Petition to Probate a Will Requirements in Connecticut

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Court, petitioner, and statewide form

Connecticut uses Probate Court Form PC-200 for the combined request to admit a will and appoint an executor. The form says any person may petition. It is filed in the probate district where a resident decedent was domiciled at death, which is also the district named by § 45a-283 for the nominated executor's filing duty.

For a nonresident, § 45a-287 permits a district tied to the decedent's last Connecticut residence, property, bank account or evidence of intangibles, a named executor's or trustee's residence or office, a cause of action, or a debtor. The first eligible court to assume jurisdiction retains it over the Connecticut property.

PC-200 asks for the decedent, death, residence, domicile and jurisdiction basis; the petitioner and surviving spouse; heirs, will beneficiaries, trustees, and trust beneficiaries; disability and military-status details; search efforts for unknown persons; later family-status events; estate values, Connecticut realty, and state aid; the proposed fiduciary's acceptance; and the petitioner's penalty-of-false-statement signature and service certification.

Original will, death proof, and competing wills

PC-200 directs the petitioner to attach the original will and codicils, a copy of the death certificate with the Social Security number redacted, and the confidential PC-200CI sheet. Rule 30.2 permits other death evidence if a certificate cannot be obtained.

If the Probate Court already holds another purported will, Rule 30.4 requires the court to tell the petitioner. The petitioner then supplies the name and address of that will's executor and each beneficiary so the competing document is not silently omitted from notice.

Custodian and executor deadlines are distinct

Under § 45a-282, a person holding a will or codicil must deliver it forthwith after learning of the death, either to a named executor or to the proper Probate Court. Neglect continuing for 30 days carries the section's criminal penalty.

Section 45a-283 imposes a separate duty on a person who knows of being named executor: apply for probate within 30 days after the testator's death. The statute attaches a fine to neglect. The deadline is not written as a universal 30-day filing limit for every petitioner.

Witness affidavit supplies probate evidence

Conn. Gen. Stat. § 45a-285 lets any or all attesting witnesses make an affidavit before an officer authorized to administer oaths in or outside Connecticut. The affidavit states the facts the witness would have testified to in court and is written on the will, or on an attached paper if writing on the will is impracticable.

The Probate Court accepts the sworn statement as if it had been taken there. The statute does not make the affidavit conclusive, excuse invalid execution, or prevent an objection.

Streamline notice ordinarily satisfies the hearing requirement

Conn. Gen. Stat. § 45a-286 says the court must hold a hearing before proving or rejecting a will unless all interested parties waive notice or the court dispenses with notice for cause. The current procedural rule supplies the ordinary way this works without requiring everyone to appear.

Under Rule 8.6, the court ordinarily must use streamline notice in a decedent's estate. Parties receive at least 10 days' notice before the deadline to request a hearing. A timely request produces a hearing; without one, the court may approve, but may not deny, the petition without scheduling a hearing. The court instead schedules a hearing when the matter is contested, requires testimony or legal argument, needs public notice, or otherwise requires party attendance.

Rule 30.6 directs notice to heirs, beneficiaries and trust beneficiaries under the offered and other court-held wills, the Attorney General for a charitable interest, the proposed fiduciary, petitioner, attorneys, and anyone else the court determines. Under Rule 30.7, the petitioner separately sends the petition and will to those recipients and certifies that the copies were sent.

Acceptance, nonresident agent, bond, and alternate appointment

Each proposed fiduciary signs the acceptance on PC-200. A nonresident proposed fiduciary attaches PC-482, appointing the probate judge as service agent.

Executor bond is the default under § 45a-289. If the will directs no bond or a limited bond and nobody objects, the court follows that direction. The court may still require bond for cause to protect creditors or assure tax payment.

If the primary nominee died, refuses, or is incapable, § 45a-290 routes the appointment to a named alternate or successor or, if none exists, to administration with the will annexed. Filing PC-200 therefore does not guarantee that the initially proposed person receives letters.

What trips people up

• Connecticut has two 30-day duties. The custodian's delivery duty starts with knowledge of death; the named executor's filing duty is tied to knowledge of the nomination and runs from death.
• The 2026 rules changed how the statutory hearing requirement ordinarily appears in practice. Streamline notice can satisfy it without a formal appearance unless a hearing is requested or required.
• The petitioner sends petition-and-will copies, while the court sends its notice. Those are separate obligations under Rules 30.6 and 30.7.
• The witness affidavit is evidence, not immunity from contest. Section 45a-285 gives it the effect of testimony taken in Probate Court and no more.

Common questions

What happens if the court already has another will?

Rule 30.4 requires the court to disclose it to the petitioner. The petitioner must provide the other will's executor and beneficiary contact information, and Rule 30.6 includes those persons in the notice structure.

Is there an extra recipient when a charity benefits?

Yes. PC-200 and Rule 30.6 require notice to the Attorney General when a will or will-created trust includes a charitable beneficiary or interest.

Can the court appoint someone else if the named executor declines?

Yes. Section 45a-290 appoints a named alternate or successor when available; otherwise the court proceeds through administration with the will annexed.

Statutes and sources

• Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 45a-282 to -290 — delivery, executor filing, witness affidavit, hearing and notice, venue, bond, and alternate appointment. Official Connecticut General Statutes (accessed 2026-08-08).
• Connecticut Probate Court Rules 8.6 and 30.2, 30.4, 30.6-.7 — streamline notice, death proof, competing wills, recipients, and petitioner copies. Official 2026 rules (accessed 2026-08-08).
• Connecticut Probate Court Form PC-200 — statewide petition contents, attachments, acceptance, relief, signature, and certification. Official form (accessed 2026-08-08).