Probate usually starts within 30 days to a few months after a person dies, when someone files a petition with the probate court in the county where the deceased lived. The filing is the trigger: until a petition is on file, there is no probate case, no matter how much time has passed. If there is a will, the person holding it generally must deliver the original to the court within 30 days of learning about the death. If there is no will, a close family member can ask the court to appoint an administrator instead. Once the petition is accepted, the court assigns a case number and the estate officially enters probate.
The 30-Day Rule for Delivering a Will
The first legal step after a death is getting the original will into the hands of the probate court. Under the Uniform Probate Code, which a majority of states have adopted in whole or in part, whoever is holding the will must deliver it within 30 days of learning about the death, either to someone who can file it for probate or directly to the court. This applies to anyone with physical custody of the document: a family member, friend, attorney, or the holder of a safe-deposit box.
Someone who deliberately withholds a will can be personally liable for any financial harm the delay causes to beneficiaries or creditors. If a court orders delivery and the person still refuses, they can be held in contempt, which may lead to fines or jail time. In a handful of states, hiding a will for personal financial gain — for example, concealing a will that leaves everything to charity so you can inherit under intestacy rules instead — can rise to criminal conduct.
Delivering the will does not by itself open a probate case. It simply places the document on file as a public record so that interested parties can take the next step and petition the court.
When There Is No Will
Probate is not limited to situations where a will exists. When someone dies without a will, known as dying “intestate,” the court still needs to supervise how assets are distributed. Instead of following a will, the court applies the state’s intestacy statute, which divides property among surviving family members according to a fixed priority. That order typically starts with a spouse and children, then moves to parents, siblings, and more distant relatives.
Because no executor was named, any interested person — usually a close relative who stands to inherit — may petition the court for appointment as the estate’s administrator. The administrator has essentially the same duties and powers as an executor: gathering assets, paying debts, and distributing what remains. The court chooses who serves and follows the state’s distribution rules rather than the wishes expressed in a will.
What You Need Before You Can File
Before the court will open a case, the person seeking appointment must assemble several pieces of documentation. A certified copy of the death certificate is the starting point. It proves the person has actually died and is available through the vital records office in the state where the death occurred.1USAGov. How to Get a Certified Copy of a Death Certificate If the original will was not previously delivered to the clerk, it must accompany the petition.
The petitioner also needs to identify every heir and beneficiary by full name, current address, and relationship to the deceased. The court must notify each of these individuals before granting authority over the estate, so missing or outdated contact information will stall things. Most courts also require a preliminary estimate of the estate’s total value, which helps determine the filing tier and any bond amount the court may set.
The formal request to open the estate is generally called a Petition for Probate when a will exists, or a Petition for Administration when it does not. The petition asks the court to admit the will, appoint the proposed personal representative, and confirm that the correct county has jurisdiction — almost always the county where the deceased person lived. Many court websites provide fill-in-the-blank versions of these forms for people without an attorney.
Filing the Petition
Once the paperwork is complete, the petitioner submits it to the probate clerk. Many courts now accept electronic filing through an online portal, though in-person filing at the clerk’s window is still available in most places. Filing fees vary widely, from under $100 in some jurisdictions to over $1,000 in others, and often depend on the estimated value of the estate. These fees are generally paid at the time of submission.
Most courts require the petition to be verified, meaning the petitioner must sign it under oath or have it notarized. This affirms that the information in the petition is truthful to the best of the filer’s knowledge. Once the clerk processes the filing, the estate receives a unique case number that will track every document and hearing for the rest of the case. The clerk either schedules an initial hearing or assigns the file to a probate judge for review.
This is the moment probate has officially started. Everything up to this point is preparation; the case now exists in the court’s system.
What Happens in the Weeks After Filing
Filing opens the case, but several things have to fall into place before the personal representative can actually do anything with the estate’s assets.
Notice to Heirs and Beneficiaries
After filing, the petitioner must notify every heir, beneficiary, and other interested party that the case has been opened. Notice is typically sent by certified or first-class mail at least 14 days before any scheduled hearing. If someone’s address cannot be found after a reasonable search, the petitioner may satisfy the notice requirement by publishing a notice in a local newspaper for several consecutive weeks. The court will not move forward with appointing a personal representative until proof of proper notice is filed.
