The date that the Findings of Fact or order of appointment is docketed is the official date of appointment; however, Letters are not issued until the guardian files an Acceptance and Consent and, when a conservator is appointed, a bond.

The powers and duties of a guardian are set forth at DC Code, sec. 21-2047 and in the Specific Instructions to Guardians and Guardianship Information Sheet.

The authority granted in a power of attorney ends the minute that the person who signed the power of attorney dies. The person named as attorney-of-fact in the power of attorney must immediately stop using the power of attorney or will be subject to potential personal liability. If the decedent owned assets in his or her sole name, an estate proceeding must be opened to collect and distribute those assets.

A personal representative may be removed from a case by order of a judge. The process of removing a personal representative is begun with the filing of either a complaint for removal in the LIT case type (LIT means Major Litigation) or a petition for removal in the estate case (ADM). It is recommended that any person considering removal of a personal representative seek legal advice from an attorney.

The decedent’s spouse and parents.

The following pleadings must be verified to be filed in the Probate Division:

1. All Petitions - SCR-PD 2(b) and 3
2. Complaints filed in Probate Matters - SCR-PD 107(a), and 208(a)
3. Accounts - DC Code 20-721
4. Inventories - DC Code 20-711
5. Guardian Reports - SCR-PD 328
6. Assignments - SCR-PD 120 and 420
7. Claims - DC Code 20-905(a)
8. Affidavits of Mailing and Non-Mailing in Standard Probate - SCR-PD 403(a)(8)
9. Any Affidavit - SCR-CIV 9
10. Verification and Certificate of Notice - SCR-PD 403(b)(3)
11. Certificate of Completion - SCR-PD 426

According to SCR-CIV 11, no other pleadings need be verified. Accordingly, motions, answers, responses and oppositions do not need to be verified.

The following pleadings must be verified to be filed in the Probate Division:

1. All Petitions - SCR-PD 2(b) and 3
2. Complaints filed in Probate Matters - SCR-PD 107(a), and 208(a)
3. Accounts - DC Code 20-721
4. Inventories - DC Code 20-711
5. Guardian Reports - SCR-PD 328
6. Assignments - SCR-PD 120 and 420
7. Claims - DC Code 20-905(a)
8. Affidavits of Mailing and Non-Mailing in Standard Probate - SCR-PD 403(a)(8)
9. Any Affidavit - SCR-CIV 9
10. Verification and Certificate of Notice - SCR-PD 403(b)(3)
11. Certificate of Completion - SCR-PD 426

According to SCR-CIV 11, no other pleadings need be verified. Accordingly, motions, answers, responses and oppositions do not need to be verified.

In large estates, the claims period expires six months after the first date of publication of the Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs. However, if the personal representative is aware of the existence of a debt, the personal representative must take action with regard to the debt even if no claim has been filed.

If your name is already on a deed to real estate as a joint owner and the deed has already been filed at the Recorder of Deeds, that real estate passes automatically to you at the death of the co-owner, and no probate proceeding is necessary to pass title to that piece of real estate. If your name is already on a deed but not as a joint owner (instead, as a tenant in common), a probate proceeding will be necessary to transfer the decedent’s share of the property to you. If the asset is a joint bank account, it may or may not be subject to a probate proceeding depending upon when the account was established and the intent of the decedent.

File a verified petition to transfer the will to the state in which the decedent was domiciled, which is where the will should have been filed. The petition must contain (1) facts supporting the argument that the will was filed in the District of Columbia in error and that the other state was the decedent’s domicile at death and (2) the name, address, and telephone number of the Clerk of the Court of the other state who is authorized to accept the transferred will. Include a proposed order authorizing the transfer. If the petition is granted, the Probate Division will mail the will directly to the Court official authorized to receive it in the other state.