What it means
Rule 5.400 closes a Florida estate. A personal representative who has completed administration except for distribution files a final accounting and a petition for discharge with a plan of distribution — stating the estate is fully administered, claims and taxes are resolved, and disclosing all compensation paid or proposed.
The deadline is 12 months after letters issue — or, for an estate filing a federal estate tax return, 12 months from the return's due date — extendable by the court for cause after notice. Interested persons get 30 days from service to object to the accounting, the compensation, or the plan; the objector then has 90 days to serve a notice of hearing or the objection is abandoned.
- Due within 12 months after letters issue — or within 12 months of the federal estate tax return's due date for estates that must file one.
- Extensions require cause shown after notice; the motion must state the estate's status and the reason more time is needed.
- The petition discloses compensation paid or proposed for the personal representative, attorneys, accountants, appraisers, and other agents — and how it was determined.
- Objections to the accounting, compensation, or plan are due within 30 days of service of the last of the two documents.
- An objection is abandoned unless a notice of hearing is served within 90 days of filing it; objections must be written and particular.
- After proper distribution, the court discharges the personal representative and releases the surety on any bond.
How it plays out
The 12-month mark is the deadline clients feel — courts watch it, and when administration genuinely needs longer, we move to extend before the deadline rather than explain after it. The other number that matters is 30 days: once the final accounting and petition are served, a beneficiary who sits on an objection loses it. Discharge is the finish line — it ends the personal representative's authority and exposure, which is why we do not call an estate done until the order is signed and the bond released.