50-State Surveys › Petition to Probate a Will Requirements by State
Petition to Probate a Will Requirements by State
Who may petition to admit a will to probate, what must the petition and filed will contain, what proof, notice, and hearing are required, and when may letters testamentary issue?
51 of 51 jurisdictions verified
every entry statute-checked, oldest 2026-08-03
What this survey covers
The petition that opens a testate estate does more than ask a court to recognize a document. Depending on the state, the same filing may identify every heir and devisee, establish venue, exhibit the original will, select an informal or formal track, supply witness proof, and ask for letters testamentary. Other states split those steps or let the court admit a self-proved will with little or no advance notice.
This survey compares the ordinary first filing for a domestic will. It keeps the petition separate from later estate administration and treats lost, destroyed, foreign, or contested wills as boundary routes rather than the default answer.
Why nine separate columns are necessary
Florida shows the statute-and-rule split. The current statute says only that “Any interested person may petition for administration,” while a self-proved will ordinarily may be admitted without further proof and a non-self-proved will uses an attesting-witness oath or the statutory unavailable-witness fallback. Fla. Stat. §§ 733.201-.202 (accessed 2026-08-03). Petition fields, verification, the original-will statement, and nominee details therefore cannot be inferred from the one-sentence petition statute; the current statewide probate rule must be read separately.
The District of Columbia puts much more into the statute itself. The petition must disclose the decedent, petitioner, jurisdiction, other proceedings, estate character and value, debts, interested persons, witnesses, and testacy facts. For a testate estate, it must exhibit the original will—or a copy if the original is already filed—state how the petitioner obtained the original, disclose any known later will, select abbreviated, small-estate, or formal probate, and request admission and appropriate letters. D.C. Code § 20-304 (accessed 2026-08-03).
Wyoming makes notice and timing separate axes. Its petition identifies jurisdictional facts, executor consent or renunciation, heirs and devisees, estate value and character, and the proposed recipient of letters. Once filed, the court or clerk may hear it immediately “with or without requiring notice,” and a compliant self-proved will needs no further proof. Wyo. Stat. Ann. §§ 2-6-201, 2-6-203 to -204 (accessed 2026-08-03).
How to read the table
Start with proceeding type, court, venue, and petitioner. A person entitled to file may still be unqualified or lower in priority for letters, and a filing in the wrong county may have different consequences from filing in a court that lacks subject-matter authority.
Then read petition contents, original-will handling, and deadlines together. A ten-day custodian-delivery rule is not necessarily a ten-day petition deadline, and an authenticated-copy route is not the same as proving a lost will.
Finally, compare proof, notice, hearing, and letters. Self-proof can eliminate witness testimony without eliminating every objection period. Some courts act ex parte; others require advance notice or reserve formal probate for cases in which due execution cannot be presumed.
Get this answered for your state
This survey compares every state side by side. Ask about your specific situation and see what your state's law says, with citations to the statutes.
Scroll sideways in the table to see all columns →
| State | Governing law and proceeding type | Court and venue | Who may petition | Petition contents | Original will, copy, and lodging | Filing or production deadline | Proof and self-proving route | Notice, hearing, and objections | Executor, bond, and letters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama verified 2026-08-08 | Ordinary original probate in probate court under Ala. Code Title 43; the application may seek admission of the will and letters testamentary (§§ 43-8-160, 43-2-20) |
Probate court; decedent's county of inhabitancy, then specified nonresident death/assets routes, later-arriving assets, or a will-designated county where the decedent owned property. First proper proceeding controls if more than one court is possible (§§ 43-8-162, -214) |
Named executor, devisee, legatee, any interested person, or the person who has custody of the will (§ 43-8-160) |
The Code calls for an application but supplies no detailed universal field checklist in the ordinary probate article. The official LSA model is sworn and states death/domicile/assets, will and self-proof facts, nominee, spouse and next of kin, surrender of the will, and requested probate/letters |
Ordinary route files the will itself; the official model surrenders it with the petition or lodges it with the court. A filed will cannot be withdrawn before probate until recorded; Article 7 supplies no general ordinary-photocopy substitute (§ 43-8-173) |
Will is ineffective unless filed for probate within 5 years after death. Filing after 12 months can leave earlier good-faith purchasers, mortgagees, or pledgees protected; no separate custodian-delivery clock appears in the ordinary article (§§ 43-8-161, -172) |
Self-proved will is probated without further proof unless fraud/forgery affects the acknowledgment or affidavit. Otherwise use 1+ subscribing witnesses (1 suffices if uncontested), specified handwriting fallback, or deposition/commission for an out-of-state or physically unable witness (§§ 43-8-132, -167 to -168) |
At least 10 days before hearing for in-state spouse/next of kin; minors also need a disinterested attorney guardian ad litem; out-of-state persons receive 3 weekly publications/3-week posting or Civil Rules service. Interested persons may contest before probate or within 180 days after admission (§§ 43-8-164 to -166, -215) |
After admission, named executor must be fit: age 19+, no infamous-crime conviction, and competent despite intemperance/improvidence concerns. Nonresident nominee may serve on like bond/terms; renunciation is recorded, and 30-day nonapplication shifts issuance. Bond is required unless will waiver applies, subject to court/protection exceptions (§§ 43-2-20, -22, -25 to -27, -191, -851) |
| Alaska verified 2026-08-09 | Alaska UPC: verified informal application to the registrar or formal testacy petition before a superior-court judge; probate and appointment may be combined but remain separable (AS 13.06.050, 13.16.010-.015, .080, .140-.145) |
Superior court; judicial district of domicile, or for a nondomiciliary a district containing property or the qualifying fiduciary. The first-filed court proceeds unless the matter is transferred (AS 13.06.050, .065-.070; AS 13.16.055) |
An interested person may apply informally or petition formally; the definition includes heirs, devisees, children, spouses, creditors, beneficiaries, estate claimants, appointment-priority holders, and representative fiduciaries (AS 13.06.050, 13.16.090, .140) |
Verified informal filing states applicant interest; decedent/death/age/domicile; spouse, children, heirs, devisees and minor ages; venue; prior representatives; notice demands; timeliness; original/authenticated-copy status; execution/revocation belief; and nominee identity/address/priority. Formal petition adopts the specified facts and requests testacy and heir findings (AS 13.16.080, .145) |
Informal original probate requires the original with the court/application; an authenticated copy supports a will probated elsewhere. Formal petition accounts for the original; if neither original nor authenticated prior-probate copy is available, it states the contents and that the will is lost, destroyed, or otherwise unavailable (AS 13.16.080, .090, .145) |
Ordinary informal probate/appointment and formal testacy/appointment generally must begin within 3 years after death, subject to listed exceptions; the cited opening-probate statutes state no separate fixed custodian-production clock (AS 13.16.040) |
Informal registrar may rely on a compliant attestation clause, apparent proper execution, or a knowledgeable person's sworn statement. Formal uncontested proof may use one attesting witness or other evidence; contested self-proved wills receive statutory presumptions, while a non-self-proved attested will ordinarily uses one competent available in-state witness when execution proof is needed (AS 13.16.090, .160-.165) |
Informal probate notice goes only to demandants and an existing representative, followed by 30-day probate information to reasonably locatable heirs/devisees unless an appointed representative has the duty; informal appointment also notifies unwaived prior/equal priority. Formal hearing notice goes to specified family, heirs, will devisees/executors, existing representative, demandants, and unknowns by publication; objections are pleaded (AS 13.06.110; AS 13.16.105, .125, .150-.155) |
Will nominee has first priority and must be 19+ and suitable. Appointment is subject to qualification and acceptance; acceptance and any required bond precede letters. Bond is required unless a statutory exception applies and may also follow a qualifying written demand (AS 13.16.015, .065, .110, .245-.265) |
| Arizona verified 2026-08-03 | UPC-based informal probate by registrar application or formal testacy before a judicial officer; appointment may be joined (§§ 14-1201, 14-3401) |
Superior court; domicile county, or for a nondomiciliary any county containing property; an informal case may transfer to proper venue (§§ 14-1201, 14-3201) |
Informal applicants are the listed spouse/relatives, heir, nominee, qualifying nonresident representative/nominee, Veterans' Services, 45-day creditor, or public fiduciary; any interested person may petition formally (§§ 14-3301(A), 14-3401(A)) |
Verified informal application: applicant interest; decedent, death, age, domicile; spouse, children, heirs, devisees/minors; venue; prior representatives; demands for notice; timeliness; will validity/revocation; appointment nominee and priority. Formal petition adopts core facts and requests a testacy/heir order (§§ 14-3301(B), 14-3402(A)) |
Original paper will or certified paper original of an electronic will must be with the court or accompany the filing; certified foreign-probate copy allowed. Formal petition may state contents and explain a lost, destroyed, or unavailable will (§§ 14-1201(43), 14-3301(B)(2), 14-3402(A)(3)) |
Ordinary probate/testacy/appointment generally must begin within 2 years after death, subject to statutory exceptions; custodian delivers on request with reasonable promptness; creditor applicant waits 45 days (§§ 14-3108, 14-2516, 14-3301(A)(7)) |
Informal registrar may use an adequate attestation clause without further proof, assume apparent execution, or accept a knowledgeable person's sworn statement. Unopposed formal proof may rest on pleadings or one witness/other evidence; contested self-proof creates signature conclusiveness and rebuttable execution presumptions (§§ 14-3303(C), 14-3405-.3406) |
Informal: pre-admission notice only to demanders and an existing PR, then within 30 days heirs/devisees get admission information and will copy; receipt starts a 4-month contest bar. Formal: clerk sets hearing; petitioner notices listed family, heirs, devisees, executors, existing PR, demanders, and unknown persons by publication (§§ 14-3306, 14-3403) |
Probated-will nominee has first priority; disqualified if below majority, found unsuitable, or a foreign corporation. Bond is default subject to will, unanimous devisee, fiduciary, and small-estate-spouse exceptions; required bond and acceptance must be filed before letters (§§ 14-3203, 14-3601, 14-3603) |
| Arkansas verified 2026-08-08 | Circuit Court probate proceeding under Ark. Code tit. 28; probate and appointment requests may be combined, while lost or destroyed wills require the statute's separate proof (§§ 28-40-107, -117) |
Circuit Court in resident's county; for a nonresident, county holding the greater Arkansas property value; death county if no residence/property; cause-of-action county last (§ 28-40-102) |
Any interested person may seek probate, executor appointment, or both, whether or not possessing the will; nomination controls first priority for letters, not filing eligibility (§§ 28-40-107, 28-48-101) |
Decedent identity, age, residence, death date/place; reasonably ascertainable heirs/devisees and details; separate real/personal values; nonresident property; fallback-venue facts; unfiled will contents; nominees; and proposed appointee facts (§ 28-40-107) |
If the will is not filed, the petition states its contents by attaching a copy; a lost, destroyed, or suppressed will instead states known provisions and requires the separate proof route (§§ 28-40-107(c)(6), -117(c)) |
Will must be submitted and administration granted within five years after death, subject to the statutory foreign-will exception; a later will still must precede final distribution (§§ 28-40-103, -116) |
Attested will: 2 available attesting witnesses; if fewer can be procured, 2 credible disinterested handwriting/circumstance witnesses plus any procurable attesting witness. Holograph: 3 credible disinterested handwriting witnesses. Uncontested attesting-witness affidavit may substitute (§§ 28-40-117, 28-25-106) |
No demand and no opposition: court may hear immediately without notice. Opposition or a preappointment notice demand makes a hearing mandatory; otherwise discretionary. Hearing notice goes to named/addressed heirs and devisees and nonpublication notice to demandants (§§ 28-40-108 to -110) |
Will nominee has first priority. Bars include under 18, unsound mind, unpardoned felony, unauthorized fiduciary corporation, unsuitability, and a nonresident without an approved Arkansas process agent. Court may require bond before letters or later, or dispense with it for good cause (§§ 28-48-101, -201, -206) |
| California verified 2026-08-03 | Cal. Prob. Code §§ 8000-8007; noticed petition for administration may seek probate of the will, appointment of a personal representative, or both |
Superior court; California domiciliary files in domicile county. For a nondomiciliary, venue follows the county-of-death/property hierarchy in § 7052 (§§ 7050-7052) |
Any interested person, at any time after death; possession of the will is not required to start the petition (§ 8000) |
Mandatory DE-111, signed by all petitioners and verified by one; death/residence, heirs and devisees, estate character/value, proposed representative, requested relief/authority/bond, will copy and special copies, and executor consent or waiver (§ 8002; Cal. R. Ct. 7.103) |
Attach photographic copy; also typed copy for materially handwritten will and English translation for foreign-language will. Custodian separately delivers original within 30 days after learning of death unless petition was earlier filed; lost/out-of-state-copy routes exist (§§ 8000, 8002, 8200-8202) |
Petition may begin any time after death; named executor risks waiver of appointment after 30 days from knowledge of death and nomination. Custodian has a separate 30-day original-and-copy delivery clock unless petition was earlier filed (§§ 8000-8001, 8200) |
Uncontested will: one subscribing witness or statutory witness affidavit; if no witness is available, testator handwriting plus witness handwriting or a due-execution document. Holographic wills use ordinary-writing proof; lost will requires its words or substance (§§ 8220-8223) |
Hearing normally 15-30 days after filing; deliver notice at least 15 days before to known/ascertainable heirs and all devisees, executors, and alternates in offered wills; publish 3 times with statutory spacing. Appointment opposition and will contest use §§ 8004 and 8250 |
Named executor has appointment right, subject to § 8402 competency limits. Before letters: oath, duties acknowledgment, and bond unless waived by will/all beneficiaries or altered by court; appointment becomes effective only when letters issue (§§ 8400, 8402-8405, 8420, 8480-8482) |
| Colorado verified 2026-08-04 | Will must be validated by registrar's informal-probate order or court's formal adjudication. Formal testacy is noticed litigation; it may, but need not, include representative appointment (§§ 15-12-102, 15-12-302, 15-12-401) |
Court with probate jurisdiction in domicile/residence county; nondomiciliary uses any county holding decedent property. Informal case can be transferred if venue belongs elsewhere (§§ 15-11-516, 15-12-201) |
Interested person may apply informally or petition for formal testacy. Application states applicant's interest; formal petition may seek probate, set aside/prevent informal probate, or determine intestacy (§§ 15-12-301, 15-12-303, 15-12-401) |
