Wisconsin Estate Planning Resources
In-depth guides covering Wisconsin probate laws, trust requirements, and estate planning strategies.
In-depth guides covering Wisconsin probate laws, trust requirements, and estate planning strategies.
Prepare the Wisconsin closing statement that closes the estate, with the state's closing instructions. Wis. Stat. §§ 865.16, 865.18, 865.21, 863.25, 863.27, 863.41, 863.47, 862.01.
Step 1 of 7
The person whose estate you are closing.
The county where the estate was administered (where letters were issued).
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In informal administration the personal representative closes the estate by filing a verified Personal Representative's Statement to Close Estate (Form PR-1816) with the probate registrar under Wis. Stat. § 865.16, certifying that notice to interested persons and creditors was given and the claim deadline has passed, that the estate is fully administered and distributed, and that a full written account was furnished to affected distributees; no hearing or court order is required and the appointment terminates by operation of law six months later. (Wis. Stat. §§ 865.16, 865.18, 865.21, 863.25, 863.27, 863.41, 863.47, 862.01.)
Not before the § 859.01 creditor-claim deadline (the court/registrar-set date, 3 to 4 months from the order) has passed prior to the date of the closing statement; the estate must also be fully administered and distributed (§ 865.16(1)(a), (b)). (Wis. Stat. §§ 865.16(1)(a), 859.01.)
Yes — an account of the administration is part of closing on this route (Wis. Stat. § 865.16(1)(c)).
Yes. Each person who received property signs a receipt (or the release or refunding bond the state's own form calls for), and the signed documents go with the closing statement (Wis. Stat. §§ 865.16, 865.18, 865.21, 863.25, 863.27, 863.41, 863.47, 862.01).
No court order closes this route — the closing runs by operation of law once the filing is made and the statutory period passes. On the default informal track the PR's appointment terminates by operation of law six months after the closing statement is filed if no proceeding involving the PR is then pending (§ 865.16(2)); claims against the PR for breach of fiduciary duty are barred unless commenced within six months after the filing of the closing statement (§ 865.18, fraud excepted). No discharge order is entered. On the formal track the PR is discharged by court order under § 863.47 once distributee receipts are filed. (Wis. Stat. §§ 865.16(2), 865.18, 863.47.)
Yes — Personal Representative's Statement to Close Estate (Informal Administration) (PR-1816), Estate Account (Informal Administration and Formal Administration) (PR-1814), Estate Receipt (Informal Administration or Formal Administration) (PR-1815), Petition for Final Judgment (Formal Administration) (PR-1910), Final Judgment (Formal Administration) (PR-1912). The official forms are print-only; this tool reproduces them with your entries in their blanks.
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