Petition to Probate a Will Requirements in Nevada

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Statewide venue with a convenience hierarchy

Nevada uses a District Court petition to probate the will and request letters. Under NRS 136.010, a Nevada resident's estate or any decedent's Nevada property supplies jurisdiction. Venue is proper in any Nevada District Court, not only the county of residence or real property.

If an interested person objects for convenience, the court considers, in order, the decedent's residence, Nevada real property, the nominee's or trustee's preference, and the preferences of heirs, devisees, interested persons, beneficiaries, and counsel. After the first court holds a properly noticed hearing and assumes jurisdiction, it exclusively handles the will, letters, and estate administration.

Who may petition and what must be stated

Under NRS 136.070, the will's named personal representative, a devisee, or any other interested person may petition at any time after death. The petitioner need not possess the will. A named representative may ask the court to compel the holder to produce it for probate and letters.

The signed petition under NRS 136.090 states jurisdictional facts; whether the nominee consents or renounces; known heirs, next of kin, and devisees, residences, minor ages, and kinship; estate character and estimated value; the proposed representative and felony history; deceased devisees; and why the chosen court is convenient to the nominee or trustee and interested persons and their counsel.

If someone other than the named representative petitions—or fewer than all named representatives join—NRS 136.120 requires service of the petition on the nonjoining nominees.

The holder and nominee have different 30-day duties

NRS 136.050 imposes two clocks. A person holding the will has 30 days after learning of the death to deliver it to the clerk or the named personal representative. A person who knows of being named personal representative must, if holding it, present it to the clerk within 30 days after the death or within 30 days after learning of the nomination.

The will becomes part of the clerk's permanent record whether or not anyone files a probate petition. Neglect without reasonable cause can produce damages. If a third person has the will, NRS 136.060 permits a production order and coercive enforcement.

The petition itself may be filed “at any time after” death under Section 136.070. The two 30-day duties should not be rewritten as one universal 30-day petition deadline.

Original, copy, electronic, and lost-will routes

The ordinary route uses the delivered or presented will. NRS 136.180 permits a copy when the will is detained beyond Nevada in another court and cannot be produced. Witness proof may address that copy much as it would the original.

For an electronic will, NRS 136.185 permits a certified paper original to be offered like a paper will. A certified paper original of a qualifying self-proving electronic will is presumed valid and, absent objection, must be admitted expeditiously without more validity proof.

A lost or destroyed will uses the separate NRS 136.230-.240 route. Its petition includes an available copy or the testamentary words or substance, and the statute adds proof and nonrevocation requirements. It is a boundary route, not the ordinary copy rule.

Hearing and pre-hearing notice are mandatory

The clerk sets the petition for hearing under NRS 136.100. The petitioner notices the heirs, will devisees, nonpetitioning named representatives, and the Director of the Department of Human Services.

Under NRS 155.010 and 155.020, known recipients ordinarily receive mail or personal delivery at least 10 days before the hearing. The public notice uses three publication dates before the hearing, with at least 10 days from the first to last date when the paper publishes more than weekly. Unknown or unlocatable persons fall under the publication mechanism stated in Section 155.010.

An interested person may object in writing before or at the hearing, or orally at the hearing under NRS 155.160. After proof of notice, the court hears the will proof.

Witness, affidavit, unavailable-witness, and electronic proof

In an uncontested case, NRS 136.150 permits admission on one subscribing witness's testimony. A filed affidavit showing compliant execution, sound mind, and age 18 has the same force as oral testimony.

Any or all attesting witnesses may make the post-death affidavit at the request of the executor or any interested person. Filing those affidavits avoids routine subpoenas to subscribing witnesses who reside in the county. If witnesses are dead, incapable, or otherwise unavailable, NRS 136.170 permits at least two credible disinterested persons to prove the signature, or other sufficient signature proof, while leaving the court discretion to require more evidence.

Qualification, oath, bond, and letters

After probate, the court directs letters to the named personal representative, who must appear and qualify under NRS 138.010. Before qualification, the nominee generally lacks representative power except to pay funeral charges and preserve the estate.

NRS 138.020 disqualifies a minor, addresses felony convictions subject to a court exception, and permits disqualification for conflict, drunkenness, improvidence, lack of integrity or understanding, or another compelling reason. It also governs unauthorized out-of-state banks. If every nominee is disqualified, renounces, or fails to appear and qualify, administration with the will annexed follows.

Before letters, NRS 142.010 requires a filed oath or affirmation before an authorized oath officer. Bond is discretionary with the court under NRS 142.020, whether the will requires it or not. The court may dispense with bond as unnecessary or use a blocked account, and may later require bond despite a will waiver under NRS 142.070.

What trips people up

• Nevada venue is not limited to the residence county. Any Nevada District Court is initially proper when jurisdiction exists, subject to the statutory convenience test.
• There are two separate 30-day will duties. The holder's clock begins with knowledge of death; the named representative's rule has death and nomination- knowledge alternatives.
• Any interested person may petition. Nomination affects letters, not the entire class allowed to seek probate.
• A hearing is built into the ordinary petition. The clerk sets it, and the petitioner gives targeted and public notice.
• Bond language in the will does not eliminate court discretion. The court may require or dispense with bond and may require it later.

Common questions

May someone petition without possessing the will?

Yes. Section 136.070 expressly permits it, and a named representative may ask the court to order the holder to produce the will.

Can one witness prove an uncontested Nevada will?

Yes. Section 136.150 permits one subscribing witness if the testimony supplies the required execution, sound-mind, and age facts. A filed affidavit can carry the same evidentiary force.

Does a will clause saying “no bond” bind the court permanently?

No. Nevada makes bond discretionary. Letters may initially issue without bond, but the court may later require one if necessary or proper.

Statutes and sources

• NRS Chapter 136 — jurisdiction, petitioners, contents, delivery clocks, hearing, proof, copies, electronic wills, and lost wills. Official Nevada Revised Statutes (accessed 2026-08-08).
• NRS Chapter 138 — nominee authority and executor qualification. Official Nevada Revised Statutes (accessed 2026-08-08).
• NRS Chapter 142 — oath, discretionary bond, blocked accounts, and later bond. Official Nevada Revised Statutes (accessed 2026-08-08).
• NRS Chapter 155 — probate-hearing notice and objections. Official Nevada Revised Statutes (accessed 2026-08-08).