certification of the publication date and content is then filed with the Register of Wills.

The representative must also prepare a verified inventory of all property the decedent owned at the time of death, due within three months of appointment.¹³ In unsupervised administrations the inventory does not have to be filed with the court, but it still must be prepared and made available to interested persons. In supervised administrations the court expects it filed.

Creditors have six months from the date of first publication to file claims. A claim not filed by that deadline becomes unenforceable.¹² The six-month clock does not start until publication, and the estate cannot close until that window closes.

Payment Priority When the Estate Is Short

If an estate lacks enough assets to pay all claims in full, DC law sets a strict order of payment:

Court costs, publication costs, and bond premiums.
Funeral expenses, up to $5,000.
Fiduciary and attorney fees, up to $1,000.
Homestead allowance and family allowance.
Exempt property.
Medical and hospital expenses of the decedent’s last illness.
Claims for rent in arrears.
Judgments and decrees from DC courts.
All other claims.

No claim within the same class gets priority over another.¹⁴ Beneficiaries receive nothing until all valid claims ahead of them are satisfied or resolved. A personal representative who distributes assets out of order can face personal liability.

Spouse and Domestic Partner Protections

DC law gives a surviving spouse or domestic partner several financial protections that apply regardless of what the will says, and in some cases even without a will. These allowances come off the top of the estate before most creditors are paid.

Homestead Allowance

A surviving spouse or domestic partner is entitled to a $30,000 homestead allowance. If there is no surviving spouse or partner, the decedent’s minor and dependent children split the $30,000 among them. The allowance is exempt from and has priority over all claims against the estate (except the specific payment order in § 20-906), and it is on top of anything the spouse or partner receives under the will or by intestate succession.¹⁵

Exempt Property

On top of the homestead allowance, the surviving spouse or domestic partner can claim up to $20,000 in household furniture, automobiles, appliances, and personal effects, above any security interests in those items. If the estate does not contain $20,000 worth of such items, the spouse or partner can take other non-real-property assets to make up the difference.¹⁶

Family Allowance

The surviving spouse, domestic partner, and the decedent’s minor or dependent children are entitled to a reasonable allowance from estate funds for maintenance during administration. This allowance has priority over all claims except the homestead allowance and the statutory payment order, and it is not charged against any share the spouse or children receive under the will or by intestacy.¹⁷

Intestate Share

When someone dies without a will, the surviving spouse or domestic partner’s share depends on the family structure:

No surviving children or parents: the spouse inherits the entire estate.
Surviving children who are all descendants of the spouse, and the spouse has no other descendants: the spouse receives two-thirds.
No surviving children but a surviving parent: the spouse receives three-fourths.
Surviving children who are all descendants of the spouse, but the spouse has other descendants who are not the decedent’s: the spouse receives one-half.
Any surviving children who are not the spouse’s descendants: the spouse receives one-half.

These shares apply to the intestate estate, meaning property that passes through probate rather than through beneficiary designations, joint ownership, or trusts.¹⁸

Contesting a Will or Appointment

Anyone who objects to the appointment of the personal representative or to the validity of the will must file that objection with the Register of Wills within six months of the first publication of the notice of appointment.¹² In abbreviated probate proceedings, any interested person can request conversion to a formal probate proceeding within that same six-month window.¹⁰ Miss the deadline and your ability to challenge the administration is severely limited.

Closing the Estate

How an estate closes depends on which track it was on.

An unsupervised estate closes when the personal representative files a verified Certificate of Completion with the court. The certificate cannot be filed until the six-month creditor claims period has expired. Before filing, the representative must send each interested person an account of the estate along with notice that they have 60 days to object. The certificate must confirm that the creditor claims period has expired, that all interested persons received the account and notice, that each either consented in writing or did not object within 60 days, that distribution has been completed according to the account, that all non-barred creditor claims have been satisfied or settled, and that all administration expenses and estate obligations have been paid.¹⁹

A supervised estate needs a court order approving the final distribution before the personal representative is discharged.⁵ The court reviews the final accounting, confirms that debts and expenses have been handled, and issues an order formally closing the estate. The extra step takes time but provides a judicial sign-off that shields the representative from later claims of mismanagement.

1
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 20-351 – General
2
D.C. Law Library. D.C. Law 25-302 – Strengthening Probate Administration Amendment Act of 2024
3
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 20-352 – Petition
4
District of Columbia Courts. Probate Rule 24 – Fees
5
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 20-401 – Supervised Administration; In General
6
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 20-721 – Duty to Account; Supervised
7
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 20-403 – Supervised Administration; Changes and Effect
8
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 20-303 – Order of Priority for Appointment of Personal Representative; Persons Excluded
9
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 20-502 – Bond; Form
10
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code Title 20 Chapter 3 – Opening the Estate
11
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 20-504 – Form of Letters
12
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 20-704 – Notice of Appointment to Interested Persons, Creditors and Unknown Heirs
13
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 20-711 – Inventory; General
14
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 20-906 – Order of Payment
15
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 19-101.02 – Homestead Allowance
16
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 19-101.03 – Exempt Property
17
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 19-101.04 – Family Allowance
18
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 19-302 – Share of Spouse or Domestic Partner
19
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 20-735 – Optional Proceedings, Terminating Unsupervised Administration; Certificate of Completion