Insolvent Probate Estate Claim-Payment Priority in Alaska
At a glance
| Statutory payment order | Six ordered claim classes, with allowances protected separately (§§ 13.16.470, 13.16.480, 13.12.402–.404). |
|---|---|
| Administration costs | Costs and expenses of administration are class 1 (§ 13.16.470(a)(1)). |
| Funeral and last illness | Reasonable funeral costs class 2; reasonable necessary last-illness medical/hospital costs class 4 (§ 13.16.470(a)(2),(4)). |
| Family and homestead allowances | Homestead allowance outranks claims; family allowance follows homestead; exempt-property deficiency yields to homestead/family (§§ 13.12.402–.404). |
| Taxes and public claims | Federally preferred debts/taxes class 3; Alaska-law preferred debts/taxes class 5 (§ 13.16.470(a)(3),(5)). |
| Secured claims | Surrender security for full allowed claim; otherwise deduct its fair or determined value (§ 13.16.490). |
| Support and special debts | Past-due child support shares class 3, except payments required under AS 25.27.120–.130 (§ 13.16.470(a)(3)). |
| General claims | All other claims are class 6 (§ 13.16.470(a)(6)). |
| Underfunded class | No same-class preference, including due over not-yet-due claims (§ 13.16.470(b)). |
Requirements one by one
Six claim classes
Under § 13.16.470(a), administration costs come first and reasonable funeral expenses second. Class three combines federally preferred debts and taxes with past-due child support, but expressly excludes payments required under AS 25.27.120–.130. Reasonable and necessary medical and hospital expenses of the last illness, including attendants' compensation, are fourth; debts and taxes preferred by other Alaska law are fifth; all other claims are sixth.
Allowances outside the ladder
The homestead allowance has priority over all claims under § 13.12.402. The family allowance also outranks claims but follows homestead under § 13.12.404(a). Under § 13.12.403, exempt property has priority over claims while assets used to make up its deficiency yield to earlier homestead and family allowance payments. The representative provides for allowances before paying allowed claims under § 13.16.480(a).
Secured claims
Under § 13.16.490, the full allowed amount is the payment basis if the creditor surrenders security. Otherwise the security's fair or determined value is deducted through the statute's two routes.
What trips people up
Section 13.16.470(b) gives no preference between claims in the same class, including a due claim over one not yet due. Section 13.16.480(b) permits earlier payment of an unbarred just claim but may make the representative personally liable when specified early-payment or fault conditions injure another allowed claimant.
Common questions
Is every past-due support payment in the third class? No. Section 13.16.470(a)(3) excludes payments required under the two cited state-support provisions.
Are last-illness and funeral costs in one class? No. Section 13.16.470(a)(2),(4) places them in the second and fourth classes.
Statutes and sources
- Alaska Stat. §§ 13.16.470, .480, .490 and 13.12.402–.404. Verbatim official text, section URLs, and access dates appear in the source fields above.
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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