HRS §560:3-104

When you can make a claim against a dead person's estate

Read the official text at capitol.hawaii.gov ↗

You cannot start or restart a lawsuit to collect a debt from a dead person's estate until a personal representative is appointed. After that, you must follow the rules in this law. After the estate is distributed, you may only collect from the people who got the property or from the former representative if they are personally responsible. This does not apply to secured creditors enforcing their security, except for a deficiency judgment.

beneficiariescourtscreditorsheirspersonal representatives

The statute, as written — Claims against decedent; necessity of administration

A copy, taken August 20, 2026. The version published by the Legislature is the one that governs, and it may have changed since. Check it before relying on anything here.

No proceeding to enforce a claim against the estate of a decedent or the decedent's successors may be revived or commenced before the appointment of a personal representative. After the appointment and until distribution, all proceedings and actions to enforce a claim against the estate are governed by the procedure prescribed by this article. After distribution, a creditor whose claim has not been barred may recover from the distributees as provided in section 560:3-1004 or from a former personal representative individually liable as provided in section 560:3-1005. This section has no application to a proceeding by a secured creditor of the decedent to enforce the creditor's right to the creditor's security except as to any deficiency judgment which might be sought therein.

Read the official text at capitol.hawaii.gov ↗as published Jan 6, 2026our copy taken Aug 20, 2026

Sections this one refers to

§560:3-1004 When estate money has already been handed out, who pays a late claim?

LawTrove is not legal advice. The summary above is a computer-generated restatement — the authoritative text is the official version linked above.