Decedents' estates: administration: custodians of wills.

Existing law requires the custodian of a will, within 30 days after having knowledge of the death of the testator, unless a petition for probate of the will is earlier filed, to deliver the will to the clerk of the superior court of the county in which the estate of the decedent may be administered and to mail a copy of the will to the executor or a beneficiary, as specified. Existing law imposes a fee for delivering a will to the clerk of the superior court and requires reimbursement of this fee from the estate if an estate is commenced for the decedent named in the will. This bill would revise the above-described delivery provisions to require the original custodian of a will to either deliver the will to a named executor or beneficiary, as specified, or deliver the will to the clerk and mail a copy to the executor or beneficiary. The bill would require the named executor or beneficiary who receives a will from the original custodian with a specified notification to, within 30 days of receipt, deliver the will to the clerk and, if the recipient of the will is a beneficiary, mail a copy of the will to the named executor, if the whereabouts of the executor is known.