Massachusetts Form MPC 185 is the official Bond form filed in the Probate and Family Court by every personal representative, guardian, conservator, voluntary administrator, or trustee who must guarantee faithful performance of fiduciary duties under the Massachusetts Uniform Probate Code. The form locks in a penal sum, names the principal and any sureties, and gives the court the leverage to recover money if the fiduciary mishandles estate or protected-person assets.
Roughly 25,000 probate cases are opened each year in Massachusetts, and Probate and Family Court staff confirm that bond defects are among the top three reasons new fiduciaries get a Notice of Informal Action or a delay letter from the Probate and Family Court. Filing MPC 185 wrong can stall the issuance of Letters under MPC 851, block access to bank accounts, and personally expose you to surcharge.
- 📝 How to complete every box, line, and signature block on MPC 185 with the exact entries the court accepts
- 💰 How to set the penal sum correctly, including when to use sureties and when “without sureties” is allowed
- 🧾 Three full filled-out examples — a surviving spouse, a conservator, and a successor trustee — walked field by field
- ⚖️ The statutes, rules, and companion forms (MPC 150, MPC 470, MPC 801, MPC 851) that interact with the bond
- 🚫 The 10 most common mistakes filers make on MPC 185 and the precise consequence of each one
What MPC 185 Is and Who Must File It
Form MPC 185 is the standardized Bond form published by the Massachusetts Probate and Family Court under Probate Court Rule 7 and the bonding provisions of G.L. c. 190B, §§ 3-603 through 3-606. Its purpose is to obligate the fiduciary — the principal — and any sureties to pay a sum of money to the court if the fiduciary fails to perform faithfully, account properly, or distribute assets correctly. The current revision date is printed in the bottom-left corner of the form; check that you are using the most recent version posted on Mass.gov before signing.
Anyone the court appoints to handle someone else’s money or property in a Probate and Family Court case files MPC 185. That includes personal representatives in both informal and formal probate, voluntary personal representatives in small estates, guardians of minors, guardians of incapacitated adults, conservators of protected persons, and trustees subject to court supervision under G.L. c. 203E. Special personal representatives appointed under § 3-614 also use the form.
The form runs a single page but functions as three documents in one. It identifies the case (county, docket, decedent or protected person), states the penal sum and the conditions of the bond, and captures the signatures of the principal and any sureties. The court clerk reviews it, the Register of Probate dockets it, and the judge or magistrate approves it before Letters issue.
If you are a voluntary personal representative under § 3-1201 (estates of $25,000 or less plus one motor vehicle), you may not need MPC 185 at all — you file MPC 170 instead. But the moment a court appointment is requested, MPC 185 attaches.
Before You Start: Documents and Information You Need
Gathering the right paperwork before you open MPC 185 prevents the back-and-forth that delays Letters by weeks. The Probate and Family Court will not issue Letters until the bond is on file, approved, and any required sureties have signed. Below is the pre-filing checklist you should complete first.
- Death certificate or medical certificate. For a decedent’s estate you need a certified death certificate from the Massachusetts Registry of Vital Records; for a guardianship or conservatorship you need the MPC 400 Medical Certificate signed within 30 days of filing. Without it the court cannot confirm jurisdiction and your bond sits unapproved.
- Inventory estimate. You need a good-faith estimate of the gross value of probate assets — bank balances, brokerage accounts, real estate equity, vehicles, personal property — so you can set the penal sum. An undervalued penal sum is grounds for a G.L. c. 190B § 3-606 increase order.
- Will, if any. If the will explicitly excuses bond (“no surety shall be required of my executor”), attach a copy of the relevant page; that language unlocks the “without sureties” box for personal representatives.
- Names and addresses of all interested persons. You need them for the assent forms (MPC 455) that often accompany “without sureties” requests.
- Surety information, if any. If you use a corporate surety, you need the surety’s full legal name, NAIC number, Massachusetts certificate of authority, the bond’s premium amount, and the power of attorney appointing the local agent.
- Two personal sureties (only if applicable). Each personal surety must be a Massachusetts resident with assets in Massachusetts at least equal to the penal sum, and each must complete MPC 801 Bond — Sureties with current asset disclosures.
