Probate courts handle what happens to a person’s property and legal affairs when they die, and they also step in to protect living adults who can no longer manage their own decisions. So what do probate courts do, in practical terms? They confirm that wills are valid, appoint and supervise the people who settle estates, make sure debts and taxes get paid before heirs receive anything, resolve fights over wills and trusts, and appoint guardians or conservators for incapacitated adults and minors. The work is mostly administrative, with a judge checking that assets move to the right people under the right rules. Everything filed becomes part of the public record, which is itself one of the court’s functions: transparency as a check against fraud.
Validating Wills and Appointing Executors
The most recognizable probate function is confirming that a will is legally valid. The court checks whether the document meets formal requirements: a signature from the person who died and attestation by witnesses who had no financial stake in the outcome. If the will includes a self-proving affidavit, signed by the witnesses before a notary when the will was executed, the court can accept the document without tracking those witnesses down years later. Without that affidavit, witnesses may need to appear or provide sworn statements confirming they watched the signing.
Once the court accepts the will, it issues a document commonly called Letters Testamentary to the named executor. That paperwork is the executor’s proof of authority, and banks, title companies, and government agencies won’t release accounts or transfer property without it.1Internal Revenue Service. Responsibilities of an Estate Administrator The executor’s first major task is filing an inventory of the estate’s assets, typically due within a few months of appointment. Courts track these deadlines. An executor who misses them or goes silent risks being removed and replaced.
The court also supervises the executor’s conduct throughout. Judges can order executors to compensate the estate for losses caused by mismanagement, self-dealing, or neglect. Selling estate property to yourself at a discount, mixing estate funds with personal accounts, making reckless investments, or letting insured property deteriorate all qualify as breaches of duty.
Handling Estates Without a Will
When someone dies without a will, the probate court does not get to choose who inherits. Every state has intestacy statutes that dictate who receives what, usually starting with the surviving spouse and children. If the deceased had a spouse and children from that same marriage, the spouse typically takes the entire estate. Blended families complicate things: when the deceased had children from a prior relationship, most states split the estate between the spouse and those children according to fixed percentages. Parents, siblings, and more distant relatives inherit only when no spouse or descendants survive.
Because no executor was named, the court appoints an administrator to manage the estate. This person receives Letters of Administration and generally must post a bond, which functions like an insurance policy protecting heirs if the administrator mishandles funds.1Internal Revenue Service. Responsibilities of an Estate Administrator The administrator’s duties mirror an executor’s: inventory assets, pay debts, file tax returns, and distribute what remains according to the statutory hierarchy rather than anyone’s personal wishes.
If no living heir can be found anywhere in the family tree, the estate eventually passes to the state government through a process called escheatment. This is genuinely rare, but it happens. States typically wait years before claiming the property, giving unknown relatives time to come forward.
Overseeing Debts and Taxes Before Heirs Are Paid
No heir receives anything until the estate’s debts are cleared, and the court enforces that order. The executor or administrator must publish a notice to creditors, giving businesses and lenders a window to file claims. That window varies by state but commonly runs three to four months. Any creditor who misses the deadline generally loses the right to collect. The executor reviews each claim, decides whether it is legitimate, and pays valid debts from estate funds in a statutory order of priority. Funeral expenses and administrative costs typically come first, followed by tax obligations, then secured debts, and finally unsecured creditors.
Tax filings are part of the same gatekeeping function. The executor files the deceased person’s final individual income tax return covering January 1 through the date of death. If the estate itself earns income during administration, such as rent from property or interest on accounts, that income gets reported on a separate estate income tax return.2Internal Revenue Service. Publication 559 – Survivors, Executors, and Administrators Federal estate tax applies only to estates exceeding $15,000,000 for deaths in 2026, a threshold raised by legislation signed in July 2025.3Internal Revenue Service. What’s New – Estate and Gift Tax Most estates fall well below that line and owe nothing. A handful of states impose their own estate or inheritance taxes with lower thresholds, so the executor’s job is not done just because the federal exemption does not apply.
The court typically requires a final accounting proving all debts, taxes, and administrative costs have been paid before approving the closing of the estate and the final transfer of property to beneficiaries.
Resolving Will Contests and Trust Disputes
Probate courts don’t just rubber-stamp documents. When someone challenges a will, the court holds what amounts to a trial. The most common grounds for contesting a will are undue influence (someone pressured the deceased into changing the will), lack of mental capacity (the deceased could not understand what they were signing), and outright fraud or forgery. The challenger bears the burden of proof, and judges weigh medical records, witness testimony, and the circumstances surrounding the will’s creation before deciding whether to throw it out.
