The short answer
A Pennsylvania estate account filed with the Orphans' Court has to follow the Supreme Court's Model Accounts, and it's filed together with a statewide form petition for adjudication. Rule 2.1 of the Orphans' Court Rules requires the Model Account format unless the court orders otherwise. Rule 2.4 requires the petition for adjudication/statement of proposed distribution, and its comment makes the Supreme Court's form petitions (OC-01 for a decedent's estate) the exclusive forms. Rule 2.5 sets out who gets notice and what it must say, and Rule 2.7 governs objections.
This guide walks through the Model Estate Account page by page, then covers the petition, notice and objections. For the overview, trusts outside court and principal and income, see our Pennsylvania formats page.
The official sources
| Source | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Pa. O.C. Rule 2.1 | Form and content of every Account |
| Pa. O.C. Rule 2.4 | Petition for adjudication/statement of proposed distribution; virtual representation |
| Pa. O.C. Rule 2.5 | Notice of the Account's filing |
| Pa. O.C. Rule 2.7 | Objections |
| Orphans' Court forms | OC-01 to OC-05 petitions, the Model Estate and Model Trust Accounts |
| 20 Pa.C.S. ch. 81 | Principal and income |
The Unified Judicial System's forms page lists five petitions for adjudication/statements of proposed distribution: OC-01 for a decedent's estate, OC-02 for a trust, OC-03 for a guardianship of an incapacitated person, OC-04 for a guardianship of a minor and OC-05 for a principal's estate under a power of attorney. It also posts the Model Estate Account, the Model Trust Account, a Model Charitable Remainder Unitrust Account, and the 1983 report of the National Fiduciary Accounting Standards project.
What Rule 2.1 requires of every Account
Rule 2.1(b) states the rules the Model Accounts illustrate:
- Dates, sources and recipients. Every receipt, disbursement and distribution is dated. Receipts show their source; disbursements and distributions show who was paid and why. Repeated items from the same source or to the same payee for the same purpose can be shown as a total with beginning and ending dates, instead of item by item.
- Principal and income separately, unless the court orders otherwise.
- Assets on hand at the closing date, itemized.
- Four required parts: a cover page; a summary page with page references; separate schedules, as needed, for receipts, gains and losses on sales or other dispositions, disbursements, distributions, investments made, changes in holdings and anything else appropriate; and signature pages signed by all the accountants and verified by at least one of them.
A personal representative's verification must state that the grant of letters and the first complete advertisement of it happened more than four months before the Account was filed, unless the court directed an earlier Account. Rule 2.1(c) makes the Uniform Fiduciary Accounting Principles, with their commentary and illustrations, "an elaboration" of the rule's requirements, so when the Model Account doesn't answer a question, those principles are the place to look. The rule's comment also notes that piggy-backed and limited Accounts are permitted under 20 Pa.C.S. §§762, 3501.2 and 7799.1.
The Model Estate Account, page by page
The Model Estate Account is a 15-page worked example: a first and final account by an executor for a fictional decedent. Following its order is the easiest way to satisfy Rule 2.1.
Cover page (page 1)
The cover names the county and the Orphans' Court Division, the file number, the title ("First and Final Account of … Executor") and the estate. Then it lists five dates: date of death, date of incapacity if any, date of the executor's appointment, date of the first complete advertisement, and the accounting period. A short "Purpose of Account" statement follows, saying the account is offered to acquaint interested parties with the transactions during the administration and that it should be carefully examined, with the name, address, phone number and Supreme Court ID of counsel to contact with questions.
Get the dates right. The appointment and advertisement dates feed the four-month statement in the verification, and the period has to match the schedules.
Summary of Account (page 2)
The summary is a single page with a page reference beside each line. The principal section runs:
- Receipts (pages 3–4)
- plus Net Gain on Sales or Disposition (page 5)
- less Disbursements, broken into Debts of Decedent, Funeral Expenses, Administration Expenses, Family Exemption, Federal, State & Local Taxes, and Fees and Commissions (pages 6–7)
- equals Balance before Distributions
- less Distributions to Beneficiaries (page 8)
- equals Principal Balance on Hand (page 9)
Under "For Information" it lists Investments Made (page 10) and Changes in Holdings (page 11). Those two schedules don't change the balance; they explain it.
The income section follows the same pattern: Receipts (page 12), less Disbursements (page 13), Balance before Distributions, less Distributions to Beneficiaries (page 14), Income Balance on Hand. The two balances add to the Combined Balance on Hand, and the Verification is page 15.