- Military affidavit. If any interested person could be on active duty, prepare MPC 470 Military Affidavit — the bond will not be approved without it in formal cases.
- Filing fee and surcharge. Probate and Family Court fees are set in the Uniform Schedule of Fees; informal probate is $375 plus the $15 surcharge plus the $7.50 Letters fee, and you should bring a check or card.
- Photo ID and notary access. The principal’s signature must be acknowledged before a notary or court clerk; if you sign at the Registry, the Register can take the acknowledgment for free.
- Case caption details. Have the decedent’s full legal name, date of death, and county of domicile ready, because the caption on MPC 185 must match the MPC 150 Petition for Formal Probate or MPC 160 Petition for Informal Probate to the letter.
Missing any one of these items rarely sinks a filing on its own, but two missing items almost always trigger a Notice of Informal Action asking you to refile.
Where to Get the Form and How to Access It
MPC 185 is free, public-domain, and downloadable from the Probate and Family Court forms library on Mass.gov. Always download the version directly from Mass.gov, never a third-party copy, because old revisions still circulate online and Registers reject obsolete versions on sight. The PDF is fillable in Adobe Acrobat Reader, and you can type directly into the boxes before printing for signature.
You can also pick up a paper copy at any of the 14 county Registries of Probate. The Suffolk Registry, Middlesex Registry, and Worcester Registry are the busiest, and clerks at each location keep stacks of MPC 185 at the front counter along with MPC 150, MPC 160, and MPC 851.
E-filing through Tyler Technologies’ eFileMA portal is available for most probate matters statewide. When you e-file the underlying petition, the system will prompt you to upload MPC 185 as a separate PDF in the “Bond” envelope category. Wet-ink signatures are still required because the bond is a contract; you sign on paper, scan, then upload.
If you cannot access the internet, the court’s Court Service Centers at Boston, Brockton, Greenfield, Lawrence, Springfield, and Worcester will print and walk you through the form for free. Bring photo ID and your case caption details so the staff can populate the header correctly.
Step-by-Step: How to Fill Out Massachusetts Form MPC 185 Line by Line
The form is laid out top to bottom in eight functional zones: the case caption, the bond-type checkbox, the principal block, the conditions paragraph, the penal sum, the sureties block, the signatures, and the approval block. Walk through them in order. Numbering below tracks the visible field labels printed on the current revision of MPC 185.
Field 1: Commonwealth of Massachusetts / The Trial Court Header
The top banner reads “Commonwealth of Massachusetts — The Trial Court — Probate and Family Court Department.” You do not write here, but you must confirm the pre-printed text matches the most recent revision before you sign. Suffolk Probate and Family Court fills in for “Division” only if your case is in Suffolk County.
To answer this field, simply verify that you downloaded the form from Mass.gov’s forms library and that the bottom corner shows the latest revision code (for example, MPC 185 (Rev. 7/12) or whatever revision is currently posted). For example, Maria Lopez downloads MPC 185 on a Tuesday morning, sees the revision code matches the version on Mass.gov, and proceeds.
A nuance arises if you copy the form from an attorney’s office shelf — older revisions still float around, and the field labels shifted slightly between revisions. The most common mistake here is filing an outdated version, which leads the Register to reject the bond and re-issue a Notice of Informal Action requiring resubmission on the current form. A common misconception is that “the form is the form,” but the Register’s office cross-checks the revision date and will not docket a stale version.
Field 2: Division (County)
Just under the banner you write the Division — the county Probate and Family Court where you are filing. Every Massachusetts probate case must be filed in the county where the decedent was domiciled at death, or where the protected person resides for guardianship and conservatorship cases under G.L. c. 190B § 3-201.
Type or print the county name in all caps, no abbreviations: MIDDLESEX, SUFFOLK, WORCESTER. For example, Carlos Reyes, whose mother died domiciled in Cambridge, writes MIDDLESEX in this box.
A nuance is the dual-county death — if the decedent moved into a nursing home in another county shortly before death, domicile usually stays with the long-term home county, not the nursing-home county. The common mistake is filing in the county of death rather than domicile, which causes the case to be transferred and the bond to be redocketed, costing weeks. A misconception is that “any Massachusetts county will do” — venue is mandatory under § 3-201, not optional.