Trust disputes land in probate court too. Beneficiaries who believe a trustee is withholding distributions, charging unreasonable fees, or otherwise mismanaging trust assets can petition the court for relief. Judges can order a trustee to account for every dollar, reduce excessive fees, compensate the trust for losses, or remove the trustee entirely. These cases can drag on for years when large sums are involved.
Appointing Guardians and Conservators for Living People
Probate courts exercise authority over living people too, not just deceased estates. When an adult becomes unable to make safe decisions due to cognitive decline, serious mental illness, or a disabling injury, the court can appoint someone to step in. The terminology varies by state. A guardianship generally covers personal decisions like medical care, housing, and daily needs. A conservatorship covers financial matters: paying bills, managing investments, and protecting property. Some states use one term for both, so the labels matter less than the scope of authority the court actually grants.
These appointments do not happen casually. The person requesting guardianship files a petition, the court typically orders a medical or psychological evaluation, and the proposed ward has the right to attend the hearing and object. Stripping someone of their legal autonomy is one of the most drastic things a court can do, and judges look for clear evidence that the person genuinely cannot manage their own affairs and that no less restrictive alternative exists.
Ongoing Oversight After Appointment
Appointment is just the beginning. Guardians usually must file annual reports describing the ward’s living situation, health, and social activities. Conservators file detailed financial accountings showing income received, expenses paid, and the current value of assets under their control. Courts review these filings to catch signs of neglect, exploitation, or financial abuse. A conservator who cannot account for missing funds may face fines, removal, surcharge for the lost amount, or even criminal prosecution. This ongoing oversight is the primary safeguard against elder abuse within the guardianship system.
Emergency Orders and the Power-of-Attorney Alternative
When someone faces an immediate threat to their health or safety, courts can appoint a temporary guardian on an expedited basis. These emergency orders typically last 90 days or less and require the petitioner to show that waiting for a full hearing would cause serious harm. The court schedules a regular hearing during that window to decide whether a permanent arrangement is needed.
A guardianship is not always necessary. If someone signs a durable power of attorney while they are still mentally competent, the agent they named can handle financial and medical decisions without any court involvement. Courts generally will not appoint a guardian if a valid power of attorney already covers the situation.
What Probate Courts Don’t Handle
Several common asset types transfer automatically at death with no probate court involvement at all. Knowing which assets skip the process clarifies the court’s real reach.
- Property held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship passes to the surviving co-owner the moment the first owner dies. The survivor just needs to file a death certificate with the relevant records office. A will cannot override this transfer.
- Life insurance policies, retirement accounts, and bank accounts with a payable-on-death designation go directly to the named beneficiary. These forms supersede anything the will says.
- Assets transferred into a revocable living trust during the owner’s lifetime are managed by the successor trustee after death, entirely outside probate.
- Transfer-on-death deeds, available in many states, let a property owner name a beneficiary who receives real estate at death without probate.
If a will leaves everything to the deceased’s children but a retirement account still names an ex-spouse as beneficiary, the ex-spouse gets that account. Probate courts have no power to redirect these assets.
How Long Probate Takes and What It Costs
A straightforward estate with a valid will, cooperative heirs, and no disputes can clear probate in six to nine months. Add a will contest, hard-to-locate assets, or property in multiple states and the timeline stretches to two years or longer. The creditor notice period alone consumes three to four months before the executor can make final distributions, which sets a hard floor on how fast any estate can close.
Court filing fees to open a probate case range from roughly $50 to $1,200, depending on the state and the estate’s value. Attorney fees are the bigger expense: some states set statutory fee schedules based on the estate’s gross value, while most leave compensation to the court’s discretion under a “reasonable fee” standard. Executor compensation follows a similar pattern, with statutory rates in some states running on a sliding scale from about 2% to 5% of the estate’s value, decreasing as the estate gets larger.
Every state also offers some form of shortcut for smaller estates. A small estate affidavit lets heirs collect assets without opening a probate case at all, by filing a sworn statement directly with the bank or institution holding the asset. There is usually a mandatory waiting period of 30 to 45 days after the death. The dollar threshold for eligibility varies dramatically by state, ranging from roughly $10,000 to $275,000 in personal property, and real estate generally cannot be transferred this way. Summary administration, a step above the affidavit, lets the court distribute assets directly to heirs without appointing an executor or running the full accounting and creditor-notice process. For modest estates with no disputes, these streamlined paths save months of court involvement and thousands in legal fees.