Florida Statute 733.702
“Limitations on presentation of claims”
What it means
Once the personal representative publishes the notice to creditors, §733.702 starts the clock: a claim against the estate is barred unless filed by the later of 3 months after first publication or, for a creditor who had to be served directly, 30 days after service. The rule reaches almost everything the decedent owed — even claims that are unmatured, contingent, or unliquidated.
A late claimant has one narrow door: the court may extend the deadline, but only on fraud, estoppel, or insufficient notice. Mortgages and other liens, casualty-insurance claims up to policy limits, and counterclaims sit outside the bar — and nothing in this section stretches §733.710's two-year limit.
- Deadline: the later of 3 months after first publication of the notice to creditors or 30 days after service on a creditor required to be served.
- Covers claims arising in contract, tort, or otherwise — even if unmatured, contingent, or unliquidated.
- Extensions require fraud, estoppel, or insufficient notice; a creditor served with a demand to file has 30 days to petition.
- Does not bar lien enforcement, liability actions to casualty-insurance limits, or cross-claims and counterclaims.
- Nothing in §733.702 extends the absolute 2-year bar in §733.710.
How it plays out
Two calls we get weekly: a creditor who learned of the death late, and a family wanting to distribute early. For creditors, we pull the first-publication date before anything else — the window is unforgiving and courts apply it strictly. For personal representatives, we hold distributions until the window closes and every filed claim is resolved, because paying beneficiaries with a live claim outstanding is how a PR becomes personally liable.
Where this shows up
Pages on this site where § 733.702 does real work: