Probate Notice to Creditors and Claim Deadlines in Utah
At a glance
| Governing law and claims regime | Utah Uniform Probate Code, §§ 75-3-801 to -804; optional notice plus claimant-facing nonclaim bars and 1-year death cap |
|---|---|
| Who publishes and when | Personal representative may publish upon appointment; successor under small-estate affidavit may also publish; no mandatory start deadline (§ 75-3-801) |
| Publication frequency, place, and contents | Once weekly for 3 successive weeks in county general-circulation newspaper and statutory public-notice channel; appointment/address and 3-month forever-bar warning (§ 75-3-801) |
| Known-creditor search standard | No mandatory known/reasonably ascertainable search duty or checklist stated in §§ 75-3-801 to -804 |
| Direct notice: recipients, timing, and contents | Representative may mail/deliver to any creditor; publication notice or similar notice; later of 90 days from publication or 60 days from delivery (§ 75-3-801) |
| Where, how, and in what form to present a claim | Deliver/mail to representative or attorney, file prescribed writing with court, or timely commence proceeding; basis, claimant/address, amount, due date, uncertainty, security (§ 75-3-804) |
| Publication- or service-based claim deadline | 3 months after first publication; directly notified creditor gets later of 90 days from publication or 60 days from delivery; earlier ordinary limitation still controls (§§ 75-3-801, -803) |
| Death-based outer bar | Predeath claims barred at earlier of notice deadline or 1 year after death; domicile nonclaim bar also applies (§ 75-3-803) |
| Extensions, late claims, and no-asset rules | No general late-claim or no-asset relief in §§ 75-3-801 to -804; limitations defense waivable in solvent estate with all affected successors' consent (§ 75-3-802) |
| Lien, insurance, tax, and other exceptions | Lien enforcement, insurance-only liability, representative/professional compensation, Medicaid recovery, criminal/restitution receivables excepted; pending-at-death proceeding needs no presentation (§§ 75-3-803 to -804) |
Requirements one by one
Notice is optional
Utah Code § 75-3-801 says the personal representative may publish after appointment and may give written notice to any creditor. The representative is not liable merely for giving or failing to give either form of notice. Utah therefore states no mandatory known-creditor search or direct-notice class in §§ 75-3-801 to -804.
If used, publication runs once a week for three successive weeks in a county newspaper of general circulation and for three weeks through the public-notice channel referenced in § 45-1-101. It announces the appointment and address and warns that claims must be presented within three months after first publication.
Direct notice uses a later-of formula
A mailed or delivered notice may use the published wording or similar wording. The creditor receives the later of 90 days from the published notice, if there was one, or 60 days from mailing or delivery. Failure to present by that date is a forever bar, subject to the earlier one-year death cap in § 75-3-803.
Utah recognizes three presentation routes
Under § 75-3-804, a creditor may deliver or mail a written statement to the personal representative or attorney of record, file the prescribed writing with the court clerk, or commence a proceeding against the representative within the presentation period. The written statement supplies the basis, claimant name and address, and amount. It also states a future due date, contingency or uncertainty, and security when applicable.
Presentation occurs on receipt by the representative or attorney or on court filing, whichever happens first. A proceeding already pending against the decedent at death does not require separate presentation.
The one-year death cap can arrive first
Section 75-3-803 bars a predeath claim at the earlier of the applicable notice deadline or one year after death. An earlier ordinary limitation also remains effective, and a claim barred by the decedent's domicile nonclaim statute is barred in Utah too.
Section 75-3-802 suspends a limitation measured from another event for three months after death and treats proper claim presentation like commencement for limitation purposes. In a solvent estate, the representative may waive a limitations defense only with consent from every affected successor.
Express exceptions preserve limited routes
Section 75-3-803 preserves mortgage, pledge, and lien enforcement; an insurance-only liability proceeding; representative, attorney, and accountant compensation or expense reimbursement; medical-assistance recovery; and named criminal and restitution receivables. If no representative was timely appointed, one may be appointed for the limited insurance proceeding.
What trips people up
Publication is not required, but the one-year death bar does not depend on publication. An estate that sends no notice does not leave predeath claims open indefinitely.
The direct-notice language says “90 days from the published notice” rather than three months. The creditor then compares that date with 60 days after delivery and uses the later date, while the one-year death cap may still arrive first.
Court filing is a valid presentation route in Utah. That differs from states where filing alone does not present a claim to the representative.
Common questions
Must a Utah personal representative publish notice?
No. Section 75-3-801 uses “may” for both publication and direct notice and expressly removes liability for giving or failing to give notice.
Can a creditor file only with the court?
Yes. Section 75-3-804 permits a prescribed written claim filed with the clerk, and presentation occurs on filing if that happens before receipt by the representative or attorney.
Does a lienholder lose the collateral after one year?
Section 75-3-803 expressly preserves proceedings to enforce a mortgage, pledge, or other lien upon estate property. That exception does not itself establish a general unsecured estate claim.
Statutes and sources
- Utah Code § 75-3-801 — optional publication and direct notice, frequency, contents, and deadlines. https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title75/Chapter3/C75-3-S801_1800010118000101.html (accessed 2026-08-12)
- Utah Code § 75-3-802 — ordinary limitations, suspension, and waiver. https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title75/Chapter3/C75-3-S802_1800010118000101.html (accessed 2026-08-12)
- Utah Code § 75-3-803 — one-year outer bar, domicile bar, and exceptions. https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title75/Chapter3/C75-3-S803_2025050720250507.html (accessed 2026-08-12)
- Utah Code § 75-3-804 — delivery, mailing, court filing, proceedings, claim contents, and disallowance suit period. https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title75/Chapter3/C75-3-S804_1800010118000101.html (accessed 2026-08-12)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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