You may be reading this as an adult child sorting through a parent's papers, a surviving spouse facing letters from banks, or the person a will names to take charge. The word "probate" may sound like a long, unfamiliar court process, with family members waiting on you for answers. Most people in this position have never filed anything in a probate court. This guide walks through California probate in the order it usually unfolds: whether it is needed, how a case opens, what the court-appointed person does, and how the estate closes.
There are six steps between the first filing and the closed estate. Two clocks drive most of the calendar, and both start on the day the court first issues its authority, so the steps below mark where each one begins.
Before You Start: When California Probate Is Required
Probate is the court-supervised way to transfer a deceased person's property to heirs (the relatives who inherit under California law when there is no will) or beneficiaries (people named in a will or trust) when nothing else moves that property. The California Courts' guide to property after someone dies notes that an estate may need probate even when the person had a will.
Probate Code section 13100 sets the line. When the gross value of the decedent's real and personal property in California does not exceed a dollar limit "as adjusted periodically," and 40 days have passed since the death, a successor may collect money, receive tangible personal property and transfer items like accounts or securities without opening probate. The California Courts publish the current figure on their self-help site.
Much property is left out of that count. Under Probate Code section 13050, the excluded property includes joint tenancy property, property in a trust the decedent could revoke, property passing to a surviving spouse under the spousal rules, multiple-party accounts that belong to a surviving party or payable-on-death payee, registered vehicles, vessels and mobilehomes, and certain other items. Probate Code section 5302 adds that money left in a joint account belongs to the surviving party unless there is clear and convincing evidence of a different intent, and that a payable-on-death designation cannot be changed by will.
Real property (land and buildings) and personal property (everything else) are treated differently. A house titled in the decedent's name alone, with no trust or survivorship deed, generally goes through probate unless a simplified procedure fits. California's simplified procedures are:
- the affidavit for collection or transfer of personal property
- the petition to determine succession to the decedent's primary residence
- the affidavit for real property of small value
- the spousal or domestic partner property petition, which under Probate Code section 13650 asks the court to find that administration is not needed for property passing to the surviving spouse
Each has its own eligibility conditions. The California estate settlement guide sets these routes side by side.
Step 1: Locate the Will and File a Petition with the Superior Court
Finding the original will comes first, because it decides who asks to be put in charge. Under Probate Code section 8200, unless a petition for probate is filed earlier, whoever holds the will must, within 30 days after learning of the death, deliver it to the clerk of the superior court in the county where the estate may be administered and deliver a copy to the named executor (or, if the executor cannot be found, to a named beneficiary).
The case is filed in the county where the decedent lived. If the decedent lived outside California but owned property here, the California Courts' overview of formal probate says to file in the county where that property is.
Two roles can open the case:
- An executor is the person a will names to manage the estate.
- An administrator is the person the court appoints when there is no will, or the named executor cannot or will not serve.
Under Probate Code section 8000, any interested person may petition at any time after the death for an order determining the date and place of death and appointing a personal representative, admitting the will to probate, or both, even if the will is lost or destroyed. When there is no will, Probate Code section 8461 lists who has priority to serve as administrator: first a surviving spouse or domestic partner, then children, grandchildren, other issue, parents, and siblings, with the list continuing to more distant relatives, the public administrator, creditors and others.
The California Courts' overview says the filing fee is typically $435.00, that a fee waiver can be requested for financial hardship, and that the fee can usually be reimbursed from the estate. Under Probate Code section 8003, the hearing is set 15 to 30 days after filing, or 30 to 45 days if the petitioner asks for the longer window at filing. Probate Code section 8110 requires notice at least 15 days before the hearing to each known or reasonably ascertainable heir and to each devisee, executor and alternative executor named in a will being offered. The Courts' overview adds that another adult who is not a party mails the notice, and that notice is published in a newspaper of general circulation in the city where the decedent lived. Current Judicial Council forms are on the California Courts self-help site.
Step 2: Receive Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration
At the hearing, the California Courts' overview explains, the judge may grant the petition and appoint a personal representative if there are no questions about the petition, notice or publication. Personal representative is the general term for whoever the court puts in charge, whether executor or administrator.
After appointment, the court clerk issues Letters, the document that proves the representative's authority. When there is a will, they are called Letters Testamentary. When there is no will, they are called Letters of Administration. Banks, title companies and agencies generally ask to see Letters before dealing with the representative on the estate's behalf. With Letters, the representative can open an estate account, collect assets, notify creditors and manage property.
For the family, this step marks when one person begins acting for everyone. The Judicial Council's statement of Duties and Liabilities of Personal Representative says the representative becomes an officer of the court. That statement requires the representative to:
- manage assets with the care of a prudent person dealing with someone else's property
- keep estate money separate in an account named as an estate account
- keep interest-bearing accounts, except checking used for ordinary expenses
- keep complete records of every transaction
- keep adequate insurance in force
The same statement says that, without prior court order, the representative may not pay fees to themselves or to their attorney.
The date Letters are first issued matters. It starts the clocks for creditor claims in Step 3 and for the inventory in Step 4.
Step 3: Notify Creditors and Manage Claims
Creditor notice surprises many new representatives, because it means reaching out to the people the estate may owe. Under Probate Code section 9050, the personal representative gives notice of administration to the decedent's known or reasonably ascertainable creditors, including any creditor known to have demanded payment. This direct notice is in addition to the newspaper publication described in Step 1, which lets creditors the family does not know about learn of the case.
The Judicial Council's duties statement says notice is mailed to each known creditor within four months after appointment. It also says that if the decedent received Medi-Cal assistance, the State Director of Health Services is notified within 90 days after appointment.
The claim deadline appears in Probate Code section 9100. A creditor generally files a claim before the later of four months after Letters are first issued to a general personal representative or 60 days after notice of administration is mailed or personally delivered to that creditor. That section does not extend other statutes of limitations.
The representative reviews each claim and may allow or reject it. A creditor whose claim is rejected can take the dispute to court. When an estate cannot pay everything, California law sets an order in which debts and expenses are paid. An attorney can explain how that order applies to a particular estate.
For heirs, the practical result is that valid debts and expenses come out of the estate before anyone receives a share.