Court Safekeeping of Original Wills in Utah
At a glance
| Statutory safekeeping route | Former lifetime court-deposit § 75-2-901 repealed May 9, 2017; current § 75-5-425(5)(a)(i) concerns delivery after a protected person's death. |
|---|---|
| Who may deposit | After a protected person's death, the conservator holding the will must deliver it (§ 75-5-425(5)(a)(i)); former testator/agent route repealed. |
| Proper court or clerk | Court receives the deceased protected person's will from the conservator (§ 75-5-425(5)(a)(i)). |
| Envelope and filing record | Former lifetime-deposit section repealed; cited current postdeath rules specify no wrapper or deposit record (§§ 75-2-901, -902; 75-5-425(5)). |
| Fee and receipt | Former lifetime-deposit section repealed; cited postdeath rules specify no safekeeping fee or receipt (§§ 75-2-901, -902; 75-5-425(5)). |
| Custody before death | Former sealed and confidential lifetime court-deposit rule repealed (§ 75-2-901). |
| Retrieval before death | Former lifetime retrieval rule repealed (§ 75-2-901). |
| Notice after death | Conservator must inform the personal representative or a named beneficiary after delivering the deceased person's will (§ 75-5-425(5)(a)(ii)). |
| Opening and release after death | On an interested person's request, custodian must promptly deliver the will to someone able to secure probate; conservator must deliver a deceased protected person's will to court (§§ 75-2-902; 75-5-425(5)(a)(i)). |
Current court custody procedure
Utah's official § 75-2-901 page marks the former lifetime court-deposit provision “Repealed 5/9/2017.” The current postdeath provisions serve different purposes. Under § 75-5-425(5)(a), when a protected person dies, the conservator must deliver any will that came into the conservator's possession to the court for safekeeping and inform the personal representative or a beneficiary named in the will. The statute does not prescribe a wrapper, deposit receipt, or release procedure for that delivery.
Utah Code § 75-2-902 addresses a custodian after a testator's death. On an interested person's request, that custodian must deliver the will “with reasonable promptness” to a person able to secure its probate. It also provides damages for willful nondelivery and contempt consequences after disobedience of a court order compelling delivery.
What trips people up
Older references to § 75-2-901 can describe a sealed lifetime court deposit and retrieval by the testator. That provision was repealed in 2017; the conservator's postdeath duty in § 75-5-425(5)(a) should not be read as restoring it.
Common questions
Must a conservator tell anyone after taking a deceased protected person's will to court? Yes. Section 75-5-425(5)(a)(ii) requires notice to the personal representative or a beneficiary named in the will.
What if a custodian refuses a postdeath request for the will? Section 75-2-902 provides a damages remedy for willful failure and permits contempt penalties if the custodian disobeys a court order to deliver it.
Statutes and sources
- Utah Code §§ 75-2-901 (repealed), -902, and 75-5-425(5)(a): official text, quoted with source URLs and access dates above.
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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