Probate

After your death, the Probate Court may be responsible for overseeing the procedure of distributing your estate to the appropriate people. If you executed a Trust or Will prior to your death, those legal trust documents generally will dictate to whom your assets are distributed. If you died without a Trust and intestate, or without a Will, the Probate Court follows intestate succession laws, which establish who will receive your assets.

California probate law requires all estates over $150,000 to go through the probate process, unless your assets are held in Trust or controlled by the decedent’s Will. Probate can take anywhere from eight months to two years. However, when your estate is under $150,000, we are able to file a California small estate affidavit without probate administration and distribute your assets at a much faster pace at a much lower fee. 

In California, probate fees are statutory. California’s current probate fee schedule is based on the gross value of the estate at 4% of the first $100,000, 3% of the second $100,000, 2% of the next $800,000, and 1% over $1 million up to $9 million. The initial probate filing fee in San Diego County is $435, and the final probate filing fee is $435.