When it appears to the best interest of the succession, and subject to the representative's primary duty to preserve the estate for prompt distribution and to the terms of the testament, if any, the court may authorize a succession representative to invest the funds of the succession and make them productive. Unless the testator has provided otherwise, such investments shall be restricted to the kinds of investments permitted to trustees by the laws of this state.
Art. 3223.Investment of Succession Funds
Book VI. Probate Procedure · Title III. Administration of Successions · Chapter 4. General Functions, Powers, and Duties of Succession Representative · Amendment history unavailable · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 3223 lets the court authorize a succession representative to invest succession funds and make them productive when doing so serves the succession's best interest, subordinate to the duty to preserve the estate for prompt distribution and to any contrary testamentary terms, and normally limited to investments Louisiana law permits trustees to make.
Full Text of Art. 3223
Plain-English Summary
Money sitting in the deposit account Article 3222 requires is safe, but it is not earning anything for the heirs and legatees waiting on distribution. Article 3223 gives the court a way to change that, authorizing the representative to invest succession funds and make them productive rather than leaving them idle for the length of the administration.
Investment authority under this article is conditional in two ways at once. First, it has to appear to the best interest of the succession; the court is not required to authorize investment just because it is requested. Second, and more fundamentally, investment remains subject to the representative's primary duty to preserve the estate for prompt distribution. Article 3223 does not let investment become a reason to delay closing the succession, and it yields to whatever a testament specifies.
Where investment is authorized, Article 3223 also limits what counts as an acceptable investment. Unless the testator has provided otherwise, the representative is restricted to the kinds of investments Louisiana law permits trustees to make, a conservative benchmark that keeps succession funds out of speculative ventures a fiduciary responsible for someone else's inheritance should not be taking on.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a succession representative invest succession funds on their own initiative?
No. Article 3223 requires court authorization before succession funds can be invested.
Does investing succession funds ever take priority over distributing the estate?
No. Investment authority remains subordinate to the representative's primary duty to preserve the estate for prompt distribution.
What kinds of investments can a succession representative make?
Generally, the kinds of investments Louisiana law permits trustees to make, unless the testator has specified something different.
What standard governs whether investment is authorized?
Whether investment appears to be in the best interest of the succession, and whether it is consistent with the duty to preserve the estate for prompt distribution and any applicable testamentary terms.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
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