Principal receipts (pages 3–4)
Principal receipts start with the assets listed in the inventory, valued as of the date of death, grouped by type: real estate, common stocks, personal effects, mutual funds, cash in the decedent's possession and bank accounts. In the model, these total $146,278.46.
Two sections follow. Adjustments to Inventory corrects an inventory value after the fact. The model's example increases the value of 200 shares of stock after an audit of the federal estate tax return, showing what was "received as" and what it "should be," and carrying only the $4,000 difference. Subsequent Receipts lists principal that arrived after the inventory, each dated with its source: proceeds from selling subscription rights, a capital gains dividend received in cash, an income tax refund, and net proceeds sent by an ancillary administrator from another state.
Gains and losses (page 5)
Each sale or disposition shows the net proceeds against the acquisition value, the value the fiduciary carries the asset at (for inventoried assets, the date-of-death value). The difference goes in a gain or loss column, and only the net gain or loss carries to the summary. That's why principal receipts are recorded at inventory value, not sale price: the sale's gain or loss shows up here, once.
Disbursements of principal (pages 6–7)
Disbursements are grouped under the six headings from the summary. Each line is dated and names the payee and the purpose: the doctor and the pharmacy under debts of the decedent, the funeral home and the grave marker under funeral expenses, the Register of Wills probate fee and an appraisal under administration expenses, the family exemption to the surviving spouse.
The tax heading is the most detailed. It shows Pennsylvania inheritance tax paid through the Register of Wills, including a payment on account shown "less 5% discount," the final inheritance tax less the earlier payment, federal estate tax, the share of fiduciary income tax allocable to capital gains, and a federal estate tax deficiency with interest. Fees and commissions show a guardian ad litem fee, the executor's compensation and attorney's fees.
Distributions of principal (page 8)
Distributions are grouped by beneficiary and by the provision of the will that each satisfies. The model shows specific gifts of jewelry and furniture to the spouse under one article and the residence under another, each item carried at its inventory value.
Principal balance on hand (page 9)
Each asset still held at the closing date is listed in two columns: its value at the closing date and its fiduciary acquisition value. The acquisition value column is the one that ties to the summary. The current value is for the beneficiaries' information.
Investments made and changes in holdings (pages 10–11)
Investments made lists purchases during the period, such as Treasury bonds and bills. Changes in holdings tracks each security that changed in quantity or form: shares inventoried, additional shares from a 2-for-1 split (carried at zero), shares sold (reducing the carried value), and the resulting position. These pages let a reader follow every security from inventory to the closing balance.
The income schedules (pages 12–14)
Income receipts are grouped by source, with repeated dividends shown as totals across a date range, as Rule 2.1(b)(1) allows. The model nets accrued interest paid on a bond purchase against the interest received. Income disbursements include the income-allocable share of fiduciary income tax and the executor's commission on income. Distributions of income name each beneficiary, including a trustee receiving a share for a trust under the will.
Verification (page 15)
The executor declares under oath, subject to the penalties of 18 Pa.C.S. §4904 for unsworn falsification, that the duties were faithfully discharged; the Account is true and correct and discloses all significant transactions; all known claims are paid; there are no known outstanding claims; all taxes presently due are paid; and letters and the first complete advertisement occurred more than four months before filing.
The petition for adjudication
Under Rule 2.4, the petition for adjudication/statement of proposed distribution is filed with the clerk at the same time as the Account. The petition is where the accountant proposes how the balance on hand will be distributed, so the Account and the petition have to agree.
The rule's comment states that the Supreme Court's form petitions are the exclusive forms for adjudicating an Account: local courts and clerks must accept them and can't accept other forms once allowed by local rule. Local courts may still require cover sheets or checklists under Rule 1.8(d). For a decedent's estate, that's form OC-01. For an agent's account of a principal's estate under a power of attorney, it's OC-05.
At least one accountant signs and verifies the petition, and counsel signs it under Rule 3.12. The comment explains that counsel's signature attests that the petition accurately replicates the model form.
Virtual representation
If someone with an interest isn't receiving notice because another person will represent them, the petition must name that interested party and explain the arrangement. Under 20 Pa.C.S. §751(6), that means stating that the person isn't sui juris or is unborn, unknown or unascertained, and that the representative has a similar interest or is a sui juris living ancestor whose interest isn't adverse. In trust matters under 20 Pa.C.S. §§7721–7726, the petition explains how the representative can adequately represent the interest, states there's no disqualifying conflict, and either states the representative was told of the right to decline and didn't, or attaches the representative's signed consent.