Field 3: Docket No.
The Docket No. field sits in the upper right and identifies the case once filed. If you are filing the bond with the original petition, leave this blank — the Register assigns the docket number when you file. If you are filing MPC 185 later (for example, after an order increasing the penal sum), you must enter the existing docket number exactly as it appears on the petition.
Format the docket number as the Register issued it, including the county prefix and year: MI24P1234EA (Middlesex 2024 Probate, case 1234, Estate Administration). For example, Janet Pham refiles a higher bond after the judge orders a penal sum increase and writes NO24P0987EA in the docket box.
The nuance is the “EA” vs. “GD” vs. “CA” suffix — EA means Estate Administration, GD means Guardianship, CA means Conservatorship. The common mistake is writing only the numeric portion without the suffix, which causes the docket clerk to reject the bond as unmatched. A misconception is that the docket number on the will or petition cover sheet is the same as the court’s official docket — only the Register-assigned number is.
Field 4: Estate of / Name of Protected Person
You write the full legal name of the decedent, ward, protected person, or trust subject. Use the name exactly as it appears on the death certificate or medical certificate, including any middle name, suffix, or hyphen. Mismatches between MPC 185 and the underlying MPC 150 or MPC 160 cause automatic rejections.
Format: full first, middle, last, suffix in mixed case — Estate of Robert J. McAllister, Jr. For example, Aisha Bennett writes Estate of Marvin T. Bennett because the death certificate spells it that way.
The nuance is the “also known as” issue — if the decedent owned property under a maiden name or alternate spelling, you note it as Estate of Margaret O’Connell, also known as Margaret O’Connell-Smith, matching the AKA on the petition. The common mistake is shortening the name (writing Bob McAllister instead of Robert J. McAllister, Jr.), which forces the Register to send the bond back for correction. A misconception is that nicknames are interchangeable — they are not, because banks and the Department of Revenue match probate records character-for-character.
Field 5: Bond Type Checkboxes — With Sureties / Without Sureties
The middle of the form has two checkboxes that drive everything else: with sureties or without sureties. The choice depends on the underlying authority — the will, the G.L. c. 190B § 3-603 statutory rule, or a court order.
Check exactly one box. Without sureties is permitted when the will waives bond, when all heirs or devisees assent in writing on MPC 455, or when the court orders it after a § 3-603 hearing. With sureties is the default for guardianship, conservatorship, formal probate without will-waiver, and any case the judge specifies. For example, Marcus Hill checks without sureties because his father’s will explicitly states “my executor shall serve without surety.”
The nuance is partial assents — if even one interested person fails to assent, you cannot check without sureties and must instead check with sureties and produce them. The common mistake is checking without sureties based on assumption rather than written authority, which the Register flags immediately when assents are missing. A misconception is that informal probate automatically waives sureties — it does not; you still need a will waiver or full assents.
Field 6: Principal — Name and Capacity
The Principal is you, the fiduciary, signing as the obligated party. You write your full legal name and your fiduciary capacity (Personal Representative, Special Personal Representative, Guardian, Conservator, Trustee).
Format: Maria Lopez, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Robert J. McAllister, Jr. For example, Janet Pham writes Janet Pham, as Conservator of the Property of Henry Pham in this block.
The nuance is co-fiduciaries — if two people are appointed jointly, both names go on the same line and both must sign in Field 9. The common mistake is writing only one name when two were appointed, which voids the bond as to the unnamed co-fiduciary and triggers a § 3-606 increase order. A misconception is that “principal” means principal of the estate (assets) — here it means principal party on the bond contract.
Field 7: Conditions of the Bond Paragraph
The form pre-prints the conditions paragraph required by G.L. c. 190B § 3-606: faithful performance of duties, accurate inventory, proper accountings, lawful distribution, and compliance with all court orders. You do not write inside the paragraph itself, but you must read it because your signature below adopts every condition.