Verified informal filing states applicant interest; decedent identity, death, age, domicile; spouse, children, heirs, devisees/minors; venue, other representatives, notice demands, timeliness; original/authenticated will, validity and no-revocation belief; appointee identity/address/priority. Formal petition adopts those facts and requests testacy/heir and appointment relief (§§ 15-12-301, 15-12-402) |
Custodian lodges will with proper probate court. Informal original probate requires original in court or accompanying application; previously probated foreign will uses authenticated will and probate statement. Formal petition may use original, state-court-administrator certified copy, authenticated foreign copy, or pleaded lost/unavailable-will contents (§§ 15-11-516, 15-12-301, 15-12-303, 15-12-402) |
Custodian: within 10 days after death or as soon thereafter as death becomes known. Most original informal/formal probate or appointment proceedings: within 3 years after death, subject to statutory exceptions. Informal action also waits 120 hours after death (§§ 15-11-516, 15-12-108, 15-12-303, 15-12-308) |
Informal: qualifying attestation clause needs no further proof; otherwise registrar may assume execution or accept knowledgeable-person affidavit. Formal unopposed: pleadings or 1 witness affidavit/testimony, with other evidence if unavailable. Contested self-proved will needs no witness absent affidavit fraud/forgery; notarized will has rebuttable execution presumption (§§ 15-11-504, 15-12-303, 15-12-405-.407) |
Informal probate/appointment notices only notice-demanders, existing representative, and unwaived prior/equal appointees; other notice generally follows within 30 days. Formal court sets hearing and notifies spouse, children, heirs, devisees, executors, and existing representative; unknowns may receive publication. Notice normally 14 days; informal contest deadline is later of 12 months after probate or 3 years after death (§§ 15-10-401, 15-12-108, 15-12-306, 15-12-310, 15-12-403, 15-12-705) |
Probated-will nominee has first priority; representative must be 21+ and suitable, then file acceptance and required bond before letters. Informal bond generally not required absent will, special-administrator, or court-demand grounds; formal will waiver controls unless interested-party request persuades court (§§ 15-12-203, 15-12-307-.308, 15-12-601-.603) |
| Connecticut verified 2026-08-08 | Official PC-200 combines the petition for probate of the will with the request to appoint an executor and grant letters; governed by Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 45a-282 to -290 and 2026 Probate Court Rules 8 and 30 |
Probate Court for the district of the Connecticut resident's domicile at death (§ 45a-283; PC-200). A nonresident will uses an eligible district based on last residence, property, account/intangible evidence, named fiduciary office/residence, cause of action, or debtor (§ 45a-287) |
Any person may use PC-200. A person who knows of being named executor must apply within 30 days after death (§ 45a-283; PC-200) |
PC-200: decedent, death, residence/domicile and jurisdiction; petitioner and spouse; heirs, will beneficiaries and trust beneficiaries with disability/status details; unknown-person search; will/codicils and later family-status events; fiduciary and acceptance; assets, realty, state aid; penalty-of-false-statement signature and service certification |
Attach the original will and codicils and a death-certificate copy with SSN redacted; file confidential SSN sheet PC-200CI. Court discloses another purported will in its custody and petitioner supplies that will's executor and beneficiary contacts (PC-200; Rules 30.2, 30.4) |
Custodian: deliver will forthwith after learning of death; criminal penalty if neglect continues 30 days. Named executor with knowledge of nomination: apply within 30 days after death or face a fine (§§ 45a-282 to -283) |
Any or all attesting witnesses may swear an affidavit before an oath officer in or out of state; place it on the will or attach if impracticable. Court accepts it as if taken there; statute gives no conclusive or no-contest effect (§ 45a-285) |
Statute requires hearing before proving/rejecting unless all interested parties waive or court dispenses for cause. 2026 Rule 8.6 ordinarily uses streamline notice for decedent estates: hearing on timely request and when contested, testimony/argument, public notice, or circumstances require. Rule 30.6 lists recipients; petitioner also sends petition and will (Rules 8.6, 30.6-.7; § 45a-286) |
Proposed fiduciary signs acceptance on PC-200; nonresident attaches PC-482 process-agent appointment. Executor bond is default; unopposed will waiver is followed, but court may require bond for creditor/tax protection. If primary nominee died, refuses, or is incapable, alternate/successor or administration with will annexed applies (§§ 45a-289 to -290) |
| Delaware verified 2026-08-09 | Proof and admission before the county Register of Wills under 12 Del. C. ch. 13; Chancery handles requested noticed proof, caveats, and review; letters are governed by ch. 15 (§§ 1302-1303, 1308-1309, 1502) |
Register of Wills in decedent's Delaware-domicile county; if nondomiciliary, any county containing Delaware property. Court of Chancery handles noticed proof and contests (§§ 1302-1303) |
Custodian must deliver the will. Chapter 13 sets no separate ordinary-proponent class; an interested person may petition for noticed proof or review and may file a caveat (§§ 1301, 1303, 1308-1309) |
No statewide statutory fact checklist for ordinary ex parte proof; the operative filing is the will and its proof. A Chancery petition may request noticed proof, and a caveat may be lodged before the probate order (ch. 13) |
Custodian delivers the will instrument to the Register in the custodian's county. Verified will and probate-record copies are authorized for a will already probated in another jurisdiction (§§ 1301, 1307) |
Custodian must deliver within 10 days after receiving information of the testator's death; ch. 13 states no separate fixed ordinary probate-petition deadline (§ 1301) |
Self-proved will establishes conclusive signature compliance and rebuttable other-execution presumptions; otherwise witness testimony or unavailable-witness/testator-signature proof applies, subject to additional proof required by the Register (§§ 1304-1305, 1310) |
Proof may be ex parte. Interested person may petition Chancery for a set proof time and process; caveat before the order triggers hearing/citations; a nonappearing, nonserved interested person has 6 months after the order for review (§§ 1303, 1308-1309) |
After probate, letters go to named executor who is not a minor, mentally incapacitated, or oath-disqualified by crime; oath required. No bond unless will or Chancery requires it; nondomiciliary executor files statutory power of attorney (§§ 1502, 1506, 1508-1509, 1521-1524) |
| District of Columbia verified 2026-08-09 | Title 20 opening-estate proceeding: abbreviated probate or formal probate in the Probate Division; each can admit the will and appoint a representative, and abbreviated probate may proceed without formal-probate prior notice (D.C. Code §§ 20-101, 20-301, 20-311-.312, 20-321-.324) |
Probate Division of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia; the petition states facts conferring jurisdiction. The District has no county-level probate venue hierarchy (D.C. Code §§ 20-101(b), 20-304(a)(3)) |
Interested person may open an estate or seek abbreviated probate; interested person or creditor may seek formal probate. If no petition is filed within a reasonable time, the Register may petition for formal probate with Court approval (D.C. Code §§ 20-101(d), 20-301, 20-311, 20-321) |
Petition gives decedent name/domicile/death; petitioner identity, age, citizenship, relationship, interest and disability; jurisdiction; other proceedings; property and debt estimates; interested persons and will witnesses; testacy; unavailable-information reasons; requested proceeding; and requested admission, appointment, supervision, letters, witness, custody, or lost-will relief as applicable (D.C. Code § 20-304) |
Testate petition exhibits the original or a copy if the original is already filed, states how petitioner obtained an original being filed, and discloses any known later will. A petition may separately request delivery from a custodian or show-cause relief for a lost/destroyed will (D.C. Code § 20-304(c), (f)) |
Current opening-estate chapter states no fixed ordinary petition or custodian-delivery deadline; if no abbreviated or formal petition is filed within a reasonable time, the Register may seek formal probate. Separate 6-month post-publication periods govern a will contest or specified formal-probate/finality requests (D.C. Code §§ 20-305, 20-321, 20-331) |
Abbreviated probate presumes due execution from an apparently duly executed will with an attesting-witness recital or a knowledgeable person's verified statement; Register may demand more verified proof or refer the matter. Formal probate ordinarily uses witness affidavits in the statutory question form unless Court orders otherwise (D.C. Code §§ 20-312, 20-324) |
Abbreviated probate may occur without formal-probate prior notice. Formal petitioner promptly notifies all known interested persons and publishes once weekly for 2 successive weeks in an authorized District publication; the statute prescribes Court action and proof but does not mandate an evidentiary hearing in every uncontested formal case. Six-month contest/finality routes follow appointment publication (D.C. Code §§ 20-305, 20-311, 20-323-.324, 20-331) |
Representative named in admitted will has first priority, subject to exclusions including renunciation, age under 18, specified disability/felony/immigration/court-role bars, and nonresident service-agent filing. Acceptance, any required bond, and jurisdiction consent are appointment conditions; Register issues letters after appointment. Bond rules account for will and interested-person waivers, demands, and institutional exceptions (D.C. Code §§ 20-303, 20-501-.503) |
| Florida verified 2026-08-08 | Formal administration under Fla. Stat. ch. 733 and Fla. Prob. R. 5.200; the petition seeks administration, admission of the will, and appointment |
Circuit court; county of Florida domicile, then county containing property, then county where a debtor resides; improper county venue is transferable (§§ 26.012(2)(b), 733.101) |
Any interested person may petition for administration; filing eligibility does not itself establish preference or qualification for letters (§ 733.202) |
Verified petition stating petitioner/attorney details; decedent, death, domicile, spouse and beneficiaries; venue; nominee priority and qualifications; foreign proceedings; asset nature/value; all unrevoked wills/codicils; and original-will status (Fla. Prob. R. 5.200) |
Original must be with the court or accompany the petition, subject to authenticated foreign/notarial-will routes; a portal-filed electronic will or qualifying notary-certified paper copy is an original (§§ 732.526, 732.901; Fla. Prob. R. 5.200(j)) |
Custodian must deposit the will within 10 days after learning of death; the cited provisions set no general 10-day petition deadline (§ 732.901) |
Self-proved will ordinarily needs no further proof; otherwise oath of an attesting witness, or if witness proof is unavailable, oath of the nominee or a disinterested person; substantial online-notarization failure defeats automatic electronic self-proof (§ 733.201) |
Preferred applicant ordinarily needs no pre-issuance notice; nonpreferred applicant must formally notify known qualified persons with equal/higher preference. Optional preletters formal notice binds served persons to raise specified challenges then; post-appointment notice starts a 3-month objection period (§§ 733.212, 733.2123; Fla. Prob. R. 5.201) |
Testate preference starts with the will's nominee; individual must be 18+, able, and free of listed convictions, with special nonresident relationship limits. Bond applies unless waived by will/court or statutory bank/trust-company exemption; letters follow admission and required filings (§§ 733.301-.305, 733.402; Fla. Prob. R. 5.235) |
| Georgia verified 2026-08-03 | Probate may be in common form, solemn form, or both. Each petition also prays for letters testamentary; common form is initially nonconclusive, while solemn form binds served parties (§§ 53-5-15, 53-5-17, 53-5-20 to -21) |
Probate court has exclusive jurisdiction in the testator's county of domicile at death; a nursing-home or similar-facility resident is presumptively domiciled in the pre-entry county, subject to rebuttal (§ 53-5-1) |
Named executor has first right. If the executor fails with reasonable promptness or none is named, any interested person—including listed heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, prior administrators, trust parties, or earlier-will claimants and their representatives—may offer (§ 53-5-2) |
Both forms state testator's full name, domicile, death date; petitioner's mailing address; every heir's name, age/majority, address, and relationship; pending Georgia competing-will proceedings and required parties; reasons for missing particulars; and a prayer for letters (§§ 53-5-17, 53-5-21) |
Will holder must file it in the jurisdictional probate court with reasonable promptness. If the original cannot be found, a copy may be offered only by proving it true and rebutting the revocation presumption by a preponderance (§§ 53-5-5, 53-4-46) |
Possessor's filing duty is 'reasonable promptness.' Separately, probate is barred 5 years after the earlier statutory trigger tied to a representative/no-administration/different-will petition or its continuing final order—not simply 5 years after death (§§ 53-5-3, 53-5-5) |
Common form uses one subscribing witness; solemn form uses all living in-jurisdiction witnesses, but one suffices absent caveat. Self-proof supplies presumptions; unavailable witnesses permit two credible disinterested signature witnesses or other sufficient proof (§§ 53-5-17, 53-5-21, 53-5-23 to -24) |
Common form may be ordered anytime without service. Solemn form follows notice to heirs and competing-will parties; known Georgia residents get personal service at least 30 days before probate unless waived. Publication commands objections. Post-qualification beneficiary notice is due within 6 months (§§ 53-5-18 to -22; 53-5-8) |
Sui-juris individuals are eligible regardless of residence/citizenship; nominees qualify in will order unless unfit, with 90-day windows and written declination available. Executor takes the statutory oath before a Georgia probate judge/clerk; default § 53-6-50 bond applies to intestate representatives/temporary administrators, while § 53-6-53 permits later bond for mismanagement (§§ 53-6-1, -10 to -13, -16, -50, -53) |
| Hawaii verified 2026-08-08 | Hawaii Uniform Probate Code; informal registrar application or formal testacy petition; probate and appointment may be combined, and Hawaii's informal-probate statement appoints a representative subject to qualification (Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:1-201, 560:3-107, 560:3-302, 560:3-401) |
Circuit court; decedent's domicile circuit, or any circuit containing property for a nondomiciliary; later proceedings stay with the first court unless transferred (Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:1-201, 560:1-302 to -303, 560:3-201) |
Any interested person may seek formal probate; an informal applicant also must appear to be interested. Interested persons include affected heirs, devisees, family members, creditors, beneficiaries, priority claimants, and representative fiduciaries (Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:1-201, 560:3-303, 560:3-401) |
Informal application is verified and states applicant identity/interest/contact, death/age/domicile, family/heirs/devisees and minor ages, nonresident venue, existing representatives, notice demands, timeliness, will facts, and—if requested—appointee and priority. Formal petition incorporates specified informal facts, identifies the instrument, seeks testacy/heir findings, and addresses the original; filed documents carry the statutory oath/perjury effect (Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:1-310, 560:3-301, 560:3-402) |
Informal: original with court/application, or authenticated copy of an original will probated, filed, deposited, or lodged elsewhere; formal: original with court/petition, authenticated foreign-probate copy, or contents plus lost/destroyed/unavailable explanation. Additional authenticated-copy routes cover specified foreign custody situations (Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:3-301, 560:3-303, 560:3-402) |
Ordinary will-probate and related appointment outside limit is 5 years after death, subject to listed exceptions; a custodian delivers after death and an interested person's request with reasonable promptness, with no fixed number of days (Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:3-108, 560:2-516) |
