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Chapter 8 (Rules 4.39 to 4.47): judicial approval (Rule 4.39); exclusive listings for the sale of property (Rule 4.40); tangible personal property (Rule 4.41; Probate Code Sections 10250 - 10264); securities (Rule 4.42); condominiums, community or cooperative apartments (Rule 4.43); publication of notice of intention to sell real property (Rule 4.44); the return of private sale (Rule 4.45); and broker's commissions, including in overbid situations (Rules 4.46 and 4.47).
California > First Appellate District > San Mateo County > Superior Court of California, County of San Mateo
CHAPTER 8. SALES I. GENERAL INFORMATION Rule 4.39 Judicial Approval For estates being administered pursuant to the I.A.E.A., judicial approval of sales or exchanges of real or personal property is no longer required (Sections 10500 - 10503). For estates not being administered pursuant to the I.A.E.A., confirmations of sales are still required. If the personal representative of an estate being administered pursuant to I.A.E.A elects to follow Court supervised procedures, then the sale of real property shall be preceded by statutory notice of sale pursuant to Sections 10300, et seq. (Adopted, effective July 1, 1996; Amended, effective January 1, 2000) Rule 4.40 Exclusive Listings for Sale of Property Section 10150 is authority for a personal representative acting under I.A.E.A. to enter into an exclusive agreement to sell real property without prior court approval. At the hearing on confirmation of sale, the Court will determine the commission (without regard to the terms of the exclusive agreement) and the allocation of it between the brokers involved in the sales. (Adopted, effective July 1, 1996) II. SALES OF PERSONAL PROPERTY Rule 4.41 Tangible Personal Property (Probate Code Sections 10250 - 10264) A. Necessity for appraisal: For estates subject to the I.A.E.A., sales of personal property may be made without Court approval. In all other cases the sale of tangible personal property will ordinarily not be approved unless the property has been appraised. For this purpose, a partial inventory and appraisement may be filed or a letter appraisal may be obtained from the appointed probate referee. B. Commissions: Commissions on sales of tangible personal property will be allowed only to individuals holding a license authorizing them to deal in the type of property involved. A commission will be allowed on the original bid only when the commission is requested in the return of sale. When there is an overbid in court, a commission may be allowed to the successful broker, and, if the original bid was subject to a commission, apportionment between the brokers will be made according to the same rules as prescribed for real estate sales. The amount of the commission is within the Court's discretion and will not ordinarily exceed a total of 5 percent of the sale price. (Adopted, effective July 1, 1996) Rule 4.42 Securities Where proceeding under Section 10200, the petition for authority to sell must set forth a minimum sales price as to all securities except those listed on an established exchange. The minimum price must be a recent market quotation from the over-the-counter market, or if there is no recent market quotation available or the securities are "closely held," the petition must set forth the basis for fixing the minimum sales price. (Adopted, effective July 1, 1996) Rule 4.43 Condominiums, Community or Cooperative Apartments A condominium is an interest in real property and must be sold as such, unless it is held as a limited partnership. A community or cooperative apartment is personal property and must be sold as such. However, the overbid on such assets will be computed on the same basis as in sales of real property, and brokers' commissions will be allowed on the same basis as in sales of real property. The sale of a cooperative apartment will not be confirmed subject to the purchaser later obtaining the acceptance of a Board of Directors or other governing body; therefore, the prospective purchaser should obtain acceptance before seeking court confirmation. (Adopted, effective July 1, 1996) III. RETURN OF SALES OF REAL PROPERTY Rule 4.44 Publication of Notice of Intention to Sell Real Property A. Procedure: Notice shall be published (pursuant to section 6063 (a) of the Government Code unless the Court grants an order shortening time) in all decedents' estates, except those in which there is a power of sale in the will, or those estates administered with full authority under the I.A.E.A. If the personal representative of the estate being administered under I.A.E.A. elects to follow Court supervised procedures, then the sale shall be preceded by statutory notice of sale pursuant to Section 10300 et seq. In all guardianships, conservatorships and court-supervised trusts except those in