N.M. Stat. » N.M. Stat. / Chapter 45 / Article 3
New Mexico Statutes

N.M. Stat. § 45-3-801 (2026)

Notice to creditors.

✓ current as of May 2026
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A. A personal representative upon appointment may publish a notice to creditors
once a week for three successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the
county in which the probate proceeding is pending, announcing the personal
representative's appointment and address and notifying creditors of the estate to
present their claims within four months after the date of the first publication of the notice
or be forever barred.
    B. A personal representative may give written notice by mail or other delivery to a
creditor, announcing the personal representative's appointment and address and
notifying the creditor to present the creditor's claim within four months after the
published notice, if given as provided in Subsection A of this section, or within sixty days
after the mailing or other delivery of the notice, whichever is later, or be forever barred.

   C. The personal representative is not liable to anyone for giving or failing to give
notice pursuant to this section.

History: 1953 Comp., § 32A-3-801, enacted by Laws 1975, ch. 257, § 3-801; 1993, ch.
174, § 71; repealed and reenacted by Laws 2016, ch. 69, § 715.

                                     ANNOTATIONS

Repeals and reenactments. — Laws 2016, ch. 69, § 715 repealed former 45-3-801
NMSA 1978, and enacted a new section, effective July 1, 2016.

Cross references. — For publication of notice of litigation in the district courts, see 14-
11-10 NMSA 1978.

The 1993 amendment, effective July 1, 1993, rewrote this section to the extent that a
detailed comparison is impracticable.

Constructive notice to known creditors insufficient. — With respect to known
creditors, tort claimants, and other interested persons, constructive notice in general
publication of hearing of final account and report of a decedent’s estate is insufficient to
meet minimum due process requirements. In re Estate of Engrock, 1977-NMSC-046,
565 P.2d 662.

In a probate matter, where tort claimants to decedents’ estates were not served with
notice of the hearing of the final account and report, except by publication in a
newspaper of limited circulation, despite the fact that the administrator of the estate
knew of the tort claimants and their addresses, claimants’ failure to object to the final
accounting did not bar their claims, because the administrator knew or should have
known that out-of-state tort claimants have very little chance of receiving notice through
general publication; the duty of an administrator, executor, or personal representative is
to preserve the assets of an estate for those legally entitled to that estate as determined
by court decree. In re Estate of Engrock, 1977-NMSC-046, 565 P.2d 662.

Law reviews. — For annual survey of New Mexico Law of Wills and Trusts, see 20
N.M.L. Rev. 439 (1990).

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 31 Am. Jur. 2d Executors and
Administrators § 596 et seq.
Validity of nonclaim statute or rule provision for notice by publication to claimants
against estate - post-1950 cases, 56 A.L.R.4th 458.

34 C.J.S. Executors and Administrators § 411.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 7 cases, 1981–2012 · leading case: Wagner v. Pruett (In re Vaughan Co., Realtors), 477 B.R. 206 (Bankr. D.N.M. 2012).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
Wagner v. Pruett (In re Vaughan Co., Realtors), 477 B.R. 206 (Bankr. D.N.M. 2012). · cites it 3× “ed on contract, tort, or other legal basis, if not barred earlier by another statute of limitations or non-claims statute, are barred against the estate, the personal representative and the heirs and devisees of the decedent unless presented within the earlier of the following:…”
Matter of Est. of Mayfield, 771 P.2d 179 (N.M. 1989). · cites it 2× “See NMSA 1978, § 45-3-801. In response, the claimant mailed to counsel for the co-personal representatives a letter setting forth his claim, which was received March 28, the last day for presentation of claims.”
Est. of Nauert v. Morgan-Nauert, 2012 NMCA 37 (N.M. Ct. App. 2012). · cites it 2× “See generally NMSA 1978, §§ 45-3-801 to -816 (1975, as amended through 2011).”
Garcia v. Underwriters at Lloyd's London, 2007 NMCA 042 (N.M. Ct. App. 2007). · cites it 2× “NMSA 1978, § 45-3-801(B) (1993) (“A personal representative .”
Bowman v. Butler, 648 P.2d 815 (N.M. Ct. App. 1982). “Defendant asserts that the notice to creditors, required by § 45-3-801, N.M.S.A. 1978, and first published on March 13, 1981 in the husband’s estate, had the effect of beginning the time period within which claims against his estate must be filed, and that plaintiff’s lawsuit,…”
Matter of Est. of Oney, 624 P.2d 1037 (N.M. Ct. App. 1981). “Administration proceedings were opened in December, 1978 and the first notice to creditors “to present their claims within two months after the date of the first publication of the notice or be forever barred” (§ 45-3-801, N.M.S.A.1978) was published on December 14, 1978.”
Garcia v. Underwriters at Lloyd's London, 156 P.3d 712 (N.M. Ct. App. 2007). · cites it 2× “NMSA 1978, § 45-3-801(B) (1993) ("A personal representative .”
N.M. Stat. § 45-3-801(B): 2 cases
Garcia v. Underwriters at Lloyd's London, 2007 NMCA 042 (N.M. Ct. App. 2007). “NMSA 1978, § 45-3-801(B) (1993) (“A personal representative .”
Garcia v. Underwriters at Lloyd's London, 156 P.3d 712 (N.M. Ct. App. 2007). “NMSA 1978, § 45-3-801(B) (1993) ("A personal representative .”
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