To “answer” this field, read it aloud once, confirm it matches the statutory language, and confirm the case type (estate vs. guardianship vs. conservatorship) is correctly reflected. For example, Carlos Reyes reads the paragraph and confirms it references the duties of a Personal Representative under MUPC.
The nuance is form variants — different MPC 185 revisions have slightly different wording for trustee bonds; if you are filing a trustee bond, confirm the conditions reference c. 203E. The common mistake is skipping this read entirely, which means filers later claim they “didn’t agree” to a condition the court enforces anyway. A misconception is that the conditions are negotiable — they are not; they are statutory.
Field 8: Penal Sum
The Penal Sum is the dollar amount the principal and sureties owe the court if the fiduciary breaches the bond. Under G.L. c. 190B § 3-604, the penal sum must equal the value of personal property plus one year of expected income from real property, unless the court orders a different amount.
Write the penal sum in both words and figures: Two Hundred Fifty Thousand and 00/100 Dollars ($250,000.00). Round up to the nearest thousand to provide cushion. For example, Aisha Bennett estimates her father’s probate assets at $237,400 and writes Two Hundred Fifty Thousand and 00/100 Dollars ($250,000.00).
The nuance is real-estate-only estates — when the only asset is a house, the penal sum is one year of fair rental value, not the house’s market value, because real estate descends to heirs by operation of law. The common mistake is using the gross estate (including non-probate assets like life insurance with named beneficiaries), which inflates the penal sum and the surety premium. A misconception is that the penal sum is a “deposit” — it is a contingent obligation only collected if the fiduciary breaches.
Field 9: Signature of Principal
You sign in wet ink as the principal, and the signature must be acknowledged before a notary public, justice of the peace, or court clerk under G.L. c. 222. Print your name beneath the signature line and add the date in MM/DD/YYYY format.
For example, Marcus Hill signs Marcus T. Hill, prints Marcus T. Hill below, dates it 03/14/2026, and the notary stamps and signs in the acknowledgment block.
The nuance is electronic signatures — Massachusetts courts do not accept DocuSign on bonds because the bond is a sealed instrument; only wet-ink with notary works. The common mistake is signing without a notary present, which invalidates the acknowledgment and forces a re-sign. A misconception is that the Register’s signature on intake counts as notarization — only a Register acting as notary, taking your acknowledgment, qualifies.
Field 10: Signatures and Information of Sureties
If you checked with sureties, every surety signs here. For corporate sureties, the local agent signs and attaches the power of attorney authorizing the signature. For personal sureties, each individual signs and submits MPC 801 listing their assets.
Format: print the surety’s full legal name, residential address (or principal place of business for corporates), and a wet-ink signature. For example, Liberty Mutual Insurance Company signs through agent Patricia O’Hare, with the corporate seal affixed and the power of attorney stapled.
The nuance is non-resident personal sureties — out-of-state individuals are presumptively unacceptable unless the court approves a deposit of cash or securities under § 3-605. The common mistake is using one personal surety when the rule requires two, which causes outright rejection of the bond. A misconception is that a friend with a “good job” qualifies — the surety must show assets in Massachusetts equal to the penal sum, not just income.
Field 11: Court Approval Block
The bottom of the form is reserved for the Justice or Register of Probate to approve the bond. You leave it blank.
To “answer” this field, simply leave it blank and unmarked. For example, Janet Pham hands the form to the Middlesex Register, who later stamps it Approved — 03/16/2026 — Hon. Maureen H. Monks, J.P.C.
The nuance is conditional approval — the judge sometimes approves the bond subject to additional security, and that condition is written across this block. The common mistake is filers writing in this block, which invalidates the form. A misconception is that you can sign for the judge — you cannot; the bond is unenforceable until the court approves it.
Three Filled-Out Examples Using Real Scenarios
Below are three full walkthroughs based on the most common MPC 185 fact patterns the Probate and Family Court sees: a surviving spouse in informal probate, a court-appointed conservator, and a successor trustee.