which the power of sale has been previously granted by the Court the sale shall be preceded by statutory notice of sale. Notice of sale shall be published in a newspaper published in the county in which the real property lies. If an executor or administrator having power of sale publishes a notice of sale of the real property and proceeds with the sale thereunder, and later a technical defect appears, the defect cannot be cured by exercising the executor's or administrator's power of sale. The executor or administrator must publish a new notice. B. Contents of Notice: In addition to a legal description of the property, the notice should contain the street address or other common designation of the property, when available. If an exclusive listing has been given, the notice should so state. If the property is to be sold subject to an encumbrance, the notice should so state. If property is to be sold for cash only, the notice must so state. If the estate would prefer all cash but will accept part cash and part credit, the notice should include the following language: "All cash, or part cash and part credit, the terms and conditions of credit as are acceptable to the fiduciary and the Court. Effect of Notice: Any offer accepted and returned to court for confirmation cannot be at variance with the terms of sale contained in the notice. (Adopted, effective July 1, 1996; Amended, effective January 1, 2000) Rule 4.45 Return of Private Sale A. Appraisal and Reappraisal: In order for a private sale to be confirmed, there must be on file an appraisal of the property or a reappraisal for purposes of sale if the decedent's death or guardian's or conservator's appointment occurred more than one year before the date of the private sale. The appraisal or reappraisal should be on file prior to the hearing date on the return or may be presented at the hearing. B. Market Exposure of Property: Whenever it is brought to the attention of the Court that the fiduciary has denied bona fide prospective buyers or their brokers a reasonable opportunity to inspect the property, the returned sale will not be confirmed, and the sale will be continued to allow inspection. C. Second Deeds of Trust: The Court will approve the taking of a promissory note secured by a junior deed of trust upon a showing that it serves the best interests of the estate. D. Hearing on Return of Sale and Overbid: Counsel must be prepared to state the minimum necessary overbid, computed at the rate of 10 percent of the first $10,000, and 5 percent on the balance of the sale price. Counsel should inform the original purchaser or his agent of the time and place of hearing and advise that they be in court for the hearing. E. Application of Statutory Formula re Overbid: The Court must consider not only whether the bid is arithmetically the highest, but also whether it is best. Counsel or the parties involved should be prepared with factual information that will aid the Court in making this determination. F. Earnest Money Deposit by Bidder: No bid for the purchase of real property will be acceptable unless accompanied by a minimum deposit of 10% of the amount bid in cash or its equivalent. When an overbid is made in court, the over bidder must submit 10% of his overbid in cash or its equivalent at the time of the hearing on the return of sale. G. Overbid Form: The Courtroom Clerk will give counsel a form to be completed on the overbid. This form is to be returned to the Clerk before the end of that morning's probate hearings. H. Bond: The petition for confirmation of sale of real estate should set forth the amount of the bond in force at the time of sale and the amount of property in the estate which should be covered by bond. If no additional bond is required, or if bond is waived, that fact should be alleged. I. Absence of Attorney for Estate at Confirmation Hearing: If someone is present who wishes to overbid and the estate's attorney is absent from the hearing, the hearing will be continued for one week, except where the fiduciary is present and requests that the sale proceed without the attorney. (Adopted, effective July 1, 1996) Rule 4.46 Broker's Commissions A. Improved Property: The Court will ordinarily allow a broker's commission not to exceed 6 percent of the first $200,000, 5 percent of the next $300,000, and 4 percent of the balance of the sale price. The parties may agree to a lesser percentage. B. Unimproved Property: The Court will ordinarily allow a broker's commission not to exceed 10 percent of the first $100,000, 8 percent of the next $200,000, and 5 percent of the balance of the sale price. In the Court's discretion, a flat 10 percent may be allowed. In each instance, the Court will determine what is "unimproved" real property. C. Order Must Show Commission Allocation: The order confirming sale must show the total commissions allowed and any allocation agreed