Rhode Island § 33-11-44 - Claims Against Decedents’ Estates

§ 33-11-44. Claims based on action commenced against decedent before death.

Any action or suit brought against a decedent in his or her lifetime, which survives, and in which the personal representative shall be notified to take upon itself the defense as provided in § 33-18-8, and any action or suit, upon any cause of action originating in the lifetime of the decedent and which survives, brought against the personal representative before the estate has been represented insolvent, shall not abate, but may be prosecuted to final judgment against the estate. Those claims may be presented in the office of the probate clerk as provided in §§ 33-11-4 and 33-11-5, but need not be proved before the probate court, or the personal representative may be joined as a defendant with notice to the probate court and served in the pending action. Execution upon the judgment in the case shall be stayed. If the estate is, or shall be represented insolvent, the amount of the judgment shall be included in or added as a claim against the estate, subject to the provisions of § 33-11-32, but shall not be subject to appeal; and if the estate is solvent, execution may issue at any time after claims of the same class are payable.