Scenario 1: Maria Lopez — Surviving Spouse, Informal Probate, Bond Without Sureties
Maria Lopez’s husband Robert died in Cambridge with a will leaving everything to her and naming her executor “to serve without surety.” She files MPC 160 for informal probate at Middlesex.
| Form Section | What Maria Enters |
|---|---|
| Division | MIDDLESEX |
| Docket No. | (left blank — assigned at filing) |
| Estate of | Estate of Robert J. McAllister, Jr. |
| Bond Type | ☒ Without sureties |
| Principal | Maria Lopez, as Personal Representative |
| Conditions Paragraph | (read and accepted) |
| Penal Sum | Four Hundred Twenty Thousand and 00/100 Dollars ($420,000.00) |
| Signature of Principal | Maria Lopez, dated 02/12/2026, notarized |
| Sureties | (left blank) |
| Court Approval | (left blank for Magistrate) |
Scenario 2: Janet Pham — Conservator with Corporate Surety
Janet Pham is appointed by the Norfolk Probate and Family Court as conservator of the property of her father Henry, who has dementia. The judge requires bond with corporate surety in the amount of the protected person’s liquid assets.
| Form Section | What Janet Enters |
|---|---|
| Division | NORFOLK |
| Docket No. | NO26P0987PM |
| Name of Protected Person | Henry Pham, a Protected Person |
| Bond Type | ☒ With sureties |
| Principal | Janet Pham, as Conservator of the Property |
| Conditions Paragraph | (read and accepted; references c. 190B Article V) |
| Penal Sum | Three Hundred Ten Thousand and 00/100 Dollars ($310,000.00) |
| Signature of Principal | Janet Pham, dated 03/14/2026, notarized |
| Sureties | Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, by agent Patricia O’Hare, with power of attorney attached |
| Court Approval | (left blank for Hon. Maureen H. Monks, J.P.C.) |
Scenario 3: Marcus Hill — Successor Trustee Under Court-Supervised Trust
Marcus Hill is named successor trustee in his late father’s testamentary trust, which is supervised by the Worcester Probate and Family Court under G.L. c. 203E. The trust instrument waives sureties.
| Form Section | What Marcus Enters |
|---|---|
| Division | WORCESTER |
| Docket No. | WO19P3456TR |
| Trust of | Trust under the Will of Frank Hill |
| Bond Type | ☒ Without sureties |
| Principal | Marcus T. Hill, as Successor Trustee |
| Conditions Paragraph | (read and accepted; references c. 203E duties) |
| Penal Sum | One Million One Hundred Thousand and 00/100 Dollars ($1,100,000.00) |
| Signature of Principal | Marcus T. Hill, dated 04/02/2026, notarized |
| Sureties | (left blank) |
| Court Approval | (left blank for Justice) |
How to File the Completed Form MPC 185
You can file MPC 185 at the Registry of Probate in person, by mail, or through the eFileMA portal. Each channel has its own logistics, fees, and proof-of-filing rules.
In person. Bring the signed and notarized MPC 185, the underlying petition (MPC 150 or MPC 160), the MPC 851 Letters, any assents on MPC 455, the MPC 470 Military Affidavit, and a check or card for the filing fees — typically $375 plus the $15 surcharge plus $7.50 for Letters in informal probate. Keep the date-stamped copy as your proof of filing.
By mail. Send the originals to the county Registry — for example, Middlesex Probate and Family Court, 10-U Commerce Way, Woburn, MA 01801 — along with a self-addressed stamped envelope and a check made out to Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Use Certified Mail with return receipt; the green card is your proof of filing. Processing runs 2–4 weeks for mail compared to same-day to 1 week in person.
By e-filing. Log into eFileMA, select the case type, upload the scanned signed MPC 185 as a separate PDF in the Bond envelope category, pay the fee by ACH or credit card, and download the time-stamped Notice of Electronic Filing receipt. E-filing fees include the standard filing fee plus a $22 e-filing fee per envelope.
By fax. Fax filing is generally not accepted for original bonds because notarized originals are required; the Register’s office will tell you to mail or e-file instead.
What Happens After You File
Once MPC 185 reaches the Register, it is logged, scanned into the MassCourts docket, and routed to the magistrate or judge for approval. In informal probate, the Magistrate reviews the bond alongside the petition and either approves it, requests correction, or refers the matter to formal probate under G.L. c. 190B § 3-305. In formal probate, a judge reviews the bond at the Citation Return hearing.