Informal apparent execution/attestation may need no further proof; otherwise registrar may presume execution or take a knowledgeable person's sworn statement. Formal unopposed proof may use 1 attesting witness or other evidence; contested self-proof avoids witness testimony absent fraud/forgery, while a non-self-proved will ordinarily requires 1 available competent in-state witness when execution is disputed (Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:3-303, 560:3-405 to -406) |
Informal notice depends on applicant: specified family/corporate applicants may proceed after 120 hours; others give heirs/devisees advance notice and wait 14 days, with written information ordinarily due within 30 days after probate. Formal route requires hearing, named-person notice, publication for unknown/unlocatable persons, and written objections; ordinary hearing notice is 14 days by mail/delivery or 2 weekly publications with last at least 10 days before hearing (Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:3-302, 560:3-306, 560:3-403 to -404; 560:1-401) |
Will nominee has first priority; under-18 and court-found unsuitable persons are disqualified. Before letters, appointee files acceptance and any bond; informal bond is usually unnecessary, while formal bond depends on court order, will terms, and interested-person demand. Letters ordinarily expire after 3 years unless renewed for good cause (Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:1-201, 560:3-103, 560:3-203, 560:3-601, 560:3-603 to -605) |
| Idaho verified 2026-08-08 | Idaho Uniform Probate Code; informal registrar application or formal testacy petition; probate and appointment may be combined but remain separable requests (Idaho Code §§ 15-1-201, 15-3-107, 15-3-401) |
District court; domicile county, or any county containing property for a nondomiciliary; a misplaced first informal case may be transferred (Idaho Code §§ 15-1-201(8), 15-3-201) |
Any interested person, including affected heirs, devisees, family members, creditors, beneficiaries, appointment-priority persons, and representative fiduciaries (Idaho Code §§ 15-1-201(25), 15-3-401) |
Informal application is verified and states interest, death/age/domicile, family/heirs/devisees and minor ages, nonresident venue, existing representatives, notice demands, timeliness, will facts, and—if requested—appointee and priority; formal petition incorporates specified informal facts, identifies the instrument, seeks testacy/heir findings, and addresses the original (Idaho Code §§ 15-3-301, 15-3-402) |
Informal: original with court or application, or certified copy of a will probated elsewhere; formal: original with court or petition, authenticated foreign-probate copy, or contents plus lost/destroyed/unavailable explanation. An ordinary copy is not the stated original-probate substitute (Idaho Code §§ 15-3-301(b), 15-3-303, 15-3-402) |
Ordinary probate/testacy outside limit is 3 years after death, subject to listed exceptions; a custodian must deliver after death with reasonable promptness, with no fixed number of days (Idaho Code §§ 15-3-108, 15-2-902) |
Informal apparent execution/attestation may need no further proof; otherwise registrar may presume execution or take a knowledgeable person's sworn statement. Formal unopposed proof may use 1 attesting witness or other evidence; contested non-self-proved wills require 1 available in-state attesting witness, while self-proof supplies statutory presumptions (Idaho Code §§ 15-3-303, 15-3-405 to -406) |
Informal advance notice only to demandants and an existing representative; formal route requires hearing, named-person notice, and pleaded objections. Ordinary hearing notice is 14 days by mail/delivery; 3 weekly publications, last at least 10 days before hearing, apply only when identity/address cannot be found diligently (Idaho Code §§ 15-3-306, 15-3-403 to -404; 15-1-401) |
Will nominee has first priority; under 18 and court-found unsuitable persons are disqualified. Before letters, appointee files acceptance and oath plus any bond; informal bond is usually unnecessary, while formal bond depends on court order, the will, and any interested-person request (Idaho Code §§ 15-3-103, 15-3-203, 15-3-601, 15-3-603 to -605) |
| Illinois verified 2026-08-03 | Probate Act petition to admit a will, which may also seek letters; the court may probate without a petition after 30 days in limited circumstances (§§ 6-2, 6-3) |
Court of county of known Illinois residence; if none, county holding the greater part of Illinois real estate, then the greater part of Illinois personal estate (§ 5-1) |
Anyone desiring admission may petition. A named executor must begin probate or refuse within 30 days after learning of the nomination; an interested person may compel will production (§§ 6-1 to 6-3) |
If known: death residence, date/place of death, will date and valid-last-will belief, approximate Illinois real/personal estate, all heirs/legatees and minor/disability status, executor address, and § 28-3 fiduciary unless supervision requested; electronic will adds tamper-evident/unaltered statement (§ 6-2; 755 ILCS 6/20-5) |
Will possessor must file it immediately after death; admitted original stays with clerk unless court orders otherwise. A certified paper copy satisfies an original-form rule for an electronic record (§§ 6-1, 6-7; 755 ILCS 6/10-5) |
Immediate filing by the will possessor after death; named executor has 30 days after knowledge to petition or refuse, subject to good cause. After 30 days from death, court may act without a petition (§§ 6-1, 6-3) |
Two attesting witnesses' statutory statements by testimony, signed attestation clause, or signed affidavit; competent-evidence, deposition, handwriting, and secondary-evidence fallbacks apply (§§ 6-4 to 6-6) |
Admission may precede notice. Within 14 days after the order, mail petition/order to listed heirs and legatees; publish 3 weeks for missing names/addresses. Notified persons have 42 days to demand formal proof (§§ 6-10, 6-21) |
Letters issue to named executor who qualifies and accepts: 18+, U.S. resident, sound mind, no adjudged disability, not incarcerated, and within felony rules. Individual files oath and court-approved bond unless written bond excused; nonresident bond remains discretionary (§§ 6-8, 6-13, 12-1 to 12-2) |
| Indiana verified 2026-08-03 | Probate and estate administration are one in-rem proceeding; a petition may combine admission of the will with letters testamentary or administration with the will annexed (Ind. Code §§ 29-1-7-2, -4) |
Court having probate jurisdiction; decedent's Indiana domicile county, or for a nondomiciliary any county containing estate property. First-filed county determines competing venue; transfer is available (§ 29-1-7-1) |
Any interested person or a personal representative named in the will may seek probate, letters, or both (§ 29-1-7-4(a)-(b)) |
Signed, verified petition stating decedent name, domicile, death date, adult/minor status; testacy; testate beneficiaries and their residences/adult status; nondomiciliary property; lost/unwritten-will terms; executor; proposed administrator-with-will-annexed facts; and attorney (§§ 29-1-1-9, 29-1-7-5) |
Ordinary will is filed/offered, but petition is allowed even if not possessed, lost, destroyed, or outside Indiana; custodian must produce on written demand or court order. Electronic filing means a complete converted copy (§§ 29-1-7-3 to -5, 29-1-21-11, -16) |
Generally latest of 3 years after death or 60 days after specified denial/revocation orders; late sole-purpose asset-transfer route if no estate was opened. Five-month petition and seven-month letters clocks separately protect sale of Indiana realty for debts/costs (§ 29-1-7-15.1) |
Paper: 1+ subscribing witnesses; if all unavailable, prove unavailability then handwriting; self-proved will gets rebuttable execution presumptions without testimony. Electronic self-proof has a similar presumption, but the court may demand execution or tampering evidence (§§ 29-1-7-9, -10, -13; 29-1-21-16) |
No notice of offer, probate, filing, or initial hearing; petition is heard immediately. Pre-admission objection delays probate 30 days; after letters, publish twice and serve listed heirs/devisees/legatees/known creditors. Contest generally within 3 months after admission (§§ 29-1-7-4, -7, -16, -17) |
Will nominee has first priority; disqualifications include under 18, specified incapacity, felony subject to court exception, unauthorized corporation, or unsuitability. Oath and approved required bond precede letters; bond is otherwise not required unless the will requires it or the court finds it necessary (§§ 29-1-10-1, -3; 29-1-11-1) |
| Iowa verified 2026-08-08 | Single District Court probate proceeding; verified requests for admission, executor appointment, hearing, and will production may be combined (Iowa Code §§ 633.10, .290, .330) |
Iowa District Court sitting in probate; resident decedent's county, or a county where a nonresident left, later acquired, or had property subject to administration; first eligible county retains concurrent case (§§ 633.3(11), .12-.14) |
Any interested person may petition for probate, executor appointment, a pre-admission hearing, or production of the will; appointment preference begins with the will's nominee (§§ 633.290, .294) |
Probate petition: decedent name, domicile, death date, and nonresident property/other county-jurisdiction basis. Executor petition: proposed person's name/address/qualification, reason if not will nominee, and personal-property plus annual-income estimates unless will waives bond (§§ 633.291 and 633.292) |
Custodian must deliver the will to the court after learning of death; a deceased testator's will may be deposited with or without a probate petition. Clerk opens a deposited will if no petition is filed within 30 days and notifies the executor; petition may compel production (§§ 633.285-.290) |
Petition must be filed within 5 years after death for probate to be granted. Custodian delivery is triggered by knowledge of death but has no numbered-day clock; the clerk's 30-day opening rule is not a universal petition deadline (§§ 633.285, .289, .331) |
Self-proved will establishes due execution without witness testimony. Otherwise 1+ subscribing witnesses may testify orally/in writing; deposition is available; if all unavailable, 2 disinterested handwriting witnesses or other sufficient execution evidence (§§ 633.279(2)(b), .293, .295-.297) |
Court/clerk may hear forthwith or later, with or without notice. A pre-admission objection prevents probate pending trial. After admission and letters, executor publishes weekly for 2 weeks and mails spouse, reasonably ascertainable heirs/devisees, with later-of-4-months-from-second-publication/1-month-from-mail contest warning (§§ 633.293, .304, .309-.310) |
Will nominee has first preference; resident adult must be competent/suitable, while nonresident ordinarily serves with resident cofiduciary unless court finds good cause. Fiduciary swears or certifies duties; bond is default but may be waived by will/distributees/court; letters issue after oath/certification and required bond (§§ 633.63-.64, .168-.178, .294, .299) |
| Kansas verified 2026-08-08 | Kansas Probate Code, K.S.A. ch. 59; a verified district-court petition seeks probate, and the same filing may request appointment and letters, which follow admission and qualification (§§ 59-2201, -2204, -2219, -2220, -2227) |
District court. Resident with realty in residence county: that county; otherwise residence county or any county containing realty. Nonresident: county with estate to administer. First legally commenced case controls; wrong-county file transfers (§ 59-2203) |
Any person interested in the estate may petition after the testator's death; the named executor's entitlement to letters is a separate appointment question (§§ 59-2221, -701) |
Signed and verified; petitioner identity, interest/right, jurisdictional and relief facts, and prayer; decedent/death, heirs, estate character/value, proposed appointee, simplified-administration election; devisees/legatees, named executor, and known scrivener (§§ 59-2201, -2202, -2219, -2220) |
Will accompanies the petition if it can be produced. A lost/destroyed-will petition must state its provisions and uses a separate clear-and-distinct proof route (§§ 59-2220, -2228) |
Resident testator's written will ordinarily requires a probate petition within 6 months after death. A knowing withholder faces liability; an innocent beneficiary may petition within 90 days after gaining knowledge and access (§§ 59-617, -618) |
Uncontested self-proved will: no subscribing-witness testimony. Otherwise at least 2 subscribing witnesses in person, by affidavit, or deposition; court may waive if unavailable/unlocatable and use other testimony or handwriting proof (§§ 59-606, -2224) |
Court fixes a hearing. Default § 59-2209 notice: 3 weekly publications, mailing within 7 days after first publication to known heirs/devisees/legatees with papers, and hearing 10–30 days after last publication; court may order another method, and all interested parties may waive and consent to an immediate hearing (§§ 59-2222, -2209, -2223) |
Named executor receives letters if legally competent and accepting; minor nominee waits absent another accepting executor, and nonresident must appoint a Kansas agent. Oath required. Default bond is at least 125% of personalty plus probable annual realty income, subject to statutory waiver and later court demand; qualify within 10 days (§§ 59-701, -702, -706, -1101, -1104, -1702, -2227) |
| Kentucky verified 2026-08-08 | District Court application to probate and record the will under KRS ch. 394; probate and executor/administrator-with-will-annexed appointment may be combined (§§ 394.130, 394.145) |
District Court of testator's Kentucky residence; Army-post residence permits adjacent county. Nonresident fallback: devised-land county, then death/assets/debtor county if no land devised (§ 394.140) |
The person offering the will files the verified probate application; the will-named executor may combine the appointment request (§ 394.145) |
Verified probate application: residence, jurisdiction facts, spouse, and court-requested known heirs with ages/addresses. Combined appointment adds death, known spouse/heirs contacts, applicant debt, will-return recipient, fiduciary acknowledgment, and sealed financial disclosure (§§ 394.145, 395.015) |
Will must be presented before or at appointment; District Court may compel a custodian. Electronic will is a will for all purposes for a decedent dying on/after July 15, 2026, and an individual may certify a complete paper copy (§§ 394.160, 394.702, 394.712, 394.715, 395.015) |
Original administration/letters cannot be granted more than 10 years after death and a later grant is void; Chapter 394 states no separate numeric probate-only deadline (§ 395.010) |
Self-proved will needs no subscribing-witness testimony. Otherwise an unavailable witness may testify by deposition; if ordinary proof is unavailable, at least two credible disinterested handwriting witnesses or other sufficient handwriting proof may support probate (§§ 394.225, 394.230, 394.235) |
District Court may probate without summons; proponent or court may summon interested persons. If a hearing is ordered, mail time/place/purpose at least 5 days beforehand and file proof; specified appointment disputes require a hearing unless waived (§§ 394.170, 394.220, 395.015-.016) |
Eligible fiduciary includes adult Kentucky resident, qualifying bank/trust company, or related adult nonresident. Named executor waits for probate, order, oath/declaration, and any bond; no bond is default, but court may require one to protect estate interests (§§ 395.005, 395.020, 395.105, 395.120, 395.130) |
| Louisiana verified 2026-08-08 | Louisiana succession proceeding under La. Code Civ. Proc. arts. 2811-2904; petition for probate/execution, with a production order having the effect of probate for a qualifying notarial or statutory testament (arts. 2851, 2891) |
District court in domicile parish; for a nonresident, any parish with immovable property, then movable property only if no Louisiana immovable exists (art. 2811) |
Any person who considers that they have an interest in opening the succession may petition for probate and execution (art. 2851) |
Request probate/execution; submit death and jurisdiction evidence; two knowledgeable affiants are required if arts. 2821-2822 affidavit evidence is used. A named executor may combine confirmation/letters (arts. 2852, 3081) |
Present or produce the testament; a possessor must present even a validity-doubted purported testament for filing. If petitioner lacks it, petitioner may seek a court-directed notarial search; cited ordinary chapter states no general copy substitute (arts. 2852-2855, 2891) |
