CHAPTER 9
REGISTER OF WILLS
Subchapter
A. Jurisdiction and Powers
B. Records and Certified Copies
Enactment. Chapter 9 was added June 30, 1972, P.L.508, No.164, effective July 1, 1972.
Cross References. Chapter 9 is referred to in section 14105 of Title 16 (Counties).
SUBCHAPTER A
JURISDICTION AND POWERS
Sec.
901. Register's jurisdiction.
902. Deputy register.
903. Witnesses; testimony.
904. Witness fees.
905. Enforcement of subpoenas, orders and costs.
906. Caveat.
907. Certification of records to court.
908. Appeals.
909. Bill of costs (Repealed).
910. Transmission of accounts to the court.
911. Attestation of certain applications and documents.
§ 901. Register's jurisdiction.
Within the county for which he has been elected or appointed, the register shall have
jurisdiction of the probate of wills, the grant of letters to a personal representative,
and any other matter as provided by law.
Cross References. Section 901 is referred to in section 3908 of this title.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
11
cases (
3 in the last 5 years), 1975–2024 · leading case:
Est. of Osborne, 525 A.2d 788 (Pa. 1987).
Est. of Osborne, 525 A.2d 788 (Pa. 1987).
· cites it 2× “As the majority recognizes, 20 Pa.C.S. § 901 provides that "The register shall have jurisdiction of .”
Commonwealth, Dep't of Health v. Hanes, 78 A.3d 676 (Pa. Commw. Ct. 2013).
“§ 711(9), “[t]he jurisdiction of the court of common pleas over the following shall be exercised through its orphans’ court division: .”
Yakowicz v. Costigan, 331 A.2d 238 (Pa. Commw. Ct. 1975).
“) Section 901 of the Code, 20 Pa. C.S. §901, states: “Within the county for which he has been elected or appointed, the register shall have jurisdiction of the probate of wills, the grant of letters to a personal representative, and any other matter as provided by law.”
Stanley, S. v. Hendershot, N. (Pa. Super. Ct. 2018).
“”); compare 20 Pa.C.S. § 901 (stating Register of Wills has “jurisdiction of the probate of wills, the grant of letters to a personal representative, and any other matter as provided by law”), with 20 Pa.”
Est. of Rose, J. Appeal of: Reilly, A. (Pa. Super. Ct. 2023).
“See 20 Pa.C.S. § 901. Issues of “distribution of the real and personal property of decedents’ estates” are within the jurisdiction of the Orphans’ Court.”
Est. of Felix, R. Appeal of: Heeter, C. (Pa. Super. Ct. 2023).
“” 20 Pa.C.S. § 901. When a dispute arises concerning probate of a will or grant of letters, the Register of Wills may certify the record to the orphans’ court for its determination.”
Barone v. Gordon (E.D. Pa. 2024).
“” 20 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 901 . The City of Philadelphia’s official website describes the Register of Wills as is an elected position that issues marriage licenses and keeps marriage records, probates wills, issues letters of administration when a Philadelphia resident dies without…”
In re Est. of Brooks, 31 Pa. D. & C.5th 237 (2013).
“20 Pa.C.S. §§ 901 & 711(12). The register also has the authority to revoke these letters of administration, while the orphans’ court has the subsequent power to remove an administrator for cause such as wasting or mismanaging the assets of an estate.”
Bowdoin v. Deckman, 997 F. Supp. 645 (E.D. Pa. 1998).
“The Register of Wills is a quasi-judicial officer, and his probate of a will and granting of letters testamentary to a personal representative are judicial acts.”
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.