Once approved, the court issues Letters on MPC 851 — your evidence of authority that banks, insurers, the Registry of Deeds, and the Massachusetts Department of Revenue will accept. You can order certified copies of Letters for $7.50 each; most fiduciaries order 5–10.
If the bond is rejected, the Register issues a Notice of Informal Action listing the defects. You have 14 days to cure typical defects (missing notary, wrong county, incomplete penal sum) or the petition may be dismissed under Probate Court Standing Order 4-13. Common cures take one trip to the Register or one e-filing envelope.
After approval, the bond stays active for the life of the appointment. If estate values rise, the court can order an increase in the penal sum under § 3-606, requiring a new MPC 185 with a higher penal sum and updated sureties. When the case closes, you file a final account and the bond is discharged on order of the court.
Mistakes to Avoid When Filling Out MPC 185
Probate clerks see the same errors over and over. Avoiding the ones below saves you weeks of delay and hundreds of dollars in re-filing fees.
- Using an outdated revision of the form. The Register rejects on sight and you must re-file on the current version.
- Filing in the wrong county. Venue is mandatory, and the case is transferred — adding 30–60 days.
- Leaving “with sureties” / “without sureties” both unchecked. The bond is void on its face and Letters cannot issue.
- Setting the penal sum below the value of personal property. The judge orders an increase under § 3-606 and freezes accountings until cured.
- Signing without a notary present. The acknowledgment is invalid and the bond is unenforceable.
- Using only one personal surety when two are required. The bond is rejected and you must locate a second qualifying surety.
- Naming a non-resident personal surety without a cash deposit. The court refuses to approve and you lose the surety premium.
- Mismatching the decedent’s name between MPC 185 and MPC 150 or MPC 160. The Register kicks the filing back for re-execution.
- Skipping the MPC 470 Military Affidavit when required. The bond cannot be approved in formal cases.
- Writing inside the court approval block. The form is treated as altered and is rejected.
Do’s and Don’ts for MPC 185
Do: – Do download MPC 185 fresh from Mass.gov every time, because revisions roll out without notice. – Do estimate the penal sum on the high side — over-bonding costs only a small premium increase, but under-bonding costs a court order. – Do bring two unsigned originals to the Register so you can re-execute on the spot if a typo is found. – Do read the conditions paragraph before signing, because your signature legally adopts every duty listed. – Do attach the will-waiver page if you check without sureties, because the Register will demand it. – Do save digital copies of every signed page before walking into the Registry, because originals are scanned and not returned.
Don’t: – Don’t sign the bond before the notary watches you sign — pre-signing voids the acknowledgment. – Don’t mix up the docket suffix (EA, GD, CA, PM, TR) — each codes a different case type and the Register matches strictly. – Don’t list non-probate assets in the penal sum calculation, because they are outside the bond’s protection. – Don’t use whiteout or strike-throughs — re-print the form clean instead. – Don’t assume informal probate waives sureties automatically — you still need a will waiver or full assents. – Don’t ignore a Notice of Informal Action — the 14-day cure window is strict and missing it can dismiss the case.
Pros and Cons of Filing MPC 185 on Your Own vs. With Help
Pros of filing pro se: – You save the $1,500–$5,000 attorney flat fee that uncontested probate typically runs. – You learn the case file directly, which speeds later filings (inventory, accounts, distributions). – Court Service Centers offer free walk-in help with MPC 185 specifically. – The MUPC was designed for self-representation and informal probate works without a lawyer. – You stay in control of timing rather than waiting on a busy attorney’s calendar.
Cons of filing pro se: – A defective bond can stall Letters by weeks, blocking access to bank accounts and bills. – Penal sum miscalculations trigger § 3-606 increase orders and surety premium re-runs. – You lose the attorney’s malpractice insurance backstop if you breach a fiduciary duty. – Surety underwriters often demand higher premiums for pro se principals because risk is perceived as higher. – Contested cases — will challenges, removal petitions, surcharge actions — almost always require counsel mid-case anyway.
