Ark. Code Ann. § 28-48-102 (2026)
Letters — Issuance — Form
- When a duly appointed personal representative has given such bond as may be required and the bond has been approved by the court or by the clerk, subject to confirmation by the court, or, if no bond is required, when the personal representative has filed with the clerk a written acceptance of his or her appointment, letters under the seal of the court shall be issued to him or her.
- The letters shall be in substantially the following form:
- Letters of administration with will annexed, administration in succession, and special administration shall conform with this form with appropriate modifications.(d)(1)(A) Letters of administration are not necessary to empower the person appointed to act for the estate.
“In the Circuit Court of County, Arkansas. In the Matter of the Estate of C.D., deceased. No. Letters of Administration (Testamentary) Be it known that A.B., whose address is , having been duly appointed administrator of the estate (executor of the will) of C.D., deceased, who died on or about , 20 , and having qualified as such administrator (executor) is hereby authorized to act as such administrator (executor) for and in behalf of the estate and to take possession of the property thereof as authorized by law. Issued this day of , 20 . , Clerk. (Seal)”.
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(B) Letters of administration are for the purpose of notifying third parties that the appointment of an administrator has been made.
(2) The order appointing the administrator empowers the administrator to act for the estate, and any act carried out under the authority of the order is valid.
History. Acts 1949, No. 140, § 71; A.S.A. 1947, § 62-2202; Acts 2007, No. 438, § 1; 2013, No. 1137, § 1.
Amendments. The 2007 amendment added (d).
The 2013 amendment substituted “Circuit” for “Probate” in (b).
Research References
Ark. L. Rev.
Recent Development: Arkansas Act 438 of 2007, 60 Ark. L. Rev. 1023.
Case Notes
Construction.
Trial court erred in awarding summary judgment to defendants in a wrongful death and survival action brought by a patient's relatives where Acts 2007, chapter 438, amending this section, provided that letters of administration were not necessary to empower a person appointed to act for an estate. Chapter 438 was procedural and was meant to be applied retroactively. Steward v. Statler, 371 Ark. 351, 266 S.W.3d 710 (2007), rehearing denied, — Ark. —, — S.W.3d —, 2007 Ark. LEXIS 662 (Dec. 6, 2007).
Trial court erred in awarding summary judgment to a doctor in personal representative's medical malpractice and wrongful death action because under this section, it was an order of appointment, not letters of administration, that empowered the personal representative to act on behalf of the patient's estate. Estate of Banks v. Wilkin, 101 Ark. App. 156, 272 S.W.3d 137 (2008).
The 2007 amendment of this section is to be applied retroactively. Estate of Banks v. Wilkin, 101 Ark. App. 156, 272 S.W.3d 137 (2008).
Necessity for Letters.
The probate of a will authorizes the grant of letters testamentary, but, until letters are ordered issued, it gives no authority over the estate. Jackson v. Reeve, 44 Ark. 496 (1884) (decision under prior law).
Administratrix was not required to have executed letters of administration in order to file a complaint against the medical center on June 10, 2003, because the order appointing her administratrix was entered before the complaint was filed, was effective at the time the complaint was filed, and empowered her to act for the estate without the necessity of letters of administration. Brown v. Nat'l Health Care of Pocahontas, Inc., 102 Ark. App. 148, 283 S.W.3d 224 (2008).
Power to Bring Suit.
Son, a foreign administrator of his mother's estate, was subject to the requirements for domiciliary personal representatives pursuant to § 16-61-110, and therefore was required to have been appointed under this section. Because the son had not been appointed administrator of his mother's estate in any state at the time he filed his original complaint for trespass and conversion of timber, he did not have standing to sue; because the complaint was a nullity, a second complaint could not relate back under Ark. R. Civ. P. 15(c). Travis Lumber Co. v. Deichman, 2009 Ark. 299, 319 S.W.3d 239 (2009).
Release of Note.
A release by one of two joint administrators of a note payable to them in their representative capacity was ineffectual to bar recovery thereon. Clark v. Gramling, 54 Ark. 525, 16 S.W. 475 (1891) (decision under prior law).
Validity of Personal Representative's Acts Before Removal.
Appointment of an unpardoned felon as a personal representative was voidable, rather than void ab initio, because (1) § 28-1-115(b) states that no vacation of a probate court order affects a prior act, (2) § 28-48-105(b) states that removing a personal representative does not invalidate prior official acts, and (3) subdivision (d)(2) of this section also provides that a personal representative's acts before removal are valid. In re Estate of L.C. Taylor v. MCSA, LLC, 2013 Ark. 429, 430 S.W.3d 120 (2013).