Notice of the Account's filing
Who gets notice
No Account is confirmed unless the accountant gave written notice under Rule 2.5 to, as applicable:
- every unpaid claimant who gave written notice of a claim (or its equivalent under 20 Pa.C.S. §3384 or §7755);
- anyone else with a known asserted claim not shown as paid, or to be paid, in full;
- anyone known to have or claim an interest as a beneficiary, heir or next of kin, other than those whose legacies or claims are satisfied in full;
- the Attorney General where a charitable interest is involved (see Rule 4.4 and Rule 2.5(c)); and
- each co-fiduciary who doesn't join in the Account.
If a recipient has counsel who entered an appearance, notice goes to both counsel and the recipient.
Timing and delivery
Notice is mailed at least 20 days before the audit in counties with a separate Orphans' Court Division, or 20 days before the objection deadline elsewhere. A party living outside the United States has 60 days to object. A copy of the Account, the petition and any papers filed with them goes with the notice, with limited exceptions. If the audit is continued or the objection date is extended, a further notice goes out at least 20 days before the new date. All notices go by first-class mail, and a certificate of service with a copy of the notice is appended to the petition or filed with the clerk by the deadline.
What the notice must say
Rule 2.5(h) lists four items:
- the accountant's position on any known dispute or interpretation question, with a copy of the relevant instrument provision;
- the accountant's understanding of each contested or unpaid claim, whether it's admitted or contested and, if admitted, why it isn't being paid in full;
- if the Account and petition aren't enclosed, the compensation paid or payable to the accountant, all attorney's fees, and that copies are available on request; and
- in every case, a statement that anyone who objects must file written objections under Rule 2.7 by the audit date or the stated deadline, and that anyone who doesn't object is deemed to have approved the Account and the proposed distribution.
The rule's comment adds that a party may waive the written notice.
Objections
Under Rule 2.7, objections are filed with the clerk by the audit date (or the specified date in counties without an audit) and served on the accountant or the accountant's counsel and on each person who received notice. They're in writing, in consecutively numbered paragraphs, signed by counsel (or by all the objectors if unrepresented) and verified by at least one objector. Each objection must be specific as to description and amount, raise one issue of law or fact, and briefly give the reasons. The court can extend the time to object. Because silence counts as approval under the Rule 2.5(h)(4) statement, the account's clarity matters: a beneficiary who can follow each schedule is less likely to object to what they don't understand.
Preparing the Account, step by step
- Collect the inventory values and the dates for the cover page.
- Record every transaction from the statements, splitting principal from income under chapter 81 and the will.
- Build the principal receipts, including adjustments to inventory and subsequent receipts.
- Compute each gain or loss from acquisition value.
- Group disbursements under the six Model Account headings.
- List distributions by beneficiary and will provision.
- Prepare the balance on hand with both value columns, then investments made and changes in holdings.
- Tie the summary to every schedule and every account statement.
- Prepare the petition on the correct OC form, then the notice and certificate of service.
Common problems
- Principal receipts recorded at sale price rather than inventory value, which double-counts the gain.
- A stock split left out of changes in holdings, so share counts don't match.
- Income and principal tax shares not split, as the model does with fiduciary income tax.
- A verification filed before the four-month point without a court direction.
- Notice mailed fewer than 20 days before the audit or objection date.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use my own format instead of the Model Account?
Rule 2.1(a) requires the Model Account format unless the court orders otherwise in a particular matter.
Which petition form goes with an estate Account?
Form OC-01 for a decedent's estate, from the Unified Judicial System's Orphans' Court forms page.
Do I have to list every dividend separately?
No. Rule 2.1(b)(1) lets repeated receipts from one source be shown as a total with beginning and ending dates.
Can beneficiaries waive notice?
Yes. Rule 2.5's comment says a party may waive the written notice.
Does Summafolio file the Account or the petition?
No. Summafolio is software, not legal advice, and not a law firm. It prepares the Account's schedules and summary; it doesn't fill in the OC petition, send notice or file anything. Have counsel review before filing.
How Summafolio handles it
Summafolio arranges the Account in the Model Account order, keeps principal and income separate, includes gains and losses, investments made and changes in holdings, and adds a summary with page references. You complete the OC petition yourself. See the Pennsylvania formats page and a sample accounting.