(1) Before being appointed as executor, administrator, curator, or administrator with the
will annexed, every person shall make and file in duplicate a written application
under oath, which must state the names of the deceased's surviving spouse and all of
his heirs-at-law or such as are known, their post office address if known, the date of
death and also a statement in general terms as to what the estate consists of and the
probable value of the personal and real estate and also a statement of any
indebtedness owing by the applicant to the deceased. The foregoing requirement in
respect to names and addresses of heirs-at-law may be omitted when the application
is being made by the executor named in the will unless requested by the court. The
application of a nonresident shall include the designation of a resident of the county
where administration is pending as his agent for the service of process in any action
against him as personal representative or personally, provided that such personal
action must have accrued in the administration of the estate. A duplicate copy of
said application shall be mailed by the clerk to the secretary of revenue of the State
of Kentucky.
(2) In the case of intestacy, or where an administrator with will annexed or de bonis
non is to be appointed, if there be no surviving spouse, or if such spouse waives the
right of appointment or is not qualified to act and does not nominate a suitable
administrator and there is more than one (1) resident heir-at-law entitled to
appointment, the court shall thereupon set a time for hearing such application.
Notice of said hearing shall be given to the surviving spouse and all known heirs of
the deceased residing in the state, or elsewhere, in the manner provided in KRS
395.016.
Effective: January 2, 1978
History: Amended 1976 (1st Extra. Sess.) Ky. Acts ch. 14, sec. 382, effective January
2, 1978. -- Amended 1974 Ky. Acts ch. 299, sec. 13. -- Amended 1972 Ky. Acts ch.
168, sec. 15. -- Amended 1970 Ky. Acts ch. 29, sec. 2. -- Amended 1968 Ky. Acts
ch. 200, sec. 7. -- Created 1942 Ky. Acts ch. 167, sec. 5.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
10
cases (
4 in the last 5 years), 1943–2025 · leading case:
Cosby v. Hays, 257 S.W.2d 575 (Ky. Ct. App. 1953).
Cosby v. Hays, 257 S.W.2d 575 (Ky. Ct. App. 1953).
· cites it 2× “On the appeal here, appellants insist that the court erred in the appointment of the administrators1 with the will annexed because: (1) their application was not verified as required by KRS 395.015; and (2) J. Smith Hays, Sr:,' was ineligible for appointment' under' the…”
Modern Bakery, Inc. v. Brashear, 405 S.W.2d 742 (Ky. Ct. App. 1966).
“As a practical matter, therefore, subjecting the order of appointment to a collateral attack on the ground that there was no written and verified application as required by KRS 395.015 would simply call for a repetition of the trial for the sake of a procedural technicality that…”
Mullins v. Mullins, 212 S.W.2d 272 (Ky. Ct. App. 1948).
· cites it 2× “In the first place, appellant did not initially comply with section 395.015, KRS, which requires that certain facts be stated in the application for appointment.”
Cox's Adm'r (Wall) v. Bingham, 175 S.W.2d 1010 (Ky. Ct. App. 1943).
· cites it 6× “016 of KRS, moved the court to set aside the order appointing Wall, and at the same time he filed his application for the appointment duly prepared pursuant to the provisions of section 395.015 of the same statutes. Both motions were heard by the county judge and he overruled…”
Justin Smith, Individually v. Morgan & Morgan Kentucky, Pllc (Ky. Ct. App. 2025).
· cites it 2× “-8- See KRS 395.015(1) (“ Before being appointed as executor, administrator, curator, or administrator with the will annexed, every person shall make and file in duplicate a written application under oath .”
Justin Smith, Individually v. Morgan & Morgan Kentucky, Pllc (Ky. Ct. App. 2025).
· cites it 2× “-8- See KRS 395.015(1) (“ Before being appointed as executor, administrator, curator, or administrator with the will annexed, every person shall make and file in duplicate a written application under oath .”
Treas v. Treas, 240 S.W.2d 593 (Ky. Ct. App. 1951).
· cites it 2× “The second paragraph of KRS 395.015 reads as follows: “(2) In case of intestacy, if there be no surviving spouse, or if such spouse waives the right of appointment or is not qualified to act and does not nominate a suitable administrator and there are more than one resident heir…”
Schmitt v. Kentucky Trust Co. of Louisville, 429 S.W.2d 839 (Ky. Ct. App. 1968).
“KRS 395.015(2) and 395.016 provide for notice in connection with an application for letters of administration in the case of intestacy.”
— Ky. Rev. Stat. § 395.015(1) — 4 cases
Cosby v. Hays, 257 S.W.2d 575 (Ky. Ct. App. 1953).
“On the appeal here, appellants insist that the court erred in the appointment of the administrators1 with the will annexed because: (1) their application was not verified as required by KRS 395.015; and (2) J. Smith Hays, Sr:,' was ineligible for appointment' under' the…”
— Ky. Rev. Stat. § 395.015(2) — 1 case
Schmitt v. Kentucky Trust Co. of Louisville, 429 S.W.2d 839 (Ky. Ct. App. 1968).
“KRS 395.015(2) and 395.016 provide for notice in connection with an application for letters of administration in the case of intestacy.”
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.