How to Find a Will: 6 Steps to Locate a Missing Will

To find a will, start by checking the deceased person’s home and personal files, contacting their estate planning attorney, searching a national will registry, checking probate court records, and checking safe deposit boxes. If one method does not locate the will, continue with the others, because no single source contains every last will and testament.

This guide walks through each search step, explains how to get a copy of a will once you know where it is, and covers what to do if the will cannot be found.

How to Find a Will in 6 Steps

1. Search the Home and Personal Records

The deceased person’s home and personal papers are practical places to begin your search. Search methodically, and keep notes on where you looked so other family members do not repeat the same search.

• Where to look: Filing cabinets, desk drawers, home safes, fireproof boxes, closets, and envelopes labeled “Important,” “Estate,” or “Will.”
• Clues to collect: Letters from attorneys, legal invoices, and checks or bank statements showing payments to a law firm. These can identify who prepared the will.
• Related documents: Trusts, codicils, and powers of attorney are often stored with the will. Finding one may lead you to the others.

If you find a document that may be a will, leave it exactly as it is. Do not write on it, remove staples, or take pages apart, because changes to the original can raise questions about whether it is valid.

For additional places to check, see where to look first when searching for a missing will.

2. Review Digital Files and Online Records

Even when the signed original is on paper, digital records often point to where it is or who prepared it.

• Email: Search for words such as “will,” “estate,” “trust,” “attorney,” and the names of local law firms.
• Computer and cloud storage: Look for files named “Last Will,” “Estate Plan,” or similar, including scanned copies.
• Calendars: An appointment with an attorney can show roughly when a will was signed and with whom.
• Online will services: If the person used an online will service, the account may hold a copy, but the signed original is usually a paper document kept elsewhere.

Only access accounts and devices you are legally authorized to use. An executor may need court authority before accessing some accounts.

For online search options, see How to Find If a Will Exists Online.

3. Find and Contact the Estate Planning Attorney

If you know who prepared the will, contact that attorney or law firm. Attorneys often keep the original will in their files, retain a copy, or know where the original was stored.

• If you do not know the attorney: Check the clues from steps 1 and 2, and ask the deceased person’s accountant, financial advisor, or insurance agent, who may know which attorney they used.
• If the attorney retired or died: Their client files are often transferred to another attorney or law firm. The state bar association may be able to help you find where the files went.
• What to bring: A copy of the death certificate and, if you have it, proof of your relationship to the deceased or your appointment as executor.

If you do not know which attorney prepared it, see How to Find the Attorney Who Wrote a Will.

4. Search a National Will Registry

A national will registry may help identify where a registered will is located or which attorney prepared it.

Search The U.S. Will Registry to determine whether information about the will was registered. The Registry records information about the existence and location of registered wills. It does not store the will itself.

If no matching registration is found, The U.S. Will Registry provides guidance on additional steps that may help continue the search.

The search also gives families an Estate settlement guide: Step-by-step guidance on how to proceed with settling the estate, whether or not a will is found. Guidance is based on each persons relationship to the deceased.  

For more information about this type of search, see how a National Will Registry works.

SEARCH FOR A WILLEstablished 1997The U.S. Will RegistrySTART YOUR SEARCH →

5. Check Probate Court Records

If probate has started, the will has likely been filed with the probate court in the county where the deceased person lived. That is the county of residence, which is not always the county where the person died.

• Search online: Many probate courts offer an online case search by the deceased person’s name.
• Contact the clerk: If the court has no online search, call or visit the probate clerk’s office.
• Information to have ready: The person’s full legal name, date of death, and county of residence.

In most states, the person holding an original will is legally required to deliver it to the probate court, or to the named executor, after learning of the death, often within a set deadline. For example, Florida generally requires the custodian to deposit the will with the appropriate court clerk within 10 days after learning of the death. California generally requires delivery to the appropriate court clerk within 30 days, along with a copy to the named executor or, in specified circumstances, a beneficiary.

If you are trying to determine whether the will has already reached the court, see How to Find Out If a Will Was Filed.

For detailed court-search instructions, see How to Find a Will in Probate Court.

6. Check Safe Deposit Boxes

If the deceased had a safe deposit box, the original will may be inside. A key, a bank statement showing a box rental fee, or a note in their records can tell you which bank to contact.

