Probate Notice to Creditors and Claim Deadlines in Massachusetts
At a glance
| Governing law and claims regime | Action-based 1-year creditor limitation, not a general claim-form/nonclaim-notice regime; applies to representative and reachable trust assets (§ 3-803(a)-(b)) |
|---|---|
| Who publishes and when | No general creditor-specific publication duty; chapter 190B § 3-801 is reserved |
| Publication frequency, place, and contents | N/A No general creditor publication in §§ 3-801 to 3-804; ordinary deadline does not run from newspaper notice |
| Known-creditor search standard | No general known/reasonably ascertainable creditor search standard or records checklist stated in §§ 3-801 to 3-804 |
| Direct notice: recipients, timing, and contents | No general individual creditor notice; separate certified-mail petition/death-certificate notice and requested form apply to MassHealth (c. 118E, § 32(a)) |
| Where, how, and in what form to present a claim | Commence proceeding against representative in a court with jurisdiction; within deadline, serve process in hand/obtain acceptance or file register notice naming estate, creditor/address, amount, and court (§§ 3-803(a), 3-804) |
| Publication- or service-based claim deadline | No publication/service-triggered claim period; service or detailed register notice must be completed before the 1-year death-based period expires (§ 3-803(a)) |
| Death-based outer bar | Ordinarily 1 year after death; earlier domicile bar controls; insurance-only personal-injury/death action may run to 3 years after accrual (§ 3-803(a), (c)-(d)(2)) |
| Extensions, late claims, and no-asset rules | SJC may grant equitable late judgment if justice/equity require and no culpable neglect, without disturbing earlier payments/distributions; solvent estate may waive limitations defense with affected successors' consent (§§ 3-802, 3-803(e)) |
| Lien, insurance, tax, and other exceptions | Preserves lien enforcement, insurance-only personal-injury/death route, representative/attorney/accountant compensation, pending-at-death proceedings, and separate MassHealth process (§§ 3-803(d), (f), 3-804(2); c. 118E, § 32) |
Requirements one by one
Use the action-and-service route, not a general creditor notice
Massachusetts does not have a general creditor-publication section in this part of the Probate Code. Chapter 190B § 3-801 is reserved. The ordinary rule instead appears in § 3-803: the creditor must commence an action within one year after death.
Before that year expires, the creditor must also either have process delivered in hand to the personal representative, obtain the representative's acceptance of service, or file a notice with the register stating the estate name, the creditor's name and address, the amount, and the court where the action was brought.
Commence the proceeding in a court with jurisdiction
Chapter 190B § 3-804 says an estate claim is commenced by a proceeding against the personal representative in a court where the representative may be subject to jurisdiction. The proceeding must begin within the applicable period. A matter already pending against the decedent at death needs no separate claim presentation.
A special personal representative can be named in the timely action, but the court stays it until a general personal representative is appointed and substituted.
Apply the one-year bar and its stated exceptions
The ordinary death-based bar is one year. A claim already barred under the decedent's domicile is also barred in Massachusetts. The statute does not create a publication- or individual-notice-based short period for general creditors.
Chapter 190B § 3-803 preserves mortgage, pledge, and other lien enforcement. It also permits a personal-injury or death action after the first year when it is commenced no later than three years after accrual, but any judgment is payable only from liability bond or insurance proceeds, not general estate assets. The section separately preserves specified representative, attorney, and accountant compensation and expense claims.
Use the narrow equitable and MassHealth routes when applicable
Chapter 190B § 3-803(e) permits a creditor to seek an equitable judgment from the Supreme Judicial Court after missing the ordinary period. The court must find that justice and equity require relief and that the creditor was not chargeable with culpable neglect. Relief cannot affect a payment or distribution made before the equitable complaint and registry notice were filed.
Chapter 190B § 3-802 separately lets a solvent estate waive a limitations defense with the consent of every successor whose interest would be affected. It does not revive a claim that was already barred at death unless that defense is validly waived.
MassHealth follows chapter 118E § 32. The probate petition includes a sworn statement that the petition and death certificate were sent to the division by certified mail. The division may present a written claim within four months after approval of the representative's official bond by filing it with the probate registry and delivering or mailing a copy to the representative, or it may commence the specified action within one year after death.
What trips people up
The reserved § 3-801 means this is not a four-month-after-publication state for general probate creditors. The ordinary clock runs from death.
Starting the lawsuit is not the only timely act required. Before the one-year period expires, the creditor must also complete the specified service or file the detailed notice with the register.
The insurance exception is limited. An action that uses the extended route can reach only the liability bond or insurance proceeds identified by the statute.
MassHealth is not evidence of a general creditor claim form. Chapter 118E § 32 creates a separate public-benefit recovery process with its own filing and certified-mail rules.
Common questions
Must a Massachusetts personal representative publish a general creditor notice?
No general creditor-publication duty appears in §§ 3-801 to 3-804; § 3-801 is reserved. Other probate notices may apply to heirs or interested persons, but they do not create the general creditor deadline described here.
Can a creditor simply mail an invoice to the representative?
The ordinary statutes require an action against the representative plus timely service or the detailed registry notice. They do not state that mailing an invoice alone commences the claim.
Can a late creditor ask a court for relief?
Section 3-803(e) allows an equitable complaint in the Supreme Judicial Court, but only under its justice-and-equity and no-culpable-neglect standards, and it cannot upset earlier payments or distributions.
Does the one-year bar eliminate a mortgage lien?
No. Section 3-803(d)(1) expressly preserves proceedings to enforce a mortgage, pledge, or other lien on estate property.
Statutes and sources
- Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 190B, §§ 3-801 and 3-802 — reserved general-notice section and limitation-defense waiver. Official General Court sections: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartII/TitleII/Chapter190B/Section3-801 and https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartII/TitleII/Chapter190B/Section3-802 (accessed 2026-08-12).
- Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 190B, § 3-803 — one-year action, service or registry notice, reachable trusts, exceptions, equitable relief, and MassHealth cross-reference. Official General Court section: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartII/TitleII/Chapter190B/Section3-803 (accessed 2026-08-12).
- Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 190B, § 3-804 — action commencement, pending matters, and special-representative stay. Official General Court section: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartII/TitleII/Chapter190B/Section3-804 (accessed 2026-08-12).
- Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 118E, § 32 — certified-mail probate materials and the division's separate claim routes. Official General Court section: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXVII/Chapter118e/Section32 (accessed 2026-08-12).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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