What does an Arizona personal representative do first?

Publishes a notice to creditors once a week for three successive weeks and mails it to known creditors, with claims due four months after the first publication or sixty days after the mailing if later (A.R.S. § 14-3801), and prepares an inventory within ninety days of appointment, with each item's value and its nature as community or separate property (§ 14-3706).

Is there a simpler process for small Arizona estates?

Yes. Thirty days after the death, personal property not exceeding $200,000 net of liens may be collected on a successor's affidavit, and not sooner than six months after the death real property not exceeding $300,000 by the assessment rolls may pass on an affidavit filed in the superior court and recorded (A.R.S. § 14-3971); a surviving spouse may collect up to $5,000 of wages on an affidavit.

Arizona Probate, Explained

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What is probate?

Probate is the court process that settles a deceased person's estate — proving any will, appointing a personal representative, paying valid claims and expenses, and distributing what remains to the heirs or devisees. In Arizona the superior court of the county hears it, and a person who serves for a fee without being related or nominated must be a fiduciary licensed by the supreme court (A.R.S. § 14-5651). Assets that pass another way (a funded Trust, beneficiary designations, a beneficiary deed, property held with right of survivorship) generally skip probate.

The main types of Arizona probate

Appointment of the personal representative

After the death, whoever holds the will delivers it, on an interested person's request, to a person able to secure its probate or to the court (A.R.S. § 14-2516); an application or petition asks the superior court to appoint the personal representative the will names or, where there is none, the person the statute prefers. The representative prepares an inventory within ninety days of appointment, with each item's value and its nature as community or separate property (A.R.S. § 14-3706).

Informal and formal, unsupervised and supervised

Most Arizona estates are administered informally and without court supervision of each step — the representative gives the notice to creditors (A.R.S. § 14-3801), administers the claims (A.R.S. § 14-3803) and closes the estate by a sworn statement; a formal or supervised administration brings disputed or complex steps to the court. A trust itself is administered without continuing court supervision unless the court orders it (A.R.S. § 14-10201).

Small estates

Thirty days after the death, personal property not exceeding $200,000 net of liens passes to a successor on an affidavit without a court proceeding; not sooner than six months after the death, Arizona real property not exceeding $300,000 by the assessment rolls passes on an affidavit filed in the superior court and recorded (A.R.S. § 14-3971).

What happens in a Arizona probate

Deliver the will to a person able to secure its probate or to the court on an interested person's request (A.R.S. § 14-2516), and apply for the appointment of the personal representative.
At appointment, publish the notice to creditors once a week for three successive weeks and mail it to the known creditors — claims due four months after the first publication, or sixty days after the mailing if later (A.R.S. § 14-3801).
Within ninety days after the appointment, prepare the inventory of the decedent's property with each item's value, its community or separate character and any encumbrance (A.R.S. § 14-3706).
Pay the valid claims, taxes and administration expenses; a claim not presented in time is barred, and claims run out two years after the death plus any notice period that had begun (A.R.S. § 14-3803). The surviving spouse's homestead allowance comes before claims (A.R.S. § 14-2402).
Distribute what remains and close the estate once the claims, the allowances and the community half are settled — the surviving spouse's share of the separate property and the decedent's community half as A.R.S. § 14-2102 provides where there is no will.

Can you avoid probate in Arizona?

Often, in part — a funded revocable living Trust, beneficiary or pay-on-death designations, a recorded beneficiary deed for a home, and property held with a right of survivorship generally pass outside probate. What works depends on how each asset is titled. This page is general information, not legal advice; a free role check can show you where you stand, and an Arizona attorney can advise on your estate.

General information about Arizona law, not legal advice.

Frequently asked questions

How does probate start in Arizona?: After the death, the person holding the will delivers it, on an interested person's request, to a person able to secure its probate or to the court (A.R.S. § 14-2516); an application or petition asks the superior court to appoint a personal representative, and a person serving for a fee without being related or nominated must be a licensed fiduciary (§ 14-5651).
What does an Arizona personal representative do first?: Publishes a notice to creditors once a week for three successive weeks and mails it to known creditors, with claims due four months after the first publication or sixty days after the mailing if later (A.R.S. § 14-3801), and prepares an inventory within ninety days of appointment, with each item's value and its nature as community or separate property (§ 14-3706).
Is there a simpler process for small Arizona estates?: Yes. Thirty days after the death, personal property not exceeding $200,000 net of liens may be collected on a successor's affidavit, and not sooner than six months after the death real property not exceeding $300,000 by the assessment rolls may pass on an affidavit filed in the superior court and recorded (A.R.S. § 14-3971); a surviving spouse may collect up to $5,000 of wages on an affidavit.

General information about Arizona law, not legal advice.