Right to probate prescribes five years after judicial opening of the succession, not five years after death; cited provisions state no separate universal custodian-delivery clock (art. 2893; La. R.S. 9:5643) |
Qualifying notarial testament needs no proof; otherwise notary/witness, one-available-person, or two-signature-witness route. Olographic testament requires two credible handwriting witnesses; affidavits ordinarily may substitute (arts. 2883, 2887, 2891) |
Court proceeds ex parte unless opposed. A will requiring proof receives an assigned or immediate hearing; opposition triggers contradictory trial, service on petitioner, and proponent's authenticity/form burden (arts. 2856, 2881-2882, 2901-2903) |
Named executor may seek confirmation; disqualifications include under 18, interdiction/incompetence, felony, unrepresented nonresidency, unauthorized corporation, or proved unfitness. Named executor ordinarily gives no security; oath and required security precede letters (arts. 3081-3082, 3097, 3153, 3158-3159) |
| Maine verified 2026-08-09 | Maine Probate Code; verified informal application to the register or formal testacy petition to the Probate Court; probate and personal-representative appointment may be combined but are legally separable (18-C M.R.S. §§ 1-201, 3-107, 3-301, 3-401) |
County Probate Court; decedent's domicile county, or any county containing property for a nondomiciliary; later proceedings remain with the initial court unless transferred under the Code (18-C M.R.S. §§ 1-201, 1-302, 3-201) |
An interested person may seek informal or formal probate. Interested persons include affected heirs, devisees, children, spouses, domestic partners, creditors, beneficiaries, appointment-priority claimants, and representative fiduciaries (18-C M.R.S. §§ 1-201, 3-303, 3-401) |
Informal application is verified and states interest, death/age/domicile, spouse/children/heirs/devisees and minor ages, nonresident venue, existing representatives, notice demands, timeliness, will execution/revocation facts, and—if appointment is requested—the nominee's name/address/priority. Formal petition imports specified facts and requests testacy and heir determinations, with the original-will statement (18-C M.R.S. §§ 3-301, 3-402) |
Informal: original is already with the court or accompanies the application; authenticated copy is limited to a will probated elsewhere. Formal: original is with the court or petition; otherwise an authenticated foreign-probate copy or a lost/destroyed/unavailable-will contents statement is required (18-C M.R.S. §§ 3-301 to -303, 3-402) |
Custodian delivers with reasonable promptness after death, with no fixed day count. Ordinary probate/appointment window is 3 years, but statutory late routes include a restricted case if no succession or administration proceeding occurred in the first 3 years (18-C M.R.S. §§ 2-515, 3-108) |
Informal apparent execution and attestation permit probate without more; otherwise the register may presume execution or accept a knowledgeable person's sworn statement. Formal unopposed proof may use 1 witness or other evidence; contested self-proof avoids witness testimony absent fraud/forgery, while a non-self-proved will ordinarily requires 1 available competent in-state witness when execution is disputed (18-C M.R.S. §§ 3-303, 3-405 to -406) |
Informal route has no hearing; ordinary-mail notice goes to demandants, nonwaiving heirs/devisees, existing representatives, prior/equal appointment claimants, and DHHS if decedent was 55+, with publication for unknown/unlocatable persons. Formal route requires hearing, certified-mail/personal service, publication for unknown addresses, and written objections; hearing is at least 14 days after first publication or completed other service, whichever is later (18-C M.R.S. §§ 3-306, 3-310, 3-403 to -404; M.R. Prob. P. 4, 12) |
Probated-will nominee has first priority; appointee must be 18+ and not court-found unsuitable, file acceptance and any required bond, then receive letters. Informal bond is usually unnecessary; formal bond depends on court order, will terms, or a qualifying demand. Unspecified bond amount is personal estate plus next-year estate income (18-C M.R.S. §§ 3-103, 3-203, 3-601, 3-603 to -605) |
| Maryland verified 2026-08-04 | Petition may combine probate and letters; administrative probate is before the register, while judicial probate is before the orphans' court (Md. Code, Est. & Trusts §§ 2-101, 5-101, 5-301, 5-401) |
Orphans' court for judicial probate; register for administrative probate. Venue starts with Maryland domicile, then uses the current nonresident hierarchy; competing filings are transferable (2026 Md. Laws ch. 504, §§ 1, 3, 5; ET § 2-101) |
An interested person may seek administrative or judicial probate; a creditor may seek judicial probate if there was no administrative probate, and the register may file after unreasonable delay (§§ 1-101(j), 5-301, 5-401, 5-402) |
Statutory verified form covers petitioner eligibility; death, domicile, venue, priority and disqualification; will search, dates, source and witnesses; other proceedings; acceptance; requested probate, appointment, and relief; regular-estate values/debts (§ 5-206) |
Custodian delivers the will to the proper register after death; the ordinary petition identifies the accompanying last will. A certified electronic/remotely witnessed will is the original; a signature-bearing duplicate copy has a unanimous-consent route (§§ 4-102(e), 4-203, 5-206, 5-801 to 5-804) |
No numerical ordinary petition or custodian-delivery deadline stated; custodian must deliver after death. A copy petition may be filed any time before administrative or judicial probate (§§ 4-203, 5-802) |
Register assumes due execution from an apparently duly executed will containing the attesting witnesses' recital; otherwise a verified statement by a person with personal knowledge supplies the ordinary administrative proof (§ 5-303) |
Administrative probate generally may proceed without prior notice. Judicial probate requires prompt direct notice, 2 weekly publications, and a plenary hearing. Post-appointment publication warns of 6-month appointment and will objections (§§ 5-301, 5-403, 5-404, 7-103) |
Will nominee has first priority but must qualify, accept duties, consent to Maryland jurisdiction, and file required bond. Will or unanimous waiver excuses general bond, but debts/inheritance-tax bond remains; register appoints on petition allegations (§§ 5-104, 5-105, 5-302, 6-101, 6-102) |
| Massachusetts verified 2026-08-03 | Massachusetts UPC informal probate/appointment before court or magistrate, or formal testacy before judge; formal probate may include appointment (§§ 1-201, 3-401) |
Probate and Family Court; domicile county, or for a nondomiciliary any county containing property; informal proceeding may transfer to proper venue (§§ 1-201(7), 3-201) |
Any interested person may seek informal probate or formal testacy; interested persons include heirs, devisees, children, spouses, creditors, beneficiaries, priority holders, fiduciaries, and others with a relevant estate right or claim (§§ 1-201(24), 3-303(a)(3), 3-401) |
Verified petition: interest; decedent name/death/age/address; spouse, children, heirs, devisees and minors; incapacity; venue; prior representatives; certified MassHealth transmission; 3-year timeliness; will execution/revocation; death certificate; and appointment nominee/priority. Formal petition adopts core facts and requests testacy/heir order (§§ 3-301, 3-402) |
Original must be with the court or accompany the petition; authenticated copy of a will probated elsewhere is allowed. Formal petition may state contents and explain a lost, destroyed, or unavailable original (§§ 3-301(a)(2)(i), 3-303(a)(5), 3-402(a)) |
Ordinary probate/testacy/appointment generally within 3 years after death, subject to statutory exceptions; will custodian delivers within 30 days after notice of death (§§ 3-108, 2-516) |
Informal will with adequate signatures and attestation clause is probated without further proof; magistrate may assume apparent execution. Formal execution proof may use one attesting witness or other evidence; contested non-self-proved case ordinarily needs one available in-state witness, while self-proof creates rebuttable execution presumptions (§§ 3-303(c), 3-405-.406) |
Informal: 7-day written notice before filing to heirs/devisees, prior/equal appointment claimants, existing PR, and certified petition/death certificate to MassHealth; newspaper notice within 30 days after. Formal: citation generally 14 days by mail/personal service or 7 days by publication; written appearance by 10 a.m. return date and fact-specific objection affidavit within 30 days (§§ 3-306, 3-403, 1-401) |
Probated-will nominee has first priority; applicant must be 18+ and appointment not contrary to estate's best interests. Informal appointment ordinarily after 7 days (30 for certain nondomiciliaries). Bond is always filed; sureties may be waived. Acceptance and bond precede letters (§§ 3-203, 3-307, 3-601, 3-603) |
| Michigan verified 2026-08-03 | EPIC provides informal probate by register without general advance notice and formal testacy litigation after notice and hearing; formal probate may be joined with, or separated from, appointment (§§ 700.1105(b), 700.3102-.3103, 700.3401) |
Probate court; county of domicile, or for a nondomiciliary, a county where the decedent owned property at death. An informal case filed in the wrong county may be transferred on application and notice (§§ 700.1103(k), 700.1302, 700.3201) |
Informal application: interested person; after 28 days, also a person with a right/cause that cannot be enforced without administration. Formal petition: either category (§§ 700.1105(c), 700.3301(1), 700.3401(1)) |
Sworn informal application states applicant interest; decedent/death/age/domicile; spouse, children, devisees, heirs and minor ages; venue; existing representative; original/last-will facts; and requested appointee details. Formal petition imports core facts and requests testacy/heir orders, states original status, and may request appointment (§§ 700.3301, 700.3402) |
Informal probate requires the original in the court's possession or accompanying the application, except an authenticated copy of a will probated elsewhere. Formal petition states whether the original is held/accompanies; if unavailable, it states contents and the loss, destruction, or other unavailability (§§ 700.3301(1)(b), 700.3402(1)(c)) |
Will custodian must forward it to the proper court with reasonable promptness after death. At 28 days, informal eligibility expands; a nondomiciliary informal appointment is ordinarily delayed until 28 days after death. EPIC Parts 3-4 state no general outside probate-petition deadline (§§ 700.2516, 700.3301(1), 700.3307(1)) |
Informal: adequate signatures/attestation clause can require no further proof; register may assume execution or accept a knowledgeable person's sworn statement. Formal: self-proof creates conclusive signature and rebuttable execution presumptions; otherwise one witness or other evidence can prove execution (§§ 700.2504, 700.3303, 700.3405-.3406) |
Informal probate has no general advance notice, but applicant gives probate information within 28 days and gives appointment-intent notice to unwaived prior/equal nominees. Formal case requires a hearing, notice to listed persons and publication for unknowns, and pleaded objections (§§ 700.3306, 700.3310, 700.3401, 700.3403-.3404) |
Probated-will nominee has first priority; personal representative must be 18+ and suitable, file acceptance and any required bond. Informal bond is usually unnecessary; formal court may order it subject to will terms and demand rules. Qualification and letters start authority (§§ 700.3103, 700.3203-.3204, 700.3601, 700.3603-.3605) |
| Minnesota verified 2026-08-04 | Informal probate and appointment may be combined before registrar; formal testacy is noticed district-court proceeding and may, but need not, include appointment (§§ 524.1-201(9), 524.3-301, 524.3-401) |
District court in decedent's domicile county; nondomiciliary uses any county holding decedent property. Informal case may transfer if venue belongs elsewhere (§§ 524.1-201(9), 524.3-201) |
Informal applicant must appear to be an interested person. Formal proceeding may be filed by an interested person or personal representative named in will to seek probate, set aside/prevent informal probate, or determine intestacy (§§ 524.3-303, 524.3-401) |
Verified informal filing states applicant interest; decedent birth/death/domicile; spouse, children, heirs, devisees/minors; venue, other representatives, notice demands; original/authenticated will, validity, no revocation, timeliness; proposed representative identity/address/priority. Formal petition adopts required informal facts and requests testacy/heir and appointment relief (§§ 524.3-301, 524.3-402) |
After death and interested-person request, custodian delivers will with reasonable promptness. Informal original probate requires original in court or accompanying application; foreign-probated will uses authenticated will/probate statement. Formal petition uses original, authenticated foreign copy, or pleaded lost/unavailable-will contents (§§ 524.2-516, 524.3-301, 524.3-303, 524.3-402) |
Custodian delivery: reasonable promptness after death and interested-person request; no fixed number. Most original informal/formal probate or appointment proceedings: within 3 years after death, subject to exceptions. Informal probate/appointment waits 120 hours (§§ 524.2-516, 524.3-108, 524.3-302, 524.3-307) |
Informal attestation-clause will needs no further proof; otherwise registrar may assume execution or accept knowledgeable-person affidavit. Formal unopposed: pleadings or 1 witness affidavit/testimony, with other evidence if unavailable. Contested self-proved will gets signature conclusiveness and other rebuttable execution presumptions absent affidavit fraud/forgery (§§ 524.2-504, 524.3-303, 524.3-405-.407) |
Informal gives limited pre-action notice, then publishes 2 weeks and mails all interested persons except creditors. Formal court sets hearing; spouse, children, heirs, devisees, named representatives, and existing representative get notice, plus 2-week publication. General mail/personal notice is 14 days; informal contest deadline is later of 12 months after probate or 3 years after death (§§ 524.1-401, 524.3-108, 524.3-306, 524.3-310, 524.3-403) |
Probated-will nominee has first priority; representative must be 18+ and suitable, then file oath/acceptance and required bond before letters. Informal bond normally not required absent will, special-administrator, or court-demand grounds; formal will waiver or unanimous qualifying no-bond request controls unless court protects interested persons (§§ 524.3-203, 524.3-307-.308, 524.3-601, 524.3-603) |
| Mississippi verified 2026-08-08 | Miss. Code tit. 91, ch. 7 and Uniform Chancery Court Rules; initial will probate and letters testamentary share the same Chancery Court scheme, with no-notice and joined-interested-person routes (§§ 91-7-1 to -45) |
Chancery Court: fixed-residence county; if none and land is devised, any county containing part of the land; if none and only personalty, death county or a county containing property (§ 91-7-1) |
Any person interested in the will may propound it; the named executor's entitlement concerns letters, not exclusive filing authority (§§ 91-7-3, -35) |
No statewide statute gives a comprehensive fact checklist. File the petition before presentation and attach a copy of the will as an exhibit; statewide venue, standing, probate-route, and letters rules govern the requested relief (UCCR 2.01, 6.15) |
Ordinary route exhibits the will; petition carries a copy, and the original remains with the clerk after probate and is secured in the clerk's vault. Court may compel a possessor to produce it (§§ 91-7-3, -5, -31; UCCR 6.15, 9.03) |
No fixed universal probate-petition deadline stated. Court may compel production; a named executor who willfully fails for 40 days after death to exhibit the will risks administration with will annexed. The 2-year period is for contesting no-notice probate (§§ 91-7-5, -23, -39) |
Attested will: 1 living competent subscribing witness, subscribing-witness affidavit, or handwriting proof if none can be produced. Uncontested holograph: 2 disinterested handwriting/capacity affidavits. Nonresident/missing witness: deposition or qualifying affidavit route (§§ 91-7-7 to -13) |
No-notice probate is available absent a written caveat; proponent may instead make all interested people parties initially. A pre-probate written objection requires notice and a will-validity issue; no-notice probate may be contested for 2 years (§§ 91-7-19, -21, -23) |
