Second Regular Session of the 122nd General Assembly (2022)
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SENATE ENROLLED ACT No. 67
AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning probate.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Indiana:
SECTION 1. IC 29-1-8-1, AS AMENDED BY P.L.56-2020,
SECTION 4, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
JULY 1, 2022]: Sec. 1. (a) Forty-five (45) days after the death of a
decedent and upon being presented an affidavit that complies with
subsection (b), a person:
(1) indebted to the decedent; or
(2) having possession of personal property or an instrument
evidencing a debt, an obligation, a stock, or a chose in action
belonging to the decedent;
shall make payment of the indebtedness or deliver the personal
property or the instrument evidencing a debt, an obligation, a stock, or
a chose in action to a distributee claiming to be entitled to payment or
delivery of property of the decedent as alleged in the affidavit.
(b) The affidavit required by subsection (a) must be an affidavit
made by or on behalf of the distributee and must state the following:
(1) That the value of the gross probate estate, wherever located,
(less liens, encumbrances, and reasonable funeral expenses) does
not exceed:
(A) twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000), for the estate of an
individual who dies before July 1, 2006; and
(B) fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), for the estate of an
individual who dies after June 30, 2006, and before July 1,
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2022; and
(C) one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), for the estate
of an individual who dies after June 30, 2022.
(2) That forty-five (45) days have elapsed since the death of the
decedent.
(3) That no application or petition for the appointment of a
personal representative is pending or has been granted in any
jurisdiction.
(4) The name and address of each distributee that is entitled to a
share of the property and the part of the property to which each
distributee is entitled.
(5) That the affiant has notified each distributee identified in the
affidavit of the affiant's intention to present an affidavit under this
section.
(6) That the affiant is entitled to payment or delivery of the
property on behalf of each distributee identified in the affidavit.
(c) If a motor vehicle or watercraft (as defined in IC 9-13-2-198.5)
is part of the estate, nothing in this section shall prohibit a transfer of
the certificate of title to the motor vehicle if five (5) days have elapsed
since the death of the decedent and no appointment of a personal
representative is contemplated. A transfer under this subsection shall
be made by the bureau of motor vehicles upon receipt of an affidavit
containing a statement of the conditions required by subsection (b)(1)
and (b)(6). The affidavit must be duly executed by the distributees of
the estate.
(d) A transfer agent of a security shall change the registered
ownership on the books of a corporation from the decedent to a
distributee upon the presentation of an affidavit as provided in
subsection (a).
(e) For the purposes of subsection (a), an insurance company that,
by reason of the death of the decedent, becomes obligated to pay a
death benefit to the estate of the decedent is considered a person
indebted to the decedent.
(f) For purposes of subsection (a), property in a safe deposit box
rented by a decedent from a financial institution organized or
reorganized under the law of any state (as defined in IC 28-2-17-19) or
the United States is considered personal property belonging to the
decedent in the possession of the financial institution.
(g) For purposes of subsection (a), a distributee has the same rights
as a personal representative under IC 32-39 to access a digital asset (as
defined in IC 32-39-1-10) of the decedent.
SECTION 2. IC 29-1-8-3, AS AMENDED BY P.L.56-2020,
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SECTION 5, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
JULY 1, 2022]: Sec. 3. (a) As used in this section, "fiduciary" means:
(1) the personal representative of an unsupervised estate; or
(2) a person appointed by a court under this title to act on behalf
of the decedent or the decedent's distributees.
(b) Except as otherwise provided in this section, if the value of a
decedent's gross probate estate, less liens and encumbrances, does not
exceed the sum of:
(1) an amount equal to:
(A) twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000), for the estate of an
individual who dies before July 1, 2006; and
(B) fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), for the estate of an
individual who dies after June 30, 2006, and before July 1,
2022; and
(C) one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), for the estate
of an individual who dies after June 30, 2022;
(2) the costs and expenses of administration; and
(3) reasonable funeral expenses;
the fiduciary, without giving notice to creditors, may file a closing
statement as provided in section 4 of this chapter and disburse and
distribute the estate to the persons entitled to it, as provided in section
4 of this chapter.
(c) If an estate described in subsection (a) (b) includes real property,
an affidavit may be recorded in the office of the recorder in the county
in which the real property is located. The affidavit must contain the
following:
(1) The legal description of the real property.
(2) The following statements:
(A) If the individual dies after June 30, 2006, and before July
1, 2022, the following statement: "It appears that the
decedent's gross probate estate, less liens and encumbrances,
does not exceed the sum of the following: fifty thousand
dollars ($50,000), the costs and expenses of administration,
and reasonable funeral expenses.".
(B) If the individual dies before July 1, 2006, the following
statement: "It appears that the decedent's gross probate estate,
less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed the sum of the
following: twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000), the costs
and expenses of administration, and reasonable funeral
expenses.".
(C) If the individual dies after June 30, 2022, the following
statement: "It appears that the decedent's gross probate
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estate, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed the
sum of the following: one hundred thousand dollars
($100,000), the costs and expenses of administration, and
reasonable funeral expenses.".
(3) The name of each person entitled to at least a part interest in
the real property as a result of a decedent's death, the share to
which each person is entitled, and whether the share is a divided
or undivided interest.
(4) A statement which explains how each person's share has been
determined.
SECTION 3. IC 29-1-8-4, AS AMENDED BY P.L.56-2020,
SECTION 6, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
JULY 1, 2022]: Sec. 4. (a) As used in this section, "fiduciary" means:
(1) the personal representative of an unsupervised estate; or
(2) a person appointed by a court under this title to act on behalf
of the decedent or the decedent's distributees.
(b) Unless prohibited by order of the court and except for estates
being administered by supervised personal representatives, a fiduciary
may close an estate administered under the summary procedures of
section 3 of this chapter by filing with the court, at any time after
disbursement and distribution of the estate, a verified statement stating
that:
(1) to the best knowledge of the fiduciary, the value of the gross
probate estate, less liens and encumbrances, did not exceed the
sum of:
(A) twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000), for the estate of an
individual who dies before July 1, 2006, and fifty thousand
dollars ($50,000), for the estate of an individual who dies after
June 30, 2006, and before July 1, 2022, and one hundred
thousand dollars ($100,000), for the estate of an individual
who dies after June 30, 2022;
(B) the costs and expenses of administration; and
(C) reasonable funeral expenses;
(2) the fiduciary has fully administered the estate by disbursing
and distributing it to the persons entitled to it; and
(3) the fiduciary has sent a copy of the closing statement to all
distributees of the estate and to all creditors or other claimants of
whom the fiduciary is aware and has furnished a full accounting
in writing of the administration to the distributees whose interests
are affected.
(c) If no actions, claims, objections, or proceedings involving the
fiduciary are filed in the court within two (2) months after the closing
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statement is filed, the fiduciary may immediately disburse and
distribute the estate free from claims to the persons entitled to the
disbursement and distribution. After disbursing and distributing an
estate, the fiduciary must file a report in the court of the disbursement
and distribution. The appointment of the personal representative or the
duties of the fiduciary, as applicable, shall terminate upon the filing of
the report.
(d) A closing statement filed under this section has the same effect
as one (1) filed under IC 29-1-7.5-4.
(e) A copy of any affidavit recorded under section 3(c) of this
chapter must be attached to the closing statement filed under this
section.
SEA 67 President of the Senate
President Pro Tempore
Speaker of the House of Representatives
Governor of the State of Indiana
Date: Time:
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