Discharge of a personal representative generally relates to a court order releasing the representative from any further duties. As noted in, for example, Indiana Code Title 29, Section 13, when a personal representative is discharged, the personal representative is released from their duties. The discharge operates as a bar to any suits against the personal representative (and their sureties) except for suits that are based on mistake, fraud, and willful misconduct on the part of the personal representative. However, these suits must be commenced within one year from the date of the discharge.
Similarly, in Nebraska, according to Mach v. Schmer, and the Nebraska Revised Statute 30-2486, you may not present a claim against an estate by bringing a suit “against a former personal representative who has been discharged and whose appointment has been terminated.” However, according to the exception in section 30-24,119 of the probate code, you may institute a proceeding against a personal representative after the personal representative has been discharged if the suit is for breach of fiduciary duty.
[Last updated in September of 2022 by the Wex Definitions Team]