§ 1413 Revocation of letters upon proof of will

When someone dies, the court sometimes appoints a person to temporarily handle the estate before all the paperwork is settled. This can happen through temporary letters, preliminary letters, or letters based on the belief that the person died without a will. But sometimes a will shows up later, or a newer will is found and gets approved by the court.

When that happens, the court must cancel the earlier appointment. The judge's decision to approve the will automatically cancels the old letters that were given out before. This makes sure that whoever the will actually names to handle the estate is the person with legal authority, not someone who was appointed under the old assumption that there was no will (or an earlier version of it).

In short, finding or approving a will changes things. The court will pull back any authority it gave out earlier and hand it to the right person under the new or newly found will.