72-15-102. When public administrator to take charge of estate. (1) Every public administrator duly elected, commissioned, and qualified must take charge of estates of persons dying within his county as follows:
     (a) of estates of decedents for which no administrators are appointed and which, in consequence thereof, are being wasted, uncared for, or lost;
     (b) of estates of decedents who have no known heirs;
     (c) of estates ordered into his hands by the court; and
     (d) of estates upon which letters of administration have been issued to him by the court.
     (2) However, it shall be unlawful for any public administrator of any county of the state of Montana to file any petition for the issuance to him as such public administrator of letters of administration of the estate of any decedent until at least 30 days have elapsed from the day of the death of any such decedent, unless it is affirmatively shown and made to appear in and by any such petition for letters of administration that there are no known heirs of such decedent or that all of the known heirs of such decedent reside outside of the state of Montana and that the estate of such decedent consists of property of such a nature that it will be lost, wasted, or depreciated in value unless cared for and administered upon at once.

     History: En. Sec. 333, p. 326, L. 1877; re-en. Sec. 333, 2nd Div. Rev. Stat. 1879; re-en. Sec. 333, 2nd Div. Comp. Stat. 1887; re-en. Sec. 4510, Pol. C. 1895; re-en. Sec. 3073, Rev. C. 1907; re-en. Sec. 9990, R.C.M. 1921; Cal. C. Civ. Proc. Sec. 1726; re-en. Sec. 9990, R.C.M. 1935; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 77, L. 1941; R.C.M. 1947, 91-601.