Quick answer: You open a California probate by filing Judicial Council form DE-111, “Petition for Probate,” with the superior court in the county where the decedent lived at death. The statewide filing fee is $435 as of January 1, 2026. If a will exists, the person holding it also has to lodge the original with the court within 30 days of learning of the death, separately from filing the petition. None of this lets you act for the estate yet. Until the court issues Letters, you have no authority to touch a bank account, sign a deed, or pay a bill.
What form DE-111 does
DE-111 is the mandatory form that opens a decedent’s estate case. It asks the court to determine whether the decedent left a will, admit that will to probate if one exists, and appoint someone as personal representative, an executor named in the will, or an administrator if there’s no will. Filing DE-111 doesn’t transfer any authority by itself. It starts a court proceeding that ends, if all goes well, with Letters being issued to the appointed representative.
Which county you file in
Prob. Code § 7051 sets venue at the county of the decedent’s domicile at death, not the county where the decedent happened to die. Someone who lived in Ventura County but died in a hospital in Los Angeles County still has their estate probated in Ventura.
The $435 filing fee and what it buys
As of January 1, 2026, the fee to file a petition for probate is $435 statewide, made up of a $355 base fee under Government Code Section 70650(a), a $40 fee under Government Code Section 70602.5(a), and a $40 fee under Government Code Section 70602.6(a). Ventura, Los Angeles, and Santa Barbara Counties all charge this statewide amount. That fee opens the case and gets the petition onto the court’s calendar. It doesn’t cover probate referee fees, publication costs, bond premiums, or the fee to lodge the original will, which is $50 under Government Code Section 70626(d). It also has nothing to do with the fee the estate eventually pays its personal representative and attorney under § 10810, calculated separately once the estate’s value is known.
Lodging the original will within 30 days
If the decedent left a will, whoever has physical custody of it is under a legal duty that exists independent of the probate petition. Prob. Code § 8200 requires the custodian to deliver the original will to the superior court clerk of the proper county within 30 days of learning of the death, and to send a copy to the executor named in it. This applies whether or not anyone has filed a petition yet, and whether or not the custodian intends to serve as executor. Under § 8200(b), a custodian who fails to do this is liable for damages caused by the delay. Attorneys who drafted the will and kept the original in their files are custodians too, and the duty falls on them the moment they learn the client has died.
Between filing and the first hearing
Once DE-111 is filed, the clerk sets a hearing date, generally far enough out to allow the required notice period to run. The petitioner has to give notice of the hearing to everyone entitled to it under the Probate Code, generally heirs, beneficiaries named in the will, and anyone else with a right to notice, by mail to each person individually. Prob. Code § 8120 also requires published notice of the hearing, and § 8121 sets the mechanics: first publication at least 15 days before the hearing, three publications in a newspaper published once a week or more often, at least five days between the first and last publication dates (not counting the publication dates themselves), in a newspaper of general circulation in the city where the decedent resided, with fallback rules if no such city newspaper exists. At the hearing, if no one objects and the paperwork is in order, the judge signs an order admitting the will, if any, and appointing the personal representative.
Letters: the document that actually gives you authority
An order appointing you isn’t the same as authority to act. After the hearing, the clerk issues form DE-150, “Letters,” once you’ve filed your bond (if one is required) and taken the oath. DE-150 has checkboxes for Letters Testamentary, Letters of Administration with Will Annexed, Letters of Administration, and Letters of Special Administration, and its issuance is governed by Prob. Code §§ 1001, 8403, 8405, 8544, and 8545. Banks, title companies, and brokerages will ask to see certified Letters before releasing a dollar or transferring a deed. Until you’re holding them, you’re not the personal representative for any practical purpose.
The four-month inventory deadline
Once Letters are issued to a general personal representative, the clock starts on the estate’s inventory and appraisal. Prob. Code § 8800(b) requires it to be filed within four months of that date, though the court can allow more time on request, and partial inventories are allowed when some assets take longer to value than others. The inventory, prepared with a probate referee for anything other than cash, tells the court, the creditors, and the beneficiaries what the estate is actually worth.
The creditor claim window
Creditors don’t get an open-ended right to come after the estate. Prob. Code § 9100 sets their deadline as the later of two dates: four months after Letters are first issued to a general personal representative, or 60 days after the personal representative mails or personally delivers notice of administration to that specific creditor. A creditor asserts a claim on form DE-172, “Creditor’s Claim (Probate),” governed by Prob. Code §§ 9000 et seq. and 9153. Missing this deadline generally bars the claim, though § 9100 doesn’t extend the separate one-year period under Code of Civil Procedure § 366.2 or revive a claim already time-barred before the decedent died.
| Event | Deadline | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| Lodge original will with the court | Within 30 days of learning of the death | Prob. Code § 8200 |
| File inventory and appraisal | Within 4 months of Letters first issued | Prob. Code § 8800(b) |
| Creditor’s claim deadline | Later of 4 months after Letters issued, or 60 days after notice to that creditor | Prob. Code § 9100 |
A realistic timeline
In our experience at Ridley Law, an uncontested California probate typically runs twelve to eighteen months from filing to final distribution. The four-month inventory window and the creditor claim period both have to run before the estate can be closed, and courts need real lead time between filing and the first hearing. The California Courts Self-Help Guide describes a similar range, roughly nine months to a year and a half, though no California court publishes an official median. A remote-only practice doesn’t change these statutory clocks, but it does mean every filing, notice, and court appearance in your case gets handled without asking you to take time off work to sit in a courthouse hallway.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a lawyer to file a petition for probate in California?
Not always. Some straightforward, uncontested estates get through the DE-111 process without one. But the notice requirements, the bond and Letters process, the four-month inventory deadline, and the creditor claim window all carry consequences for getting them wrong, and an executor who misses one can end up personally exposed. Most people who try it alone end up needing help partway through anyway.
Is $435 the entire cost of opening a probate case?
No. The $435 filing fee only covers the petition itself. You should also expect a probate referee fee once the inventory is prepared, a bond premium if the court requires one, and separately the $50 fee to lodge the original will under Government Code Section 70626(d). None of this includes attorney or personal representative fees, which are calculated later under § 10810 based on the estate’s value.
Can I access the decedent’s bank accounts before Letters are issued?
No. Filing DE-111 and even winning at the hearing doesn’t give you authority over estate assets. You need form DE-150, Letters, in hand before any bank, brokerage, or title company will treat you as the personal representative. Acting as if you have authority before that point can create personal liability.
Does missing the 30-day deadline to lodge the will prevent it from being probated?
Not always. The 30-day window in § 8200 is a duty on the will’s custodian, not a statute of limitations on probating the will itself. Missing it can expose the custodian to liability for damages the delay caused under § 8200(b), but it doesn’t automatically bar the will from being admitted to probate later.
Does every California estate have to go through this full petition process?
No. Smaller estates can often avoid a full probate. An estate valued at $208,850 or less can generally use a small estate affidavit under § 13100 after a 40-day wait, and an estate where the only asset needing transfer is real property valued at $750,000 or less may qualify for the simplified petition under § 13151. Above those thresholds, the DE-111 process is required.
Who is responsible for notifying creditors once the estate is open?
Usually the personal representative, not the court. Once Letters are issued, it falls to the representative to identify known or reasonably ascertainable creditors and mail or personally deliver notice of administration to each one, which is what starts that creditor’s individual 60-day clock under § 9100.
How soon after filing does the court schedule the first hearing?
Usually within a matter of weeks, since the clerk has to leave enough time for the required notice period to run before anyone can appear. Exact timing depends on the county’s own calendar and caseload, so it varies from court to court.
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