Named executor is entitled if 18+, sound mind, and not felony-convicted. Before letters: statutory oath and bond equal to full estate value; will waiver removes bond unless court/clerk requires it. Renunciation, disqualification, or specified 40-day failure leads to administration with will annexed (§§ 91-7-35, -39, -41, -45) |
| Missouri verified 2026-08-03 | One in-rem estate-administration proceeding in the probate division of circuit court; application may request supervised or independent administration (Mo. Rev. Stat. §§ 472.020, 473.013, 473.017(10)) |
Probate division of circuit court; domicile county, then Missouri-property county with special realty-majority rule, then a county needed to protect a legal right. First-filed application controls competing venue (§§ 472.020, 473.010) |
A person entitled under § 473.110 may apply; after 20 days with no application, any interested person—including a claimant with the required affidavit—may petition (§ 473.020) |
Application lists decedent identity/death/domicile; spouse, heirs, devisees, legatees, minors and conservators; values and Missouri property; unavailable-will contents; named executors; intestate nominee; attorney; fiduciary undertaking; and supervised/independent choice (§ 473.017) |
Custodian delivers the will to the proper probate division or the county where found, which forwards the original. Presentment requires will delivery—or a verified unavailable-will statement—plus a probate affidavit/petition or qualifying foreign order (§§ 473.043, 473.050(2)) |
If letters notice was published: within 6 months after first publication or 30 days after a § 473.083 action begins, whichever is later; otherwise 1 year after death. Foreign domiciliary will: during domiciliary administration. Letters application generally within 1 year (§ 473.050(3), (6)) |
Non-self-proved will: examine at least 2 available subscribing witnesses; unavailable-witness handwriting or other competent proof. Compliant self-proved will is admitted without further proof; clerk/court still finds death, lawful execution, and no revocation (§§ 473.053, .065, .073; 474.337) |
Ordinary application has no stated pre-probate notice; post-20-day interested-person petition gets hearing within 15 days and court-directed notice. After letters, publish 4 weeks and mail heirs/devisees. Contest within 6 months after probate/rejection or first publication, whichever later (§§ 473.020, .033, .083) |
Will nominee receives letters unless disqualified/failing; statute bars listed officials, under-18 or unsound persons, crime-disabled persons, habitual drunkards, listed foreign entities, and successor representatives. Bond before duties unless will waiver, qualifying corporation, good cause, or deposit reduction (§§ 473.023, .110, .117, .157, .160) |
| Montana verified 2026-08-09 | Montana Uniform Probate Code; informal clerk application or formal district-court testacy petition, with probate and appointment allowed in one proceeding (MCA §§ 72-1-103, 72-3-102, 72-3-121, 72-3-302) |
District court; county of domicile, or any county containing property for a nondomiciliary; a first informal case may be transferred if venue lies elsewhere (MCA §§ 72-1-103(9), 72-1-202, 72-3-112) |
An interested person may apply informally or petition formally; this includes heirs, devisees, spouse, children, creditors, beneficiaries, appointment-priority persons, and representative fiduciaries as the matter requires (MCA §§ 72-1-103(25), 72-3-105, 72-3-302) |
Verified filing stating interest; decedent, death, age, domicile; spouse, children, heirs, devisees and minor ages; nondomiciliary venue; existing representatives; notice demands; timeliness; will validity/nonrevocation; and proposed appointee, address, and priority when appointment is sought. Formal petition adds the requested testacy/heir order and original-will status (MCA §§ 72-1-310, 72-3-201 to -203, 72-3-301) |
Informal original probate requires the original with the court or accompanying the application; authenticated foreign routes are separate. Formal petition states whether the original is with the court or attached; otherwise it states the will's contents and that it is lost, destroyed, or unavailable (MCA §§ 72-3-203, 72-3-301) |
Ordinary original probate/testacy/appointment outside limit is 3 years after death, subject to listed exceptions; informal probate waits at least 120 hours after death. A custodian delivers on an interested person's request with reasonable promptness, not by a fixed number of days (MCA §§ 72-2-536, 72-3-122, 72-3-215) |
Informal apparent signatures plus a qualifying attestation clause need no further proof; otherwise the clerk may presume execution or accept a knowledgeable person's sworn statement. Formal unopposed proof may use one witness or other evidence; in a contested execution case, self-proof avoids witness testimony absent affidavit fraud/forgery, while a non-self-proved witnessed will ordinarily needs one available Montana witness (MCA §§ 72-3-213, 72-3-307, 72-3-321) |
Informal probate notice goes only to demandants and an existing representative; informal appointment also reaches unwaived prior/equal-priority persons, and no other advance notice is required. Formal testacy requires a hearing, 14-day mail/personal notice to listed family, heirs, devisees, executors, and representatives, plus publication for unknown or unlocatable persons; objections must be pleaded (MCA §§ 72-1-301, 72-3-211, 72-3-221, 72-3-305, 72-3-308) |
Probated-will nominee has first priority; representative must be 18+ and not found unsuitable. Before letters, appointee files acceptance and any required bond. Informal bond is usually unnecessary unless statute, will, or demand requires it; formal bond follows the court/will rules (MCA §§ 72-3-501 to -504, 72-3-512 to -513) |
| Nebraska verified 2026-08-08 | Nebraska Probate Code; informal registrar application or formal county-court testacy petition; probate and appointment may be combined (Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 30-2209, 30-2407, 30-2425) |
County court; domicile county, or any county containing property for a nondomiciliary; a misplaced first informal case may be transferred (Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 30-2209(5), 30-2410) |
Any interested person, including affected heirs, devisees, family members, creditors, claimants, appointment-priority persons, and representative fiduciaries (Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 30-2209(21), 30-2425) |
Informal application is verified and states interest, death/age/domicile, family/heirs/devisees and minor ages, nonresident venue, existing representatives, notice demands, will facts, and—if requested—appointee and priority; formal petition incorporates those facts, identifies the instrument, seeks testacy/heir findings, and addresses the original (Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 30-2414, 30-2426) |
Informal: original/authenticated foreign-probate copy with court, attached, or true copy plus original/authenticated copy delivered within 10 days; formal: original with court/attached, or electronically filed and delivered within 10 days; otherwise state contents and unavailability (Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 30-2414(2), 30-2426(a)) |
Ordinary probate/testacy outside limit is 3 years after death, subject to listed late routes; a custodian must deliver on an interested person's request with reasonable promptness, not within a fixed number of days (Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 30-2408, 30-2356) |
Informal apparent execution/attestation may need no further proof; otherwise registrar may presume execution or take a knowledgeable person's sworn statement. Formal unopposed proof may use one attesting witness or other evidence; contested non-self-proved wills require one available in-state attesting witness, while self-proof supplies statutory presumptions (Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 30-2416, 30-2429, 30-2430) |
Informal advance notice only to demandants and an existing representative, followed by statutory publication; formal route requires hearing, named-person notice, publication for unknown/unlocatable persons, and pleaded objections; ordinary hearing notice is 14 days by mail/delivery plus 3 weekly publications, last at least 3 days before hearing (Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 30-2415, 30-2419, 30-2420, 30-2427 to -2428; 30-2220) |
Will nominee has first priority; under 19 and court-found unsuitable persons are disqualified. Before letters, appointee files acceptance and any bond; bond is required unless a statutory waiver/exemption applies, but court or qualifying demand may require it (Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 30-2403, 30-2412, 30-2444, 30-2446 to -2448) |
| Nevada verified 2026-08-08 | District Court petition for probate and issuance of letters under NRS ch. 136; same petition addresses admission and appointment, with a separate lost/destroyed-will route (§§ 136.070, .090, .100, .230-.240) |
Any Nevada District Court if decedent was a Nevada resident or left any Nevada estate; venue is statewide, subject to convenience hierarchy and exclusive jurisdiction after first court's noticed hearing (NRS 136.010) |
Named personal representative, devisee, or any other interested person, whether or not holding the will; named representative may seek production. Non-nominee or fewer than all nominees must serve nonjoining nominees (§§ 136.060-.070, .120) |
Jurisdiction; nominee consent/renunciation; heirs/next of kin/devisees, residences, minor ages, kinship; estate character/value; proposed representative and felony history; deceased devisees; and convenience to nominee/trustee, interested persons, and counsel (§ 136.090) |
Holder delivers will to clerk or named representative; named representative presents possessed will. Out-of-state detained will may use copy; electronic will may use certified paper original; lost/destroyed will uses separate petition/proof (§§ 136.050-.060, .180, .185, .230-.240) |
Will holder: 30 days after knowledge of death. Named representative: 30 days after death or knowledge of nomination. Probate petition may be filed at any time after death; no separate numbered petition limit stated in § 136.070 (§§ 136.050, .070) |
Uncontested will may use 1 subscribing witness or filed affidavit; post-death witness affidavits substitute for testimony. If witnesses unavailable, 2 disinterested signature witnesses or other sufficient proof; certified self-proving e-will gets expeditious admission absent objection (§§ 136.130-.185) |
Clerk sets hearing. At least 10-day mail/personal notice to heirs, devisees, nonjoining nominees, and Human Services Director; public notice on 3 dates with ≥10 days first-to-last. Responses/objections may be written before/at hearing or oral at hearing (§§ 136.100, .120, .140; 155.010, .020, .160) |
Nominee must appear and qualify; bars include minority and specified felony/court-found disqualifications. Oath precedes letters. Bond is court-discretionary regardless of will, with blocked-account alternative; court may later require bond despite waiver (§§ 138.010-.020; 142.010, .020, .070) |
| New Hampshire verified 2026-08-08 | RSA chs. 547, 552, and 553; ordinary initial common-form probate plus executor appointment on the statewide estate-administration petition; solemn form is principally a 6-month reexamination of probate proved without notice (RSA 547:3; RSA 552:1, :6 to :8; NHJB-2145-Pe) |
Circuit Court Probate Division has exclusive will-probate and administration jurisdiction. Chapters 547, 552, and 553 state no fixed initial county hierarchy; the statewide petition identifies the court and decedent residence, and Rule 115 permits county transfer for inconvenience, residence change, or other good cause |
Named executor or another interested person may present the will; if a filed will is not presented by the executor or an interested person, the surviving spouse or an heir may apply for allowance or disallowance (RSA 552:5-a, :10) |
Mandatory e-file form asks petitioner identity/contact/residency and nominee status, decedent identity/death/residence, will and requested appointment, unavailable nominees, beneficiaries and substitute takers, spouse/heirs and relationships/addresses, New Hampshire realty, estate values, bond acknowledgment, and verified signature; statute separately requires the spouse/known-heir list with relationships and known addresses (RSA 552:5-a; NHJB-2145-Pe) |
Original domestic will and codicils plus certified death certificate are mailed to the Estates Electronic Filing Center after the petition is e-filed. Custodian delivers the will to the probate court or named executor; the executor files it with the court (RSA 552:2 to :3; NHJB-2145-Pe) |
Custodian: 30 days after learning of death. Named executor: within the later of 30 days after death or 30 days after learning of the nomination, then prove the will or file refusal if the estate has assets. Chapter 552 states no separate universal outside probate-petition limit (RSA 552:2 to :4) |
Self-proved will is allowed as such. Uncontested common form uses 1 subscribing witness or assents of spouse, legatees, devisees, heirs, and any unnamed-charity representative without witness appearance; unavailable witnesses permit other satisfactory evidence. Interested party may seek solemn-form reexamination within 6 months (RSA 552:5-b to :8, :12) |
Court sends an original statewide petition to interested parties. Common-form probate can be proved without notice, subject to 6-month solemn reexamination; that petition requires personal notice to executor if practicable, publication, and hearing. Clerk publishes appointment within 15 days unless estate gross value is $10,000 or less (RSA 552:7 to :9; RSA 553:16; NHJB-2145-Pe) |
Will-named executor has first appointment right; applicant must be of full age and suitable, and nonresident appointment is discretionary with resident-agent filing. Bond with sureties or acceptable security is the default, personal bond alone applies at $25,000 or less, and judge may waive or adjust; certificate of appointment issues after approval and any ordered bond (RSA 553:2 to :5, :13, :25 to :28; NHJB-2145-Pe) |
| New Jersey verified 2026-08-03 | Ordinary uncontested probate and letters proceed by verified application in the county Surrogate's Court; a dispute or doubt stops surrogate action unless the Superior Court orders otherwise (R. 4:80-1; §§ 3B:2-5, 3B:3-17) |
Surrogate's Court of the domicile county for a New Jersey resident; the Superior Court also may probate and grant letters, and contested or doubtful matters leave the ordinary surrogate track (R. 4:80-1; §§ 3B:2-5, 3B:3-24) |
Ordinary letters-testamentary workflow: the executor nominated in the will applies. If that nominee cannot serve, administration with the will annexed is a different appointment request (official Surrogate instructions; R. 4:80-1) |
Verified application states applicant residence; decedent name, death, domicile, and will date; spouse, heirs, next of kin, other persons entitled to letters, relationships and addresses; minor ages; after-born/adopted-child facts; and unknown-person explanation (R. 4:80-1(a)) |
Ordinary surrogate probate requires presentation of the original will and codicils with an original death certificate; a missing, doubtful, or contested will does not stay on the routine surrogate track (official Surrogate instructions; § 3B:2-5) |
The will may be offered any time after death, but the Surrogate cannot issue a short certificate until the eleventh day after death; the cited ordinary materials state no outside petition deadline (official Surrogate instructions) |
One attesting witness or another person knowledgeable about proper execution and attestation may prove an ordinary will; a will self-proved under §§ 3B:3-4 or -5 needs no further affidavit, deposition, or proof (§ 3B:3-19) |
Ordinary notice is post-probate: within 60 days the representative mails beneficiaries and Rule 4:80-1(a)(3) persons; proof follows within 10 days, with publication for unknowns and Attorney General notice for charitable gifts. Any dispute or doubt halts surrogate action (R. 4:80-6; § 3B:2-5) |
Nominee swears the executor qualification; accepted probate leads to appointment and short certificates. Bond applies in listed cases, including a nonresident executor unless the will waives security, and specified developmental-disability cases (§§ 3B:2-6, 3B:15-1) |
| New Mexico verified 2026-08-08 | New Mexico Uniform Probate Code, NMSA 1978 ch. 45. Informal probate/appointment uses a verified application in probate or district court; formal testacy is district-court litigation after notice and hearing. Probate and appointment requests may be combined (§§ 45-3-107, -301, -401, -402) |
First informal or formal proceeding: county of decedent's domicile; if not domiciled in New Mexico, any county containing property. Informal wrong-venue proceeding may transfer on petition and notice (§ 45-3-201) |
