In addition to the jurisdiction granted the district court under the trust code, chapter 633A,
or elsewhere, the district court sitting in probate shall have jurisdiction of:
1. Estates of decedents and absentees. The probate and contest of wills; the appointment
of personal representatives; the granting of letters testamentary and of administration; the
administration, settlement and distribution of estates of decedents and absentees, whether
such estates consist of real or personal property or both.
2. Construction of wills. The construction of wills during the administration of the estate,
whether said construction be incident to such administration, or as a separate proceeding.
3. Conservatorships and guardianships.
a. Except as provided for in paragraph “b”, the appointment of conservators and
guardians; the granting of letters of conservatorship and guardianship; the administration,
settlement and closing of conservatorships and guardianships.
b. Beginning January 1, 2020, minor guardianships are under the exclusive jurisdiction
of the juvenile court pursuant to, and except as limited by, chapter 232D.
4. Trusts and trustees.
a. The ongoing administration and supervision, including but not limited to the
appointment of trustees, the granting of letters of trusteeship, trust administration, and trust
settlement and closing, of the following trusts:
(1) A trust that was in existence on July 1, 2005, and that is subject to continuous court
supervision.
(2) A trust established by court decree that is subject to continuous court supervision.
b. A trust described in paragraph “a” shall be governed by this chapter and the provisions
of chapter 633A which are not inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter.
c. A trust not described in paragraph “a” shall be governed exclusively by chapter 633A
and shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the district court sitting in probate only as provided
in section 633A.6101.
d. Upon joint application by all trustees administering a trust described in paragraph “a”
and following notice to the beneficiaries pursuant to section 633.40, the court shall release the
trust from further jurisdiction unless a beneficiary objects. The court whose decree created
the trust may release the trust from continuous court supervision following notice to the
beneficiary pursuant to section 633.40. If such judicial release occurs for a trust previously
governed by this chapter, such trust shall be governed by chapter 633A and the district court
sitting in probate only as provided in section 633A.6101.
\n
Tue Dec 09 21:59:21 2025 Iowa Code 2026, Chapter 633 (154, 4)
§633.10, PROBATE CODE 14\n\n 5. Actions for accounting. An action for an accounting against a beneficiary of a transfer
on death security registration, pursuant to chapter 633D.
[C73, §2312; C97, §225; C24, 27, 31, 35, 39, §10763, 10764; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, §604.3, 604.4;
C66, 71, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, §633.10]
85 Acts, ch 154, §1; 91 Acts, ch 36, §1; 97 Acts, ch 178, §3; 99 Acts, ch 56, §2; 2005 Acts, ch
38, §6 – 8, 55; 2005 Acts, ch 179, §139; 2006 Acts, ch 1010, §155; 2019 Acts, ch 56, §36, 44, 45
Referred to in §633.3, 633.27, 633.751, 633A.1107, 633A.6101
Applicability of probate code to trusts, see §633.751
Scope of trust code, see §633A.1107
\n
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
35
cases (
8 in the last 5 years), 1949–2025 · leading case:
In Re the Est. of Falck, 672 N.W.2d 785 (Iowa 2003).
In Re the Est. of Falck, 672 N.W.2d 785 (Iowa 2003).
· cites it 12× “6101 prevails over section 633.10 because it is in the same division of the code as section 633.”
Matter of Est. of Young, 273 N.W.2d 388 (Iowa 1978).
· cites it 7× “Section 633.10, which sets out the jurisdiction of the probate court, is divided into four parts: (1) estates of decedents and absentees, (2) construction of wills and trust instruments, (3) conservatorships and guardianships, and (4) trusts and trustees.”
Brown v. Monticello State Bank of Monticello, 360 N.W.2d 81 (Iowa 1984).
· cites it 2× “An examination of our probate code and case law indicates that residency has no direct consequence on the issue of the validity of a will.”
In Re Guardianship & Conservatorship of Ankeney, 360 N.W.2d 733 (Iowa 1985).
· cites it 2× “The probate court, however, is simply given jurisdiction of the administration of guardianship proceedings in Iowa Code § 633.10 (3) (1983); I do not believe it is given the power to grant rights not provided it by statute or common law simply because it is *739 acting in a…”
Coster v. Crookham, 468 N.W.2d 802 (Iowa 1991).
· cites it 2× “Iowa Code § 633.10 (4) authorizes invocation of district court administration upon the request of a trustee.”
In Re the Guardianship of B.J.P., 613 N.W.2d 670 (Iowa 2000).
· cites it 2× “Iowa Code §§ 633.10 (3), .13. However, the district court is authorized to appoint a referee to audit “accounts of fiduciaries” and perform “other ministerial duties in probate proceedings.”
First Presbyterian Church v. Hodge, 35 N.W.2d 658 (Iowa 1949).
· cites it 4× “No question is raised as to the testamentary capacity of decedent, nor is it claimed by the objectors that there has been a revocation under the Iowa statute, section 633.10, Code of 1946. The question before this court for determination may be stated thus, “Is the judgment of…”
In Re Est. of Ramthun, 89 N.W.2d 337 (Iowa 1958).
· cites it 2× “The Iowa Code, section 633.10, provides that a will can only be revoked “* * * in whole or in part by being canceled or destroyed by the act or direction of the testator, with the intention of so revoking them, or by the execution of subsequent wills.”
Davis v. Travelers Ins. Co., 196 N.W.2d 526 (Iowa 1972).
· cites it 2× “Executor-appellant contends the question as to whether decedent made an effective designation of beneficiary on the life insurance policy is a matter solely within the jurisdiction of the probate court.”
Matter of Est. of Allen, 239 N.W.2d 163 (Iowa 1976).
“Phyllis contends Iowa could obtain no jurisdiction over the deposits merely because they came into Iowa after decedent’s death. We note Iowa probate courts have jurisdiction to administer personal property owned by nonresident decedents and brought into Iowa after death.”
— Iowa Code § 633.10(1) — 4 cases
— Iowa Code § 633.10(3) — 2 cases
— Iowa Code § 633.10(4) — 7 cases
In Re the Est. of Falck, 672 N.W.2d 785 (Iowa 2003).
“6101 prevails over section 633.10 because it is in the same division of the code as section 633.”
Matter of Est. of Young, 273 N.W.2d 388 (Iowa 1978).
“Section 633.10, which sets out the jurisdiction of the probate court, is divided into four parts: (1) estates of decedents and absentees, (2) construction of wills and trust instruments, (3) conservatorships and guardianships, and (4) trusts and trustees.”
— Iowa Code § 633.10(4)(a) — 1 case
In Re the Est. of Falck, 672 N.W.2d 785 (Iowa 2003).
“6101 prevails over section 633.10 because it is in the same division of the code as section 633.”
— Iowa Code § 633.10(4)(d) — 2 cases
In Re the Est. of Falck, 672 N.W.2d 785 (Iowa 2003).
“6101 prevails over section 633.10 because it is in the same division of the code as section 633.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.