473.033. Notice of letters--duty of clerk--publication--form.
Notice of letters--duty of clerk--publication--form.
473.033. The clerk, as soon as letters testamentary or of administrationare issued, shall cause to be published in some newspaper a notice of theappointment of the personal representative, in which shall be included anotice to creditors of the decedent to file their claims in the court or beforever barred. The notice shall be published once a week for fourconsecutive weeks. The clerk shall send a copy of the notice by ordinary mailto each heir and devisee whose name and address are shown on the applicationfor letters or other records of the court, but any heir or devisee may waivenotice to such person by filing a waiver in writing. The personalrepresentative may, but is not required to, send a copy of the notice byordinary mail or personal service to any creditor of the decedent whose claimhas not been paid, allowed or disallowed as provided in section 473.403.Proof of publication of notice under this section and proof of mailing ofnotice shall be filed not later than ten days after completion of thepublication. The notice shall be in substantially the following form:
To all persons interested in the estate of ..........................,decedent:
On the ................................. day of ....................,20.., (the last will of the decedent having been admitted to probate).............................. was appointed the personal representative ofthe estate of ........................., decedent, by the probate division ofthe circuit court of ............................... County, Missouri. Thebusiness address of the personal representative is..................................., and the personal representative'sattorney is ...................... of ............................ .
All creditors of the decedent are notified to file claims in court withinsix months from the date of first publication of this notice or if a copy ofthis notice was mailed to, or served upon, such creditor by the personalrepresentative, then within two months from the date it was mailed or served,whichever is later, or be forever barred to the fullest extent permissible bylaw. Such six-month period and such two-month period do not extend thelimitation period that would bar claims one year after the decedent's death,as provided in section 473.444, RSMo, or any other applicable limitationperiods. Nothing in section 473.033, RSMo, shall be construed to bar anyaction against a decedent's liability insurance carrier through a defendant adlitem pursuant to section 537.021, RSMo.
Receipt of this notice by mail should not be construed by the recipientto indicate that the recipient necessarily has a beneficial interest in theestate. The nature and extent of any person's interest, if any, can bedetermined from the files and records of this estate in the probate divisionof the circuit court of ............. County, Missouri.
Date of the decedent's death was ....................................,20.....
Date of first publication is.............................................., 20......
................................................
Clerk of the Probate Division
of the Circuit Court
.................. County, Missouri
(L. 1955 p. 385 § 37, A.L. 1969 S.B. 86, A.L. 1978 H.B. 1634, A.L. 1980 S.B. 637, A.L. 1983 H.B. 369, A.L. 1989 H.B. 145, A.L. 1993 S.B. 88, A.L. 1996 S.B. 494)Effective 5-23-96
(1962) Weekly newspaper did not forfeit right theretofore vested in it to publish legal notices by suspending publication the last week in December of one year for vacation purposes and where it resumed continuous weekly publications after the procedure was questioned. State ex rel. Henderson v. Proctor (Mo.), 361 S.W.2d 802.
(1985) Held, due process does not require any more than publication notice to a creditor that a decedent's estate is being administered and the notice provisions of sections 473.360 and 473.033, RSMo, are constitutional. Estate of Busch v. Ferrell-Duncan Clinic (Mo.banc) 700 S.W.2d 87.