Informal applicant and formal petitioner must be interested persons. Appointment priority is separate; the probated-will nominee ranks first if qualified (§§ 45-3-303(A)(3), -401(A), -203(A)) |
Informal: verified interest; decedent/death/age/domicile; spouse, children, heirs, devisees/minors; nonresident venue; existing representatives; notice demands; 3-year timeliness; original/copy status; execution, revocation, last-will belief; appointment name/address/priority. Formal incorporates those facts and requests testacy/heir orders (§§ 45-3-301, -402) |
Informal: original in court or accompanying application, or authenticated copy already probated elsewhere. Formal: original accompanies unless already held; if unavailable and no authenticated foreign copy, state contents and why unavailable. Lifetime deposit and custodian delivery are separately recognized (§§ 45-2-515, -516, 45-3-301(B), -402) |
Ordinary informal/formal probate or appointment generally cannot begin more than 3 years after death, subject to listed tardy routes. Custodian must deliver as soon as informed of death, but § 45-2-516 states no fixed day count (§§ 45-3-108, 45-2-516) |
Informal: attestation clause showing execution permits probate without further proof; court may presume regular execution or accept a sworn statement from anyone with knowledge. Formal: self-proof supplies presumptions without witness testimony; if non-self-proved execution evidence is necessary, 1 available competent New Mexico attesting witness, otherwise other evidence (§§ 45-3-303(C), -405, -406) |
Informal: advance notice only to demandants and existing representative; otherwise none, then written probate information within 30 days to heirs/devisees unless appointed representative has the notice duty. Formal: hearing notice to spouse, children, heirs, will devisees/representatives, demandants, and publication for unknowns; objections must be pleaded (§§ 45-3-306, -403, -404; 45-1-401) |
Probated-will nominee has first priority; under-majority or formally unsuitable person is unqualified. Before letters, file acceptance and any required bond. Informal bond generally unnecessary unless special administrator, will requirement, or § 45-3-605 demand; formal court may order bond, subject to will waiver and interested-person demand (§§ 45-3-203, -601, -603) |
| New York verified 2026-08-03 | Surrogate's Court probate proceeding under SCPA Article 14; probate of the will and entitlement to letters are related but admission precedes letters (§§ 201, 1402, 1414) |
Surrogate's Court; ordinarily county of domicile. Nondomiciliary estates use § 206's separate New York-property or wrongful-death jurisdiction and venue rules (§§ 205-206) |
Will-designated legatee, devisee, fiduciary, or guardian and listed representatives; creditor, interested person, § 1418 appointee, litigation party, or court-directed public administrator/county treasurer (§ 1402) |
Verified pleading with title, parties/domicile, jurisdiction facts, service parties and disability/unknown-person details, no-other-interested-person statement, relief, citizenship, offered/other filed wills, and due-diligence addresses for cited persons and all named legatees, devisees, and fiduciaries (§§ 303-304, 1402) |
Petition describes the will offered; court may compel a holder to produce and file a will. A copy or draft is an evidentiary route for a lost/destroyed will under § 1407, not a routine ordinary-probate substitute (§§ 1401-1402, 1407) |
No fixed calendar deadline for the ordinary petition appears in cited Article 14; the court may compel production and may direct another authorized person to prosecute a filed matter that is not diligently pursued (§§ 1401-1402) |
Ordinarily at least 2 available in-state attesting witnesses; § 1406 witness affidavits may substitute unless an entitled party objects or the court requires examination. Section 1405 supplies unavailable-witness/handwriting fallbacks; court must still be satisfied (§§ 1404-1406, 1408) |
Citation/process issues to § 1403 parties and is served under §§ 307-308. An adversely affected person generally objects by the return day, or within 10 days after requested § 1404 examinations unless time is changed; the court conducts the required proof inquiry (§§ 1403-1404, 1410) |
Ineligible persons include infants, incompetents, restricted non-domiciliary noncitizens, and persons unfit under § 707. Qualification requires domicile/service designation, oath unless exempt, and any required bond; executor bond is ordinarily not required unless the will, § 806, or § 710 requires it. Letters follow probate, eligibility, appearance, and qualification (§§ 707-710, 1414) |
| North Carolina verified 2026-08-03 | Common-form probate is the ordinary route; an eligible applicant may instead petition for solemn-form probate as an estate proceeding, with letters requested in the probate application (§§ 28A-2A-1 to -8; AOC-E-201) |
Clerk of superior court, ex officio judge of probate; county of domicile, then a county containing estate property with first-filed priority, or any county for the specified nonresident-motorist case (§§ 28A-2-1, 28A-2-4, 28A-3-1) |
Named executor at any time after death; after 60 days, a devisee or other interested person may apply on 10 days' notice to the executor, subject to good-cause shortening (§§ 28A-2A-1 to -2) |
Sworn application stating decedent/death/domicile, applicant address, heirs/devisees and guardians, applicant entitlement and qualification, property nature/value/location, and nonresident-estate facts; AOC-E-201 adds will, venue, other-proceeding, family-change, and preliminary-inventory fields (§§ 28A-2A-5, 28A-6-1) |
Offer the attested written will; a narrowly defined attorney-certified paper copy of an attested will stored electronically may use the statutory copy route. The probated original remains with the clerk (§§ 28A-2A-8, 28A-2A-13; §§ 31-72 to -73) |
No general outside deadline for a written-will petition; the 60-day point opens filing to a devisee/interested person after 10 days' notice. A nuncupative will has a six-month bar unless reduced to writing within 10 days; clerk may compel production (§§ 28A-2A-1 to -4, 28A-2A-10) |
Attested will: self-proof, two witnesses, or the statute's one/no-witness handwriting and circumstance fallbacks. Holographic will: three handwriting witnesses. Nuncupative will: special notice and witness proof (§§ 28A-2A-8 to -10, 28A-2A-16) |
Uncontested common form may be summary; clerk mails known-address devisees and letters generally issue without notice, subject to exceptions/contest. Solemn form requires summons and hearing; nuncupative wills require spouse/next-of-kin notice or four weekly publications (§§ 28A-2-6, 28A-2A-3, 28A-2A-7, 28A-2A-10, 28A-6-2, 28A-6-4) |
Will nominee, successor, then authorized nominee has priority; applicant must avoid listed disqualifications, may renounce, and must take the oath. Resident executor ordinarily gives no bond unless the will expressly requires it; letters follow a compliant application and entitlement finding (§§ 28A-4-1 to -2, 28A-5-1, 28A-6-1, 28A-7-1, 28A-8-1) |
| North Dakota verified 2026-08-09 | North Dakota UPC: verified informal application to district court or formal testacy petition before a judge; probate and appointment may be combined but remain separable (§§ 30.1-01-06, 30.1-12-02 to -03, 30.1-14-01, 30.1-15-01) |
District court; county of decedent's domicile, or for nondomiciliary any county containing property. First-filed court controls unless venue is transferred (§§ 30.1-02-02 to -03, 30.1-13-01) |
Interested person may apply informally or petition formally; includes heirs, devisees, children, spouses, creditors, beneficiaries, estate claimants, appointment-priority holders, and representative fiduciaries (§§ 30.1-01-06, 30.1-14-03, 30.1-15-01) |
Verified informal filing states applicant interest; decedent/death/age/domicile; spouse, children, heirs, devisees and minor ages; venue; prior representatives; notice demands; timeliness; original/authenticated-copy status; execution/revocation belief; and nominee priority. Formal petition adopts those facts and requests testacy/heir findings (§§ 30.1-14-01, 30.1-15-02) |
Informal: original with court/application or authenticated copy of a will probated elsewhere. Formal: original with court/petition; otherwise state will contents and that it is lost, destroyed, or unavailable (§§ 30.1-14-01, 30.1-14-03, 30.1-15-02) |
Ordinary informal probate/appointment and formal testacy/appointment generally must begin within 3 years after death, subject to statutory exceptions; cited current chapters state no separate custodian-production clock (§ 30.1-12-08) |
Informal court may use an execution-compliant attestation clause, the will's appearance, or sworn execution evidence. Formal uncontested proof may use one attesting witness or other evidence; contested self-proved and notarized wills receive statutory presumptions, while a witnessed non-self-proved will ordinarily uses one available in-state witness (§§ 30.1-14-03, 30.1-15-05 to -06) |
Informal probate notice only to demandants and existing representative; informal appointment also notifies unwaived prior/equal priority. Formal hearing notice goes to spouse, children, heirs, devisees, named executors, existing representative and demandants, plus publication for unknowns; objections are pleaded (§§ 30.1-14-06, 30.1-14-10, 30.1-15-03 to -04) |
Will nominee has first priority; must be 18+ and suitable. Informal appointment and letters follow 120 hours and must issue within 10 working days after requirements are met; acceptance and any bond precede letters. Bond depends on route, will, demand, and court order (§§ 30.1-13-03, 30.1-14-07, 30.1-17-01 to -05) |
| Ohio verified 2026-08-03 | Probate-court proceeding under R.C. ch. 2107 to admit the will, plus a separate Form 4.0 request for fiduciary authority and letters (R.C. §§ 2101.24, 2113.05; Civ.R. 73.2) |
Probate court; Ohio domicile county, or for a nondomiciliary any Ohio county holding real or personal property if the will was not already probated in Ohio or the domicile state (§ 2107.11) |
Executor or any interested person may bring a will devising real or bequeathing personal property; the court may compel its holder to produce it (§ 2107.09) |
Form 2.0: death date, domicile, attached will, applicant waiver, and Form 1.0 family/beneficiary list. Form 4.0 adds requested office, admission status, estate values, applicant-estate debts, bond basis, and acceptance (Civ.R. 73.2) |
Form 2.0 attaches the document purporting to be the last will; after admission, the will is filed and recorded. A later will or authenticated later copy uses § 2107.22's separate procedure (§§ 2107.20, 2107.22) |
A beneficiary who knows of and controls the will risks losing the gift by intentionally withholding it for 1 year without reasonable cause; that targeted rule is not a universal 1-year petition clock (§ 2107.10) |
Court admits when compliance appears from the will's face or, in its discretion, witness testimony; satisfactory other proof is allowed when a witness is missing, later incompetent, or unavailable within a reasonable time (§§ 2107.16, 2107.18) |
Ordinary notice follows admission within 2 weeks to spouse, intestate heirs, and will beneficiaries; certificate generally due within 2 months. Jurisdiction contest gets noticed hearing; will contest generally due 3 months after certificate (§§ 2107.12, 2107.19, 2107.76) |
Letters go to a suitable, competent, accepting, and sufficiently bonded named or power-nominated executor. Nonresident route covers a related individual, reciprocal-state person, or private/family trust company organized in any state; every fiduciary files a permanent address (§§ 2109.04, 2109.21, 2113.05) |
| Oklahoma verified 2026-08-08 | District-court petition to prove the will, followed by letters testamentary for a competent named executor who appears and qualifies (58 O.S. §§ 5, 22, 101) |
District court. Resident: county of residence at death. Nonresident: first Oklahoma death county if estate there; otherwise an estate county under the statutory fallback; if death in Oklahoma but no Oklahoma estate, death county (§ 5) |
Named executor, devisee, legatee, or any other person interested in the estate, at any time after death (§ 22) |
Jurisdictional facts; executor consent or renunciation; known heirs, legatees, and devisees with ages and residences; probable estate value and character; requested recipient of letters. Written and signed by applicant or counsel; statute does not require verification (§ 23) |
Petition may proceed whether the will is in the petitioner's possession, lost, destroyed, outside Oklahoma, written, or nuncupative. Custodian delivers the will to court or named executor; a certified paper copy may represent an electronic will (§§ 21-22; 84 O.S. § 908) |
Petition may be filed any time after death. Custodian: deliver within 30 days after learning of death. Named executor: after 30 days with knowledge of death and nomination, may be deemed to renounce absent good cause (§§ 21-22, 108) |
Uncontested non-self-proved will: testimony or post-filing affidavit of one subscribing witness. Self-proved paper will: no subscribing-witness testimony unless contested. Electronic will may be simultaneously self-proved; certified paper copy includes affidavits (§ 30; 84 O.S. §§ 55, 907-908) |
Mandatory hearing 10-30 days after filing; mail at least 10 days before to required heirs, legatees, devisees, and nonpetitioning executors/coexecutors; one newspaper issue if statutory unknown-name/address or deceased-recipient condition applies. Proof at hearing; appearance waives notice; interested persons may contest (§§ 25-26, 28-29) |
Named executor must appear and qualify; minority, a trust-disqualifying crime, or court-adjudged incompetence bars service. Oath precedes letters; nonresident appoints county agent before acting. Bond precedes receipt unless court finds none necessary or honors will waiver, subject to good cause (§§ 101-102, 161-162, 171, 178) |
| Oregon verified 2026-08-08 | Combined petition for probate of the will and appointment of a personal representative under ORS ch. 113; ordinary review may be ex parte (§§ 113.035, 113.055) |
County probate court in Gilliam, Grant, Harney, Malheur, Sherman, and Wheeler Counties; circuit court elsewhere. Venue: domicile/place of abode, any decedent property, place of death, or county for a qualifying injury/wrongful-death claim; wrong county is not jurisdictional (§§ 111.075, 113.015) |
Any interested person or the person nominated as personal representative in the will (§ 113.035) |
So far as known: decedent identity/death/domicile; testacy; venue; nominee and qualification facts; heirs and search/omission statement; devisees, failed devises, and omissions; asserted competing-will/contract/parental claims; original-will status or unavailable-will contents/nonrevocation; estate assets for bond; and purpose if no assets (§ 113.035) |
Petition states that the original is with the court or accompanies it. Otherwise an authenticated copy of a will probated elsewhere may accompany; without either, state the will's contents and that it is lost, destroyed, or unavailable and not revoked. An electronic record, document, or image is not a statutory 'writing' (§§ 112.235(4), 113.035(10)) |
Will custodian: deliver to the probate court or will-named personal representative within 30 days after learning of death (§ 112.810). No general numeric petition deadline before closing, but a will cannot be admitted more than 1 year after the Oregon estate was administered and closed (§ 113.027) |
Ex parte proof may use an attesting witness's affidavit made at execution or later and attached to the will or a facsimile. If no attesting-witness evidence is available, the court may accept testimony or other evidence that the testator's or at least one witness's signature is genuine; a contest or solemn-form probate uses bench-trial proof (§ 113.055) |
Ordinary admission may be reviewed ex parte, without routine pre-admission notice. Upon appointment, the personal representative sends statutory information to named devisees, heirs, and specified claimants and files proof within 30 days; a will contest generally runs 4 months from required delivery/mailing or publication (§§ 113.055, 113.075, 113.145) |
Will nominee has first preference but court must find the person qualified and suitable. Minor, incapacity/financial incapability, specified bar discipline, and limited funeral-practitioner conflicts disqualify; felony must be disclosed but is not automatic disqualification. Bond is default with statutory/court-waiver routes; letters issue after required bond is filed (§§ 113.085, 113.092, 113.095, 113.105, 113.125) |