on between brokers. (For examples of allocation of commissions, see Appendix A.) D. Commission Rates at Property Situs Will Apply: Where the property is not located in San Mateo County, the Court will allow commissions based on the San Mateo County Probate Court schedules unless it is shown that a larger commission would be allowed based on the schedule in effect in the Probate Court of the County in which the property is located. E. Broker Bidding for Own Account not Entitled to a Commission: A broker bidding for his own account is not entitled to receive or share in a commission. Estate of Toy 1977, 72 Cal. App. 3d 392. (Adopted, effective July 1, 1996) Rule 4.47 Broker's Commissions in Overbid Situations A. Original Bidder and/or over bidder represented by Broker: Commissions are governed by Probate Code Sections 10161 through 10166. See also the Law Revision Comments following those sections. B. Original Bidder as over bidder: Once a net bid has been overbid in court, the original bidder may elect to be represented by a broker in further bidding. (Adopted, effective July 1, 1996)
CHAPTER 8. SALES I. GENERAL INFORMATION Rule 4.39 Judicial Approval For estates being administered pursuant to the I.A.E.A., judicial approval of sales or exchanges of real or personal property is no longer required (Sections 10500 - 10503). For estates not being administered pursuant to the I.A.E.A., confirmations of sales are still required. If the personal representative of an estate being admi
Reviewer note: Composed 2026-10-08 (California T4 San Mateo build 2026-10-08) from BenchPath custody ca/t4/ca-san-mateo/docs/local-rules/localrules.pdf (the court's rule book, “Local Court Rules As Amended Effective July 1, 2026”, as fetched 2026-10-08; 2288146 bytes, sha256 339b824c762c382bbe9451825137a370ed61c341ed5b7f53b448b46bb3dcca2b; 234 pages) with the shared verbatim composer (v2 reflow) over the Introduction and Divisions I to XI (PDF pages 33 to 210, each division's contents pages left out): each page's running header (“Superior Court of California, County of San Mateo”), its running label (the division's label, the page number and the page's revision date) and each division's “Return to Table of Contents” link box removed as chrome; lines reflowed into the rules' paragraphs; seven rule citations the reflow broke at a line end rejoined, the Court Schedule of Attorney Fees (Rule 6.1.1; a table printed without rules) set one printed row a line, and sixteen paragraph and heading breaks the reflow ran together set back - among them Division III's headings 3.8, 3.9 and 3.13, printed without the word “Rule” (24 whitespace-only fixes); Divisions II, IV and VI cut at their chapter headings, which reassemble them (Division II's Chapter 3 is “[RESERVED]”: its heading alone, no card); no struck character (the strike report); proof 1 (whitespace-only) and proof 2 (same character multiset as the text layer minus chrome) pass. The cover, the table of contents, the filing instructions, the List of Currently Effective Rules, the divisions' contents pages, Attachment I (the local court forms list) and the index belong to no chapter.
Division XI: information forms for data processing (Rule 11.2); required action - action taken on all calendared cases and a future date always set (Rule 11.19); and pro tem judges - an attorney named as a plaintiff in a civil or small claims case may not sit as a judge pro-tem during the case or within six months following its resolution, nor one named as a defendant in two or more such cases (Rule 11.22). Rules 11.1, 11.3 to 11.5, 11.7 to 11.18, 11.20 and 11.21 are repealed, and Rule 11.6 (voluntary arbitration; see Local Rule 10.2) was repealed and renumbered.
Duval County's indigent-defense and magistration rules under the Texas Fair Defense Act (S.B. 7): who may be booked into the county jail and on what paper; arrest-case numbering; presentment to a magistrate within 48 hours (art. 15.16); the magistrate's warnings, counsel inquiry, interpreter duty, indigence determination and appointment of counsel within 24 hours of a request; the alternative appointment plan under art. 26.04(g)-(h) with annual applications, seven attorney categories (capital, first and second degree, third degree/state jail/misdemeanor, competency, appeals, post-conviction, extradition), CLE and experience standards, random rotation within each category, written acceptance within 48 hours, first contact by the end of the next working day, replacement and suspension of counsel, fee applications within five days of completing services and the compensation attachment ($500 pleas; $175/$150 hourly; $1,400 per jury-trial day; appellate caps); bail schedules by offense class with a personal bond office (fee $20 or 3%), pre-trial supervision and revocation hearings within two working days; arraignment settings and notice; repeal of conflicting rules.