If you are administering a Michigan estate that has been open for a year, you owe the probate court a Notice of Continued Administration. Michigan law requires the personal representative of any estate not closed within one year of appointment to file this notice on form PC 587 and send copies to every interested person within 28 days of the appointment anniversary, and again within 28 days of each anniversary the estate remains open.1Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 700.3951 – Notice of Continued Administration The notice tells the court why the estate is still open, protects your authority as representative, and keeps heirs and creditors informed.
When the Notice Is Due
The one-year clock starts on the date the first personal representative was officially appointed. Not the date of death. Not the date the will was admitted. The date of appointment. If the estate has not been closed by that anniversary, you have 28 days to file.
For this purpose, “closed” means one of three things has happened: you have petitioned for a settlement order under MCL 700.3952 or MCL 700.3953, or you have filed a sworn closing statement under MCL 700.3954.1Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 700.3951 – Notice of Continued Administration If none of those has occurred, the estate is still open, and the notice is due.
The obligation repeats. If administration continues past the second anniversary, you file again within 28 days. Same for the third year, the fourth, and so on. Michigan Court Rule 5.307(B) tracks the statute, requiring service within 28 days of the first anniversary and each subsequent anniversary while the estate remains incomplete.2CourtRules.net. Rule 5.307 Requirements Applicable to All Decedent Estates
Estates commonly run long because federal estate tax clearance is pending, real property has not sold, a creditor claim is being disputed, or an heir cannot be located. None of these excuses filing. They are the reasons the court expects to see written into the notice.
What Goes on Form PC 587
The State Court Administrative Office approves form PC 587, “Notice of Continued Administration,” for this filing.3Michigan Courts. PC 587 – Notice of Continued Administration The form is short, but the substance matters. The statute requires you to explain why administration is continuing, so the description of remaining tasks should be specific. “Waiting on IRS audit of the decedent’s 2024 return” or “sale of the family home is pending with a closing date in August” tells the court something. Vague references to ongoing matters do not.
You also need to give an estimated completion date, your current contact information, and your attorney’s contact information if you are represented. If you expect to finish within the year, say so. If you do not, explain what is standing in the way. A thorough description shows the judge you are actively managing the estate rather than letting it drift.
Filing and Serving the Notice
The notice goes to two places: the probate court that appointed you, and every interested person. Under Michigan probate law, interested persons include heirs, beneficiaries named in the will, and creditors with unpaid claims. Form PC 587 itself carries a reminder to send it to all of them.3Michigan Courts. PC 587 – Notice of Continued Administration
Service is typically completed by first-class mail to each person’s last known address. After mailing, complete form PC 564, Proof of Service, listing every person served, their addresses, the method, and the date, and file it with the court alongside the notice.4Michigan Courts. Proof of Service Without the proof of service on file, the court has no record that you met your notification duty.
There is no filing fee. The Michigan probate court fee schedule lists the Notice of Continued Administration under MCL 700.3951 as a no-fee filing.5Michigan Courts. Probate Court Fee Tables February 2025 Most probate registers accept filings in person or by mail, and some Michigan jurisdictions accept electronic filing through MiFILE. Keep a date-stamped copy of everything you file.
No hearing is required unless an interested person objects. The court dockets the notice and updates its monitoring schedule for the case.
What Happens If You Do Not File
Missing the deadline is one of the more common lapses in Michigan probate, and MCL 700.3951 lays out an escalating response.1Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 700.3951 – Notice of Continued Administration
First, any interested person can petition the court for a hearing on whether continued administration is necessary at all, or can petition directly for a settlement order to force the estate toward closure. The court can then issue orders aimed at a prompt resolution.
Second, if no notice is filed and no interested person petitions, the court can act on its own. It may send a warning to you and to all interested persons stating that it will close the estate and terminate your authority within 63 days. You can head that off by filing the overdue notice, petitioning for a settlement order, or filing a sworn closing statement within the 63-day window. An interested person can also stop the process by filing their own petition.1Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 700.3951 – Notice of Continued Administration
An administrative closure does not release you from liability. Heirs who never received their inheritance and creditors with valid unpaid claims can still pursue you. And MCR 5.307(C) warns that failing to complete administration and file closing documents “may result in personal assessment of costs” against the personal representative.2CourtRules.net. Rule 5.307 Requirements Applicable to All Decedent Estates
If You Are an Heir Waiting on an Estate
If you are on the receiving end of a slow administration, Michigan law gives you tools. Under MCL 700.3951(2), any interested person can petition the court for a hearing on whether continued administration is necessary, which forces the representative to justify the delay in front of a judge. You can also petition directly for a settlement order under MCL 700.3952 or MCL 700.3953, asking the court to push the estate toward a final accounting and distribution.1Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 700.3951 – Notice of Continued Administration
If you suspect the representative is mismanaging the estate or acting in their own interest, MCL 700.3502 lets any interested person petition to convert the estate from unsupervised to supervised administration. After notice to all interested persons, the court will order supervision if it finds supervision necessary to protect the people with a stake in the estate. Supervised administration requires court approval before the representative takes major actions like selling property or making distributions.6Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 700.3502 – Supervised Administration
How the Estate Eventually Closes
The Notice of Continued Administration is a holding pattern, not the finish line. Eventually the estate has to close through one of the paths the statute references.
The simplest route for an unsupervised estate is a sworn closing statement under MCL 700.3954, available no earlier than five months after the original appointment. In it, the representative affirms that notice to creditors was published and the claims period has run, that all claims and taxes have been paid or resolved, that estate property has been distributed to the people entitled to it, and that a full written accounting was provided to every distributee whose interest was affected, with fiduciary, attorney, and other professional fees clearly stated.7Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 700.3954 – Closing Estates by Sworn Statement
If a claim is disputed, a distribution is contested, or the court needs to formally approve the accounting, you or an interested person can petition for a complete estate settlement order instead. That involves a hearing and gives the judge authority to approve the accounting, determine who gets what, and formally discharge you.
One year after a sworn closing statement is filed, if no proceeding involving the personal representative is pending, the appointment automatically terminates.7Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 700.3954 – Closing Estates by Sworn Statement Until then, you remain responsible for the estate. Keep the records where you can reach them.