In Alabama, you generally do have to probate a will if the deceased person owned anything solely in their own name, because banks, county recording offices, and the DMV will not release accounts or retitle property without a court order confirming who has authority to act. Two situations let you avoid full probate: assets that transfer automatically outside the estate (like jointly held property or accounts with named beneficiaries), and estates of personal property small enough to qualify for summary distribution. Everything else runs through probate court.
When Probate Is Required
Probate is triggered by property held solely in the deceased person’s name at the time of death. Real estate is the clearest example. If a deed lists only the deceased as owner, with no co-owner holding rights of survivorship, the county will not update its records without a court order. The property sits locked in the deceased person’s name, and no one can sell it, mortgage it, or transfer it.
Financial accounts create the same problem when they have no designated beneficiary. A checking or savings account without a payable-on-death instruction will not be released to family members. The bank wants letters testamentary, the court document confirming the executor’s authority, before releasing a dollar. Vehicles titled only to the deceased, business interests, and other valuable personal property usually require probate too. Without it, no one has the legal standing to sign a title or withdraw funds.
Assets That Skip Probate Entirely
Several categories of property pass automatically at death and never enter the probate estate. If everything the deceased owned falls into one of these categories, no probate is needed at all.
- Property held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship passes immediately to the surviving co-owner. The survivor usually just presents a death certificate to update the title or account.
- Beneficiary-designated accounts — life insurance, 401(k)s, IRAs, and payable-on-death bank accounts — go directly to the named beneficiary under the contract.
- Assets held in a living trust are managed by the successor trustee and distributed according to the trust document without court involvement.
- Real estate covered by a properly recorded transfer on death deed passes directly to the named beneficiary. Alabama adopted the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act effective January 1, 2017, and the owner keeps full control of the property during life and can revoke the deed at any time.
These assets don’t appear in the probate estate and aren’t subject to creditor claims filed during probate, though creditors may have other remedies. When most of a person’s property is structured this way, the remaining probate estate is often small enough for the shortcut described next.
The Small Estate Shortcut
The Alabama Small Estates Act offers a faster alternative to full probate for estates consisting only of personal property below a set dollar threshold.1Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 43-2-690 – Short Title The base statutory limit is $25,000, but the State Finance Director adjusts the figure each year for inflation.2Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 43-2-692 – Petition for Summary Distribution For 2025 the adjusted threshold is $37,075, and that figure applies through February 28, 2026.3Alabama Department of Finance. Small Estate Memorandum 2025
To use this process, the estate must meet all of the following:
- The total value of the estate’s personal property is below the current adjusted threshold.
- The deceased was an Alabama resident at the time of death.
- At least 30 days have passed since the death.
- All funeral expenses have been paid or arranged for payment.
- All other debts of the estate have been paid or arranged for payment.
- No petition to appoint a personal representative is pending or has been granted.
- Notice of the petition has been published in a newspaper in the county where the deceased lived.
One important boundary: summary distribution does not work for real estate. If the deceased owned any real property solely in their own name, full probate is required regardless of the estate’s total value. If there is a will, a properly executed copy must be filed with the summary distribution petition.
The Five-Year Deadline
Alabama sets a hard deadline for filing a will. Under Section 43-8-161, a will is not effective unless it is filed for probate within five years of the person’s death.4Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 43-8-161 – Time Limit for Probate Once that window closes, the will generally can’t be used to transfer property, and this hits real estate especially hard.
When the five years lapse, the estate is treated as if the person died without a will. Property then passes under Alabama’s intestate succession rules rather than to the people the deceased actually named. The default hierarchy runs through the surviving spouse and children first, then parents, then siblings, then more distant relatives, and finally to the state if no qualifying heir exists. The share a surviving spouse receives depends on who else survives:
- If no children or parents survive, the spouse inherits the entire estate.
- If no children but at least one parent survives, the spouse receives the first $100,000 plus half of the remaining balance.
- If the surviving children are all also children of the surviving spouse, and the spouse has no other children, the spouse receives the first $50,000 plus half of the remaining balance.
- If any surviving child is not also a child of the surviving spouse, the spouse receives half of the estate.
These default outcomes can diverge sharply from what a will would have provided. Beneficiaries who wait past the five-year mark may lose their inheritance entirely if the intestate rules route the property to different family members. Even when the estate looks straightforward, that deadline is a reason to start the process sooner rather than later.
Your Duty to Deliver the Will
Separate from the question of whether probate happens, if you have someone’s original will after they die, Alabama law requires you to hand it over. Under Alabama Code Section 43-8-270, anyone holding the will must deliver it with reasonable promptness to a person who can pursue probate, or, if no such person is known, directly to the appropriate court.5Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 43-8-270 – Duty of Custodian of Will After Death of Testator; Liability This applies whether or not you are named as executor.
The consequences for ignoring the duty are real. Anyone who deliberately withholds a will is liable for damages suffered by the people who were supposed to inherit under it, and a court order to turn over the will that goes unheeded can bring a contempt finding.5Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 43-8-270 – Duty of Custodian of Will After Death of Testator; Liability Delivering the will doesn’t automatically open probate; someone still needs to file a petition. But it satisfies your obligation and keeps the document safe while the family decides how to proceed.
Deciding Your Next Step
Work backward from what the deceased owned. If everything passes by survivorship, beneficiary designation, trust, or transfer on death deed, no probate is needed. If the remaining property is personal (no solely owned real estate) and falls under the current threshold with debts settled and 30 days elapsed, summary distribution is available. If there is real estate held only in the deceased person’s name, or personal property over the threshold, formal probate is the path, and the five-year clock is already running.