| Pennsylvania verified 2026-08-03 | Probate and grant-of-letters proceeding before the Register of Wills under 20 Pa.C.S. chs. 9 and 31; a caveat or dispute may be certified to court (§§ 901, 907) |
Register of Wills in county of decedent's last family or principal residence; for a nondomiciliary, a county where estate property is located (§§ 3131, 3151) |
Code names no exclusive will proponent: a will may be offered at any time, and any party in interest may compel its deposit. Letters testamentary go to the executor designated in the will (§§ 3133, 3137, 3155) |
When letters are requested, sworn petition states decedent identity, age, domicile/residence, death place/date; post-will modification circumstances; domicile-specific personal/real-property values and locations; each proposed representative's address; and entitlement facts (§ 3153) |
Ordinary probated will is filed and remains with register; interested party may compel a holder to deposit it. A duly authenticated copy is allowed for a will already proved outside Pennsylvania (§§ 3136-3137, 921) |
Will may be offered at any time, but after 1 year it is void against a bona fide grantee/lienholder whose real-estate interest was recorded first; letters after 21 years require court order for cause (§§ 3133, 3152) |
2 competent witnesses ordinarily; subscribing witnesses/signature proof preferred as § 3132 specifies. Conforming self-proof is accepted unless validity is contested or the will was signed by mark/another; mark/another wills use stricter subscribing-witness proof (§§ 3132-3132.1) |
No universal pre-probate notice or court hearing in cited scheme. A caveat needs a $500-$5,000 bond within 10 days to keep delaying probate; disputes may go to court, and an interested party generally may appeal the register's decree within 1 year, reducible to 3 months (§§ 906-908) |
Letters go to named executor, who must be 18+, authorized if corporate, fit where § 3156 allows review, free of listed homicide charge, and sworn. Bond is the default, but § 3174 exempts listed corporations and qualifying individuals unless will/court requires it (§§ 3155-3156, 3161, 3171, 3174) |
| Rhode Island verified 2026-08-09 | Ordinary petition for probate of will and, in the same statewide form, letters testamentary or administration with the will annexed; the municipal probate court acts after notice and hearing (R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 8-9-9, 33-22-1 to -3; Form PC-1.5) |
Probate court of the decedent's Rhode Island city or town of residence; for a nonresident, a city or town containing Rhode Island rights, credits, or property, with the first probate barring another local original probate (R.I. Gen. Laws § 8-9-11) |
The named executor may petition, but need not be the petitioner: § 33-7-9 expressly contemplates named executors who are not parties, and Form PC-1.5 separately asks for the petitioner's identity and relationship and the proposed fiduciary (R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-7-9; Form PC-1.5) |
Written, signed, and under oath; title, petitioner name/address, domicile and jurisdiction facts, spouse, heirs, beneficiaries, minor/incompetent details, and missing-heir efforts. PC-1.5 also records death, personal-estate estimate, will/codicil date, requested letters, nominee/co-nominee, relationships, addresses, and verification (R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 33-22-1 to -2, 33-22-16; Form PC-1.5) |
The ordinary form offers the accompanying will; a custodian instead may already have delivered the will to the proper court. Original wills remain filed where proved. The cited ordinary route gives no general photocopy substitute for a missing domestic original (R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 33-7-5, 33-6-32; Form PC-1.5) |
Custodian: deliver within 30 days after notice of death, either to court or the named executors; an executor receiving it then has 30 days to deliver it. A named executor possessing the will must present it within 30 days after death or learning of the nomination or is deemed to decline. No separate universal petition deadline appears in the cited ordinary-probate provisions (R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 33-7-5, 33-8-3) |
If no interested person objects, one subscribing witness's oral testimony or an affidavit by one or more subscribing witnesses, made before or after death, is sufficient. If subscribing witnesses are unavailable, the court may use at least two credible disinterested handwriting witnesses or other sufficient handwriting proof and may require more evidence (R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 33-7-10, 33-7-26) |
Hearing required. Mail notice to listed spouse, heirs, beneficiaries, and protected-person contacts at least 10 days before hearing, or 3 weeks if outside the continental U.S.; also publish once weekly for at least 2 weeks, first publication at least 14 days before hearing. Written waivers by all interested parties permit hearing without publication or further notice (R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 33-22-3, 33-22-5, 33-22-11) |
After probate, the court issues letters to the named executor if legally competent and bonded. A nominee under 18 cannot qualify yet; a nominee who does not qualify within 30 days after probate or notice may be passed over. Bond is court-fixed before service; a will can waive surety only, and the court may still require surety (R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 33-8-1 to -4, 33-17-1, 33-17-4 to -5; Form PC-3.4) |
| South Carolina verified 2026-08-04 | Informal application is non-civil-rule probate-court proceeding without general advance notice; formal testacy is civil-rule litigation begun by summons and petition and may, but need not, include appointment (§§ 62-1-201(1), (17), (22), 62-3-302, 62-3-401) |
Probate court has exclusive original estate jurisdiction; a formal probate/appointment matter may be removed to circuit court de novo. Venue is domicile county, then any county holding decedent property; informal case is transferable (§§ 62-1-302, 62-3-201) |
Informal applicant must appear interested; formal testacy is filed by an interested person to probate a will, set aside/prevent informal probate, or determine intestacy (§§ 62-3-303, 62-3-401) |
Verified informal filing states applicant interest; decedent identity/death/age/domicile; spouse, children, heirs, devisees/minors; venue, other representatives, notice demands, 10-year timeliness; original/authenticated will, validity and no-revocation belief; appointee identity/address/priority. Formal petition adopts required facts and requests testacy/heir and appointment relief (§§ 62-3-301, 62-3-402) |
Custodian delivers original to probate judge or named representative for delivery. Informal original probate requires original in court or accompanying application; foreign-probated will uses authenticated will/probate statement. Formal petition uses original, authenticated foreign copy, or pleaded lost/unavailable-will contents (§§ 62-2-901, 62-3-301, 62-3-303, 62-3-402) |
Custodian: within 30 days after actual notice or knowledge of death. If recipient is named representative, that person delivers to judge. Most original informal/formal probate or appointment proceedings: within 10 years after death, subject to exceptions; informal-will contest: 8 months after probate or 1 year after death, whichever later (§§ 62-2-901, 62-3-108) |
Informal attestation-clause will needs no further proof; otherwise court may assume execution or accept knowledgeable-person affidavit. Formal unopposed: pleadings or 1 witness affidavit/testimony, with other evidence if unavailable. Contested self-proved will satisfies execution subject to rebuttal without witness testimony; at least 1 witness affidavit makes a will self-proved (§§ 62-2-503, 62-3-303, 62-3-405-.407) |
Informal probate pre-notice goes only to demanders/existing representative; applicant then informs heirs/devisees within 30 days. Informal appointment gives equal-right person 30 days after mailing to object/nominate/file. Formal summons and petition are served on spouse, children, heirs, devisees, named and existing representatives; hearing notice ordinarily 20 days (§§ 62-1-401, 62-3-306, 62-3-310, 62-3-401, 62-3-403) |
Probated-will nominee has first priority; representative must be 18+, suitable, and satisfy corporate/probate-judge limits, then file acceptance and required bond before letters. Named representative normally needs no bond unless will requires; other no-bond routes include unanimous heir/devisee waiver, sole heir/devisee, or qualifying institution (§§ 62-3-203, 62-3-601, 62-3-603) |
| South Dakota verified 2026-08-09 | South Dakota UPC: informal probate by verified application to circuit-court clerk or formal testacy by petition to circuit court; probate and appointment may be combined but remain separable (§§ 29A-1-201, 29A-3-102, 29A-3-301, 29A-3-401) |
Circuit court; county of decedent's domicile, or for a nondomiciliary any county containing property. First proper proceeding controls unless transferred (§§ 29A-1-201, 29A-1-303, 29A-3-201) |
Interested person may apply informally or petition formally; the term includes heirs, devisees, spouse, children, creditors, beneficiaries, appointment-priority holders, and others whose interest fits the proceeding (§§ 29A-1-201, 29A-3-303, 29A-3-401) |
Verified informal application states interest; decedent/death/domicile; heirs/devisees and minor ages; venue; prior representatives; notice demands; time limit; original/certified-copy status; execution/revocation belief; and nominee priority. Formal petition adopts those facts and requests heirs/testacy findings (§§ 29A-3-301, 29A-3-402) |
Informal: original with court or application, or certified copy of a will probated elsewhere. Formal: original with court/petition; otherwise state contents and unavailability, with statutory copy or clear-and-convincing proof route (§§ 29A-3-301, 29A-3-303, 29A-3-402) |
Ordinary probate/testacy/appointment generally within 3 years after death, subject to listed exceptions; custodian delivers on an interested person's request with reasonable promptness (§§ 29A-2-516, 29A-3-108) |
Informal clerk may rely on execution appearance, attestation clause, or sworn execution evidence. Formal uncontested proof may use one attesting witness, self-proof, or other evidence; contested non-self-proved will ordinarily requires one available in-state attesting witness (§§ 29A-3-303, 29A-3-405 to -406) |
Informal: notice only to demandants and existing representative, then heirs/devisees get will and probate information within 14 days if no representative supplies it. Formal: hearing notice to heirs, devisees, named/existing representatives and publication for unknown interests; objections must be pleaded (§§ 29A-3-306, 29A-3-403 to -404) |
Will nominee has first priority; must be 18+, suitable, and an authorized bank/trust company if corporate. Letters follow appointment, acceptance, and qualification; bond only if court finds it in estate's best interests (§§ 29A-3-103, 29A-3-203, 29A-3-601 to -603) |
| Tennessee verified 2026-08-03 | Common-form or solemn-form probate under Tenn. Code titles 30 and 32; the verified petition may seek probate and letters testamentary (§§ 30-1-117, 32-2-104) |
Probate court in the county of the testator's usual residence; if the testator had fixed residences in multiple counties, any of them (§ 32-2-101) |
The named personal representative or another interested party may file the pleadings that initiate probate (§ 32-1-113(d)) |
Verified petition identifying petitioner; decedent, death, residence; will date and witnesses; devisees and intestate successors; estate value; inventory/accounting waiver; no-known-revocation belief; proposed representative and convictions; and estate-owned ongoing businesses (§ 30-1-117; 2022 ch. 912) |
Will or copy is an exhibit. Custodian sends the original to the named representative as soon as death is known and a photographic copy to the clerk; listed exceptions require the original to go to the clerk (§§ 30-1-117(a)(5), 32-1-113) |
Custodian delivery is due 'as soon as' death is known; titles 30 and 32 set no general numeric ordinary-petition deadline, while § 30-1-110 lists only special administration periods |
Uncontested witnessed will: at least one living subscribing witness, or an accepted attached witness affidavit; contested will: all living witnesses found plus supporting proof. Foreign-executed wills have added place-of-signing, domicile-law, or Tennessee proof routes (§§ 32-1-107, 32-2-104, 32-2-110) |
No notice for ordinary common-form probate; solemn form requires due notice to all interested persons. A set-aside or contest petition generally is due within 2 years after the probate order (§§ 30-1-117(b), 32-4-108) |
Petition discloses age, address, relationship, convictions, and penitentiary sentence; nonresident appointment only through § 35-50-107. Oath precedes delivery; bond precedes issuance unless a statutory exception applies (§§ 30-1-111, -116, -117(a)(10), -201) |
| Texas verified 2026-08-03 | Texas Estates Code probate proceeding; application may seek probate of the will, appointment of an executor/administrator, or both (§§ 31.001, 256.051) |
Court exercising original probate jurisdiction: county court, qualifying county court at law, or statutory probate court depending on county. Venue starts with Texas domicile/fixed residence, then § 33.001's nondomiciliary death/estate/kin hierarchy (§§ 32.001-.002, 33.001) |
Named executor, § 254.006-designated administrator, distributee-selected independent administrator, or any interested person; will possession is unnecessary (§ 256.051) |
Applicant identity/domicile and last 3 DL/SSN digits; testator identity, domicile, age if known, identifiers, death; venue; property/value; will date; proposed letter recipient/service address; witnesses; after-born children; post-will divorce; government/charity devise; nondisqualification; reason for unavailable facts (§ 256.052) |
File will with application if under applicant's control. If not produced, explain cause and contents and list devisees/heirs; proof requires reasonable-diligence nonproduction and substantial contents. Lost/destroyed/out-of-state application remains available (§§ 256.051, 256.053-.054, 256.156) |
Ordinarily no probate after 4 years from death unless applicant proves no default; letters cannot issue after late admission unless application was filed by the 4-year date (§ 256.003) |
Prove death, timeliness, jurisdiction/venue, citation, entitlement, no revocation, and—if not self-proved—execution and capacity. Self-proof removes formalities proof; non-self-proved attested wills use witness/deposition/handwriting fallbacks, and holographic wills use 2 handwriting witnesses (§§ 256.151-.156) |
Produced will: clerk issues citation to all interested parties, posted at least 10 days before return day; court cannot act before service. Missing will adds personal service/publication for heirs. Citation invites appearance and contest; post-admission contest generally due within 2 years (§§ 258.001-.003, 51.053, 256.204) |
Named executor has first priority; disqualifications include incapacity, felony subject to narrow named-executor approval, nonresident without filed resident agent, unauthorized corporation, or unsuitability. Qualification requires oath/declaration and approved bond unless will waiver/corporate-fiduciary exemption; clerk issues after qualification (§§ 304.001, .003; 305.002, .051, .101; 306.001, .003-.004) |
| Utah verified 2026-08-08 | Informal probate by verified application to the registrar or formal testacy litigation in District Court; probate and appointment may be combined (Utah Code §§ 75-3-102, -105, -106, -301, -401) |
Utah District Court; decedent's domicile county, or for a nonresident any county holding property at death. An informal case filed in the wrong venue may be transferred (§§ 75-3-201; 78A-5-101 to -102) |
Any interested person may seek informal or formal probate; that includes heirs, devisees, spouses, children, creditors, and persons with appointment priority. Filing eligibility is separate from appointment priority (§§ 75-1-201(28), 75-3-105, -401) |
Informal application is verified and states applicant interest; death, age, domicile, spouse/children/heirs/devisees; venue; existing representatives; notice demands; will status/execution/nonrevocation/timeliness; and, if appointment is sought, nominee, priority, bond, and estimates. Formal petition adopts those facts and adds requested adjudication/heirs and original-or-lost-will status (§§ 75-3-301, -402) |
Informal route requires the original in court possession or e-filed and retained by applicant/counsel, or an authenticated foreign-probated copy; formal petition states whether the original is held by court, accompanies the petition, or was e-filed and retained. Otherwise it states the will's contents and why unavailable (§§ 75-3-301(3), -303, -402; 75-2-1403, -1409) |