Notice to Creditors
The personal representative must also alert the deceased person’s creditors so they have a chance to submit claims against the estate. This is done by publishing a notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the case is filed, typically once a week for two to three consecutive weeks depending on the state. Known creditors should also receive direct notice by mail.
Once the first notice is published, a statutory clock starts running. Under the Uniform Probate Code and similar state laws, creditors generally have four months from the first publication date to file their claims, after which they are permanently barred from collecting. Some states use three to six months instead. This creditor-claims period is one of the main reasons probate cannot close quickly even when nothing goes wrong; the court must wait for it to expire before authorizing final distributions.
Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration
The case becomes fully active when a judge signs the order appointing the personal representative. The clerk then issues official credentials: Letters Testamentary if the person was named as executor in a valid will, or Letters of Administration if there was no will or the named executor could not serve. Both documents grant the same practical powers.
Armed with these certified letters, the representative can open estate bank accounts, access the deceased person’s financial records, collect debts owed to the estate, retitle property, and correspond with insurers and government agencies. Banks, brokerages, and title companies will not act on the representative’s instructions without seeing these court-issued letters, so obtaining them is the gateway to actually managing the estate.
When Probate May Not Need to Start at All
Not every death leads to a full probate case. Two sets of rules can shorten the process dramatically or skip it entirely, and it is worth checking both before filing anything.
Small Estate Shortcuts
Every state offers at least one streamlined path for smaller estates. If the estate’s total probate assets fall below a dollar threshold set by state law, heirs can often bypass the court entirely by signing a sworn affidavit and presenting it directly to the person or institution holding the asset, such as a bank, employer, or vehicle title office. The qualifying limits range from about $10,000 to $275,000 depending on the state. Most states also require a waiting period of 30 to 60 days after the death before the affidavit can be used, and the affidavit typically must state that no probate case has been opened or is pending.
Some states also offer summary administration, a simplified court proceeding that skips many of the steps involved in formal probate. Eligibility usually depends on the estate’s value falling under a state-set ceiling or a certain amount of time having passed since the death. Summary administration generally does not require appointing a personal representative or going through the full creditor-notification process, but beneficiaries who receive assets this way may remain personally liable for the deceased person’s debts for a period after death.
Assets That Skip Probate Entirely
Certain types of property transfer automatically at death and never pass through probate at all:
- Jointly owned property with right of survivorship, such as real estate or bank accounts held in joint tenancy or tenancy by the entirety, passes directly to the surviving co-owner.
- Life insurance policies, 401(k) plans, IRAs, and annuities pay out to the named beneficiary without court involvement.
- Bank accounts with a payable-on-death designation and brokerage accounts with a transfer-on-death designation go directly to the person named on the account.
- Assets transferred into a revocable or irrevocable trust during the owner’s lifetime are distributed by the trustee according to the trust terms, outside of probate.
If all of a deceased person’s assets fall into these categories, probate may not be needed at all. When only some do, the remaining property still goes through the court process.
How Long the Full Process Takes
Once probate starts, timelines vary based on the estate’s complexity, whether anyone contests the will, and how quickly the representative handles each step. A typical sequence looks like this:
- First 30 days after death: the will is delivered to the court and the petitioner gathers documentation.
- Weeks 4 through 8: the petition is filed, the court assigns a case number, and notice goes out to heirs and creditors.
- Months 2 through 3: the judge reviews the petition, holds a hearing if needed, and signs the order appointing the personal representative. Letters are issued.
- Months 3 through 7: the representative inventories assets, pays valid debts, files tax returns, and waits for the creditor-claims period to expire.
- Months 7 through 9: after all debts and taxes are settled, the representative files a final accounting and petitions the court to close the estate.
Simple, uncontested estates often wrap up within six to nine months. Contested wills, estates with hard-to-value assets like businesses, or cases that require a separate proceeding in another state can take one to three years or longer.