MPC 185 Bond Type Differences
| Feature | With Sureties |
|---|---|
| Trigger | Default rule under § 3-603, judge order, no will waiver, guardianship/conservatorship |
| Surety Options | Corporate (NAIC-licensed) or two qualifying personal sureties |
| Premium | 0.5%–1% of penal sum annually for corporate; none for personal |
| Approval Path | Magistrate or judge reviews with surety affidavits (MPC 801) |
| Risk to Fiduciary | Surety pays first, then subrogates against fiduciary personally |
| Feature | Without Sureties |
|---|---|
| Trigger | Will waiver, full written assents on MPC 455, or court order |
| Surety Options | None |
| Premium | None |
| Approval Path | Magistrate confirms waiver/assents, then approves |
| Risk to Fiduciary | Fiduciary remains personally liable for breach with no surety buffer |
FAQs
Do I need MPC 185 if I am filing a Voluntary Administration?
No. Voluntary administrators under G.L. c. 190B § 3-1201 file MPC 170 instead, because the small-estate procedure does not require court appointment or bond.
Can I e-file MPC 185 without printing it?
No. The bond is a sealed instrument requiring wet-ink signatures and notary acknowledgment, so you must print, sign, notarize, and then scan and upload to eFileMA.
Do I write the docket number in Field 3 if I am filing the bond with the petition?
No. Leave Field 3 blank when filing with the original petition; the Register assigns the docket number at intake and stamps it on the form.
Should I check both “with sureties” and “without sureties” to be safe?
No. Check exactly one box; checking both voids the bond on its face and the Register will reject the filing.
Do I include the value of the decedent’s house in the penal sum?
No. Real estate descends directly to devisees by operation of law in Massachusetts, so the penal sum captures only one year of expected rental income from real estate, not its market value.
Is a friend with a six-figure salary an acceptable personal surety?
No. Personal sureties must show Massachusetts assets — not income — at least equal to the penal sum, and they must complete MPC 801 disclosing those assets.
Can my spouse serve as my personal surety on the estate?
No. A surety with a beneficial interest in the estate has a conflict and the court will not approve, because the surety must be financially independent of the bonded performance.
Does an out-of-state corporate surety qualify?
Yes. Corporate sureties qualify if licensed by the Massachusetts Division of Insurance and authorized to write fiduciary bonds in the Commonwealth, regardless of home state.
Do I need a new MPC 185 if the estate value goes up?
Yes. Under § 3-606 the court can order an increased penal sum, and you file a fresh MPC 185 with the higher amount and updated sureties.
Should I sign in blue ink or black ink?
Yes. Blue ink is preferred so notaries and clerks can distinguish originals from photocopies, but black ink is also accepted; the rule is wet-ink, not color.
Do I list co-personal-representatives on the same MPC 185?
Yes. Co-fiduciaries appear together as principals and both sign in Field 9; one bond covers both, but each is jointly and severally liable.
Can the Register notarize my MPC 185 for free?
Yes. Registers and Assistant Registers are statutory notaries under G.L. c. 222 and routinely take acknowledgments on MPC 185 at no charge during business hours.
Is the penal sum the amount I personally owe?
No. The penal sum is the maximum the bond can pay if you breach; you are personally liable only for actual damages up to that ceiling, plus surety subrogation if a corporate surety pays first.
Do I need MPC 185 for a guardianship of a minor with no assets?
Yes. Guardians of the person typically file a nominal-penalty MPC 185 (often $1,000), because even a minor without current assets may receive Social Security or settlement funds during the guardianship.
Related reading
- How to Fill Out Massachusetts Form MPC 150 (w/Examples) + FAQs
- How to Fill Out Massachusetts Form MPC 160 (w/Examples) + FAQs
- How to Fill Out Massachusetts Form MPC 162 (w/Examples) + FAQs
- How to Fill Out Massachusetts Form MPC 170 (w/Examples) + FAQs
- How to Fill Out Massachusetts Form MPC 401 (w/Examples) + FAQs
- How to Fill Out Massachusetts Form MPC 470 (w/Examples) + FAQs
- How to Fill Out Massachusetts Form 1 (w/Examples) + FAQs