• Who can open it: State law determines who may request a supervised search of the box. Contact the bank to confirm eligibility and required documents. Permission to search does not necessarily allow you to remove its contents.
• What to bring: A certified death certificate, photo identification, and, if available, the box key and proof of your relationship or executor appointment.
• If the bank requires more: Some banks require court documents, such as letters appointing the executor, before allowing access.

For detailed information, see How to Access a Will in a Safe Deposit Box After Death.

How to Get a Copy of a Will

Once a will has been filed with the probate court, it becomes a public record, and you can usually request a copy from the probate court clerk in the county where the deceased person lived. Before the will is filed, there is generally no public copy, and access depends on who is holding it.

• Before the will is filed with the court.: The original is usually held by the executor, the attorney who prepared it, or a family member. Most states give no general right to see a will before it is filed, although the executor may choose to share a copy with beneficiaries.
• After probate is filed: Request a copy from the probate clerk using the deceased person’s name or the case number. Many courts let you view or order copies online, while others require a visit or a mailed request. Courts usually charge a small per-page fee.
• Certified copies: Banks, title companies, and government agencies often require a certified copy, which the court stamps as a true copy of the original. See How to Get a Certified Copy of a Will.
• If you are a beneficiary or heir: Once probate opens, the executor is typically required to notify beneficiaries, and in many states legal heirs receive notice as well, which tells you which court holds the will.

What If You Still Cannot Find the Will?

If these searches do not locate the will, do not immediately assume that one never existed. A will may exist even if it was never registered or filed with a probate court.

• Check the court again later: A custodian may deliver the will after you first search, so recheck the probate court in the following weeks.
• Ask those closest to the deceased: Close friends, neighbors, and longtime advisors sometimes know where documents were kept.
• Look for evidence of a will: A copy, a draft, or an attorney’s letter confirming a will was signed can matter even if the original is missing.

If you have found a copy or other evidence that a will existed but cannot locate the signed document, see what to do when the original will cannot be found.

If no valid will is ultimately located, the estate may have to proceed under state intestate succession laws. See How to Settle an Estate Without a Will for what may happen next. A U.S. Will Registry search also includes an estate settlement guide for estates without a will and a free asset finder to help identify assets the family may not know about.

What If You Find More Than One Will?

Finding a will does not necessarily mean the search is finished. A person may have created a later will or signed a codicil that changed an earlier document.

Check the dates and look for later estate planning documents. If you are uncertain whether a document is legally effective, see What Constitutes a Valid Will.

If several copies or versions are discovered, see what may happen when a duplicate copy of a will is found.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is the Fastest Way to Find a Will?

Start by checking the deceased person’s personal records and contacting their estate planning attorney. Then search a national will registry and check whether the will has already been filed with the probate court. No single source contains every will, so more than one search method may be necessary.

How Do I Find Out If My Parent Had a Will?

Begin with your parent’s papers and digital files, then contact any attorney they used, search a national will registry, and check the probate court in the county where they lived. As a child of the deceased, you are often a legal heir, which means you are typically entitled to notice if probate is opened.

How Do I Get a Copy of a Will?

If the will has been filed with the probate court, request a copy from the probate clerk in the county where the deceased person lived. If it has not been filed, ask the executor or the attorney who prepared it. See How to Get a Copy of a Will above for details.

Is a Last Will and Testament a Public Record?

A last will and testament becomes a public record once it is filed with the probate court. Before a will is filed with the court, access depends on state law, the requester’s legal rights, and who holds the document.

Can You Find a Will Online?

Sometimes. Probate court databases may contain wills that have already been filed, while a will registry may contain information about a registered will’s location. However, finding no online record does not mean that no will exists.

See How to Find If a Will Exists Online for the available online search methods.

Who Can Search for a Will?

Family members, executors, beneficiaries, attorneys, and others may try to locate a deceased person’s will. However, access to private documents may depend on the person’s relationship to the deceased and their legal authority.

See Who Can Search for a Will for a complete explanation.

Start With More Than One Source

There is no single place where every will can be found. A complete search may involve personal records, digital files, attorneys, a national will registry, probate court records, and safe deposit boxes.

Start with the six methods above. If one part of the search requires more information, follow the specialized resources linked throughout this guide.

If you are searching for information about a registered will, search The U.S. Will Registry.