Chap. 293.—An ACT to Amend the First, Third, Fourth, Fifth, and Seventh
Sections of Chapter One Hundred and Thirty-Two of the Code of Eigh-
teen Hundred and Sixty, Relating to Fiduciaries, and Making other Pro-
visions Concerning the Same.

# Approved July 11, 1870.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly, That the first,
third, fourth, fifth, and seventh sections of chapter one hun-
dred and thirty-two of the Code of eighteen hundred and
sixty, be amended and re-enacted so as to read as follows:

Ҥ 1. The judge of each court having jurisdiction of the

probate of wills and granting administration in the state, shall

esignate one of its commissioners in chancery, who shall be
-known as the commissioner of accounts, and who, in addi-
tion to his other duties, shall have a general supervision of all
fiduciaries admitted to qualify in said court, and make all ex-
parte settlements of the accounts of such fiduciaries.

“The said commissioner of accounts shall obtain from the
clerk of his court, within twenty days after each term of the
court, a list of the fiduciaries authorized to act as such under
orders entered at the said term, and he shall keep a record
showing, in separate columns, 1, the name of every such fidu-
ciary; 2, the name of the decedent for whose estate he is rep-
resentative; 3, the name of the living person for whom he is
guardian, curator, or committee; 4, the penalty of his bond;

, the name of his sureties; and 6, the date of the order con-
ferring hisauthority. If afterwards such authority be revoked,
the clerk of the court shall certify the fact to the said com-
missioner, who shall enter in another column of his record
book the date of the order of revocation. Any clerk or com-
missioner failing to discharge such duty, or make such entry
for ten days after the time herein prescribed, shall, for every
such failure, forfeit twenty dollars.”

Ҥ 3. Every personal representative, guardian, curator, or
committee, shall, within four months after the date of the order
conferring his authority, or if his authority was derived before
the commencement of this act, and he shall not before have
made the return to the clerk required by the third section of
chapter one hundred and thirty-two of the Code of eighteen
hundred and sixty, shall, within four months after such com-
mencement, return to the said commissioner, in proper form,
an inventory of all the personal and real estate which has come
to his possession or knowledge, or which is under his manage-
ment or subject to his authority in his fiduciary character; and
shall, within four months after any other such estate shall come
to his possession or knowledge, return to the said commis-
sioner a further inventory thereof. If he fail to make the re-
turn herein first mentioned, the commissioner shall issue,
through the sheriff or other proper officer, a summons to such
fiduciary, requiring him to make such return; and if said re-
turn be not made within thirty days after the date of service
of the summons, the commissioner shall report the fact to his
court at the next succeeding term thereof. The court shall
immediately thereupon order a summons to the fiduciary, re-
quiring him to appear at the following term; and upon his
appearing, unless excused for sufficient reason, he shall be fined
by the court ina sum not less than fifty nor more than five
hundred dollars. And if the said fiduciary shall still fail to
make such return within auch time as the court may prescribe,
he shall be deemed guilty of contempt of court, and be dealt
with accordingly.

“The said commissioner shall inspect all inventories re-
turned to him by fiduciaries, see that they are in proper form,
and, within ten days after they are respectively received and
approved by him, deliver them to the clerk of the court, to be
recorded as required bylaw. The date of return of inventory
shall be entered by the commissioner in another column of his
record book. An appraisement made according to the one
hundred and thirtieth chapter of the Code of eighteen hun-
dred and sixty, shall be considered such an inventory as is re-
quired in this section, if it be signed by the personal repre-
sentative.

“4 4. Every such fiduciary shall, within four months after
selling any property as such, return to the said commissioner
an account of such sales; and when sale is made under any
deed of trust, otherwise than under a decree, there shall, within
four months after the sale, be returned by the trustee to the
commissioner of accounts of the court wherein the said deed
may have been first recorded, an inventory of the property
sold and an account of sales. The commissioner shall inspect
the same, see that it is made out in proper form, and deliver
it to the clerk, to be recorded as herein directed in regard to
inventories. Any trustee failing to comply with this section,
shall forfeit his commissions on such sales.

Ҥ 5. Every inventory and account of sales returned under
the two preceding sections, shall be recorded by the clerk.”

“$7. A statement of all money which any personal repre-
sentative, guardian, curator, or committee shall have received
or become chargeable with or have disbursed, within one year
from the date of the order conferring his authority, or within
any succeeding year, together with the vouchers for such dis-
bursements, shall, within six months after the end of every
such year, be exhibited by him before the commissioner of ac-
counts of the court wherein the order conferring his authority
was made, and a statement of all the money which any trustee,
acting under a trust created hereafter, shall have received or
become chargeable with, or have disbursed within a year from
the date of such trust, or within any succeeding year, together
with the vouchers for such disbursements, shall be laid by him
before the commissioner of accounts of the court wherein the
investment creating the trust was first recorded; and the said
commissioner shall state, settle, and report to the court an ac-
count of the transactions of any such fiduciary as now pro-
vided by law. If any such fiduciary fail to make such exhibit,
as herein required, the commissioner and the court shall pro-
ceed against him in like manner, and the court shall impose
the same penalty, unless such fiduciary is excused for sufficient
reason, as is herein provided in cases where fiduciaries fail to
return inventories of their respective estates. The commis-
sioner shall enter in his record book, in a separate column, the
date of each settlement of fiduciary accounts made by him.”

2. The clerk of each court shall furnish to the commissioner
of accounts of said court, a suitable record book, and other
such books as may from time to time be needed, which shall
be paid for as other books used for public records; and when-
ever a commissioner shall cease to act as such, the said books
shall be transmitted to his successor.

3. The costs of all proceedings against fiduciaries, failing to
make the returns and exhibits herein required, shall be paid by
them personally, and they shall receive no allowance for the
same in the settlement of their accounts.

4. The fees of commissioners of accounts, for the special
duties hereinbefore imposed upon them, shall be such as the
court, by which the said commissioners were appointed, may
from time to time prescribe.

5. If all the settlements of fiduciaries qualifying in any one
court cannot be conveniently made by the commissioner of
accounts, as required in the foregoing sections, the court may
authorize and require one or more of its other commissioners
in chancery to aid said commissioner in making such settle-
ments.

6. This act shall be in force from and after the first day of
October, eighteen hundred and seventy.