Ordinary informal or formal probate must begin within 3 years after death, subject to statutory exceptions. On an interested person's request after death, a custodian must deliver the will with reasonable promptness to someone able to secure probate (§§ 75-3-107; 75-2-902) |
Informal: compliant signatures plus an execution attestation clause permit probate without further proof; otherwise registrar may assume execution or accept any knowledgeable person's sworn statement. Formal: unopposed matter may rest on pleadings; if execution proof is needed, one attesting witness or other evidence may suffice; self-proof supplies contested-case presumptions (§§ 75-3-303, -405 to -406; 75-2-504, -1408) |
Informal probate has no hearing: moving party notices demandants/existing representative, clerk notices unwaiving heirs/devisees, and probate follows 10 days (or 120 hours after death if all waive); later formal challenge remains available. Formal route sets a hearing, gives 10-day statutory notice to listed interested persons, publishes for unknown/unlocatable persons, and requires objections in pleadings (§§ 75-1-401, 75-3-302, -306, -401, -403 to -405) |
Probated-will nominee has first priority if age 21+ and not found unsuitable; applicant states priority and bond. Before letters, appointee files acceptance and any required bond. No bond by default, except will requirement, preappointment interested-party request, special-administrator/no-notice case, or court order (§§ 75-3-103, -203, -301(4), -601, -603 to -604) |
| Vermont verified 2026-08-09 | Petition to open a testate decedent's estate and allow the will in the Probate Division of Superior Court; a will is ineffective until allowed (14 V.S.A. §§ 101, 104, 107; Form 700-00001) |
Probate Division of Superior Court in the county/unit where decedent lived at death; custodian and named executor file where venue lies (14 V.S.A. §§ 103-.104; Vermont Judiciary Estates and Wills page) |
Judiciary guidance permits any interested person to petition; named executor with knowledge of the will has the statutory reasonable-promptness filing duty. No-assets route allows death certificate and will without opening petition (14 V.S.A. § 104; Judiciary Estates and Wills page) |
Statewide Form 700-00001 gives decedent residence/death; probate-asset realty, personalty, and total estimates; will/codicil dates; requested allowance/opening; proposed executor/administrator and contacts; nominee status; acceptance; spouse/heir consents; and perjury declaration. It requires the death certificate, interested-person list, and original will/codicils (Forms 700-00001 and 700-00002E) |
Domestic opening packet files the ORIGINAL will and codicils. Custodian must deliver the will to the venue court or named executor within 30 days after learning of death; named executor then files with reasonable promptness. Authenticated will and foreign-probate copies belong to the ancillary route (14 V.S.A. §§ 103-.104; Form 700-00001) |
Custodian delivery: within 30 days after learning of death. Named executor's death-certificate and opening-petition duty: reasonable promptness. No fixed ordinary petition-day count is stated; no-assets filing may omit opening petition (14 V.S.A. §§ 103-.104) |
Without timely objection, court may allow on one subscribing witness's testimony or without hearing if will satisfies statutory self-proof. Unavailable-witness route permits disinterested handwriting testimony/affidavit or other sufficient proof, subject to more evidence (14 V.S.A. §§ 107-.110) |
All heirs-at-law and surviving-spouse consents permit allowance without hearing; otherwise court schedules hearing and Rule notice. Written objections are due at least 7 days before hearing. Court mails allowance notice within 30 days to will beneficiaries and contestants (14 V.S.A. §§ 107, 111; Form 700-00001) |
After allowance, court issues letters to named executor who accepts and gives required bond. Nonresident appointment is discretionary and needs resident agent; minor cannot receive letters. Bond is required, court sets amount and may require sureties, and filing precedes letters; 20-day neglect can displace nominee (14 V.S.A. §§ 902, 904, 906, 909-.910) |
| Virginia verified 2026-08-03 | Ordinary clerk probate under Va. Code §§ 64.2-443 to -455; the clerk may admit the will and qualify the executor with the same effect as the circuit court (§ 64.2-444) |
Circuit court; known Virginia residence, then locality containing devised/owned real estate, then place of death or locality containing estate. Prior residence is rebuttably presumed for specified institutional patients (§ 64.2-443) |
§ 64.2-446 uses the broad 'person offering, or intending to offer' formulation; statewide CC-1650 accepts a named executor, sole/other distributee, creditor, or other requester |
No single judicial petition is prescribed for routine clerk probate. Clerk-supplied CC-1650 requires decedent/death/residence/will facts, requested action, requester and nominee information, request basis, estate-value indicator, certifications, and qualification disclosures; a sworn heir list is also required (§§ 64.2-1409, 64.2-509) |
Produce the domestic testamentary paper; once admitted it is recorded and remains with the clerk. An authenticated will and probate certificate from another jurisdiction may be offered under § 64.2-450; a previously safekept will is opened on notice of death (§§ 64.2-409, -449, -455) |
The complete ordinary-probate article (§§ 64.2-443 to -455) sets no numeric deadline to offer a domestic will; the court or clerk may compel production. Post-probate notice is due within 30 days, with its affidavit recorded within 4 months (§§ 64.2-449, 64.2-508) |
Self-proof may use § 64.2-452 affidavits or § 64.2-453 acknowledgments; a subscribing-witness deposition is admissible when the witness is outside Virginia or unable to testify, and a holographic will needs 2 disinterested handwriting witnesses (§§ 64.2-403, -447) |
No advance summons is required unless requested or ordered; if interested persons are summoned, the court hears the motion after they appear and must grant a requested jury trial. Clerk appeal: 6 months; qualifying later complaint: generally 1 year. Post-probate notice: 30 days (§§ 64.2-445, -446, -448, 64.2-508) |
Executor takes the true-will/faithful-performance oath and gives bond before acting; bond amount ordinarily tracks covered estate value, while surety may be waived or statutorily excused. Nonresident individuals may serve but file service consent and generally need surety (§§ 64.2-501, -504, -505, -511, -1426) |
| Washington verified 2026-08-03 | Superior-court application under RCW 11.20.020 for probate, letters testamentary, or either; probate without appointing a personal representative may end in an adjudication of testacy |
Superior court; petitioner initially may select any Washington county, subject to a timely transfer to residence, estate/nonprobate-asset, or death county under RCW 11.96A.050(4); later proceedings stay where letters issued |
RCW 11.20.020 does not state a restricted applicant class; it separately lets the executor or any person interested under the will request witness affidavits after death |
The Probate Code permits an application for the will, letters, or both but gives no statewide enumerated fact list in chapters 11.20 and 11.28; a no-representative adjudication has its own notice contents (RCW 11.28.330) |
Custodian/executor must deliver the will; filed wills are recorded. Foreign-probated wills use certified copies and probate records; electronic wills may have certified paper copies, but loss of qualified custody triggers lost-will treatment (RCW 11.20.010, .020, .050, .090; 11.12.480) |
Will custodian: 30 days after knowledge of death to court or named executor; executor holding will: 40 days after knowledge to court. No separate ordinary application deadline stated (§ 11.20.010) |
Court may hear proof immediately; testimony is written, signed, and judge-certified. Any/all ordinary attesting witnesses may give affidavits; unavailable-witness handwriting/circumstance proof applies. Electronic self-proof requires statutory affidavits and qualified custody (§§ 11.20.020-.040, 11.12.450) |
No statutory pre-admission notice; immediate hearing permitted. After appointment, 20-day notice to heirs, devisees, legatees, and known nonprobate beneficiaries/transferees; will contest within 4 months after probate. No-representative testacy uses 30-day notice (§§ 11.28.237, .330; 11.24.010) |
Named executor receives letters after admission/appointment if qualified; statutory disqualifications apply, nonresident needs resident agent. Oath precedes letters; bond follows will waiver, spouse/partner, institutional, court-waiver, and other § 11.28.185 rules (§§ 11.28.010, .090, .170, .185; 11.36.010) |
| West Virginia verified 2026-08-08 | W. Va. Code ch. 41, art. 5; either ex parte motion without notice or verified solemn-form petition with process and hearing; a timely contest converts an ex parte case to solemn-form procedure (W. Va. Code §§ 41-5-5 to -6, -10) |
County commission/county court or its clerk in recess; residence county, then county containing devised realty, then death/property county, with an in-state devised-property county for a nonresident (W. Va. Code § 41-5-4) |
Any person may offer or move to probate the will; filing eligibility is not limited to the named executor (W. Va. Code §§ 41-5-5, -10) |
Solemn form requires an affidavit-verified petition stating death time/place, last residence, estate nature, and relationship and residence of each heir, distributee, surviving spouse, and will beneficiary; § 41-5-10 instead describes an ex parte motion (W. Va. Code §§ 41-5-5, -10) |
Ordinary probate follows production of the will; custodian delivers it to the proper clerk or named executor, and the executor must offer or deliver it within a reasonable time. Authenticated-copy rules are separate for wills probated outside West Virginia (W. Va. Code §§ 41-5-1, -10) |
Custodian: within 30 days after learning of death; named executor: within a reasonable time. No fixed universal petition deadline in Article 5; filing within 1 year protects devised realty against specified bona fide purchasers (W. Va. Code §§ 41-5-1, -19 to -20) |
Attesting-witness or other-person deposition may be used when admissible and may be an affidavit; witness affidavits preserved with the will equal live testimony in an uncontested case but are inadmissible when the will is contested (W. Va. Code §§ 41-5-14 to -15) |
Ex parte motion may proceed without notice; solemn form requires process on interested persons at least 10 days before return and a hearing. A contest notice may be filed before the final probate order, and a predecision/preconfirmation ex parte contest shifts the case to solemn form (W. Va. Code §§ 41-5-5 to -6, -10) |
Named executor has no powers before oath and required bond; bond generally covers full personal-estate value plus authorized realty or rents. A will may waive bond subject to interested-person review; special nonresident bond rules apply, and a copy of the qualification order is effective as letters (W. Va. Code §§ 44-1-1, -3, -7 to -8, -12; 44-5-3) |
| Wisconsin verified 2026-08-04 | Formal probate/administration proceeds before the circuit court under ch. 856; informal administration is a circuit-court proceeding administered without continuous court supervision by the probate registrar under ch. 865 (§§ 856.13, 865.01-.02) |
Circuit court in decedent's Wisconsin domicile county; if no Wisconsin domicile, any county holding decedent property, with exclusive jurisdiction in the court that first acts (§§ 856.01, 865.01) |
Named personal representative or interested person; after 30 days without their petition, former guardian, creditor, blocked claimant/appellant, or person interested in estate property may file. Any interested person may apply informally if no formal demand or prior administration (§§ 856.07, 865.04) |
Verified filing shows jurisdiction, petitioner interest, interested persons and disabilities; decedent identity/death/domicile, administrable property, will/date, named representative/trustee, requested appointee and eligibility. Informal application adds other proceedings, original/authenticated will, and validity/no-revocation belief (§§ 856.09, 865.06, 879.01) |
Custodian files the original or delivers it to the named representative, who must file; informal application states original is held by court or accompanies it. A foreign-probated will uses an authenticated copy; a missing will requires proof and petitioned provisions (§§ 856.05, 856.17, 865.06) |
Custodian: within 30 days after learning of death, file or deliver to named representative. Named representative: within 30 days after knowing both nomination and death, file. No general petition deadline stated; broader petitioners become eligible after 30 days (§§ 856.05, 856.07) |
Formal uncontested proof: 1 subscribing witness's sworn open-court statement; attestation clause or statutory self-proving affidavit permits probate without testimony. If no competent subscribing witness is found in Wisconsin, other execution/competency/handwriting proof may be used. Informal route requires attestation clause or affidavit (§§ 856.15-.16, 865.07) |
Formal filing gets a hearing, notice to interested persons, and will copies or bequest details; mail is 20 days, personal service 10 days, and first mailed notice also is published. Informal initiation requires waivable notice but no universal hearing; appointed representative sends will and interested-person list within 10 days (§§ 856.11, 865.05, 865.08(5), 879.03-.05) |
Named representative has first priority; unauthorized corporation, nonresident without resident agent, or unsuitable person is disqualified. Bond is discretionary and will waiver is not binding. Informal appointee files acceptance/bond; letters then issue, but a nonresident decedent triggers a 30-day delay unless applicant is domiciliary representative (§§ 856.21, 856.23, 856.25, 865.08) |
| Wyoming verified 2026-08-09 | District-court petition for probate of will and letters testamentary under Probate Code ch. 6; admission order includes appointment of executor (W.S. §§ 2-6-201 to -210) |
District court; county of decedent's Wyoming residence, then statutory nonresident/place-of-death/property fallbacks. First application controls when qualifying nonresident property spans counties (W.S. §§ 2-2-101 to -103) |
Sections 2-6-201 to -202 do not enumerate a separate petitioner class; they require the petition to address the nominee and place a 30-day petition duty on the named executor, after which the court may treat the right to letters as renounced and appoint another competent person (W.S. §§ 2-6-201 to -202) |
Jurisdictional facts; named executor's consent or renunciation; known heirs' and devisees' names, ages, and residences; probable estate value and character; and name of the person for whom letters are requested. Existing jurisdictional facts cure form defects (W.S. § 2-6-201) |
Custodian delivers the will to the proper district-court clerk or named executor within 10 days after death information. Section 2-6-201 does not add an attachment statement; lost/destroyed will instead requires written testimony and clear, distinct proof of its provisions by at least 2 credible witnesses (W.S. §§ 2-6-119, 2-6-201, 2-6-207) |
Custodian: 10 days after receiving death information. Named executor: 30 days after knowledge of death and nomination or may be treated as renouncing letters, absent good cause. No other fixed ordinary petition deadline is stated in cited procedure (W.S. §§ 2-6-119, 2-6-202) |
Compliant self-proved will is probated without further proof. Otherwise one or more subscribing witnesses may testify orally or in writing; deposition is available, and if all witnesses are unavailable, 2 credible disinterested handwriting witnesses or other sufficient execution evidence may prove it (W.S. §§ 2-6-204 to -206) |
Court or clerk may hear the petition immediately, with or without notice; notice is not required and hearing is not delayed absent good cause. After admission, order and will copies go by certified mail to each named beneficiary and heir (W.S. §§ 2-6-203, 2-6-209) |
Qualified will nominee has first appointment preference. Admission order appoints executor; oath and bond ordinarily precede letters. Will, statute, or written distributee waiver can excuse bond, but court may later require it (W.S. §§ 2-6-208 to -210; 2-3-101 to -104, 2-3-111) |
All 51 jurisdictions verified. Each state page shows the statute text and verification date behind its row.
Have a specific situation?
A 50-state comparison shows the landscape. Ask your exact question and see what your state's law says for your facts, with citations.
Opens in Ezel Pro. Every answer cites the authority it relies on.