How to find a will in public records for free begins with the probate court in the county where the deceased person lived. Once someone files a will with the court for probate, it generally becomes part of the court record. In addition, many counties let the public search probate cases online at no cost, although fees may apply to obtain copies or certified documents.
However, a probate court can only provide information about wills that someone has filed with that court. So if no will appears, it does not necessarily mean that the deceased person did not have a will. Instead, the document may simply never have reached the court.
When county probate records do not show a will, there are other ways to continue the search. One record-based alternative is The U.S. Will Registry. While its national database requires a small search fee, the Registry may contain information that helps identify where someone stored a will.
Where Are Wills Found in Public Records?
For most families searching for a recently deceased person’s will, the primary source of public records is the court responsible for probate in the county where the deceased person lived.
The exact name of that office varies by jurisdiction. For example, it may go by:
The name is less important than its function. In other words, you are looking for the local court or government office that handles probate and estate proceedings.
When someone submits a will as part of probate, the clerk maintains the court record for the estate. For example, Florida Courts explains that people generally file probate proceedings with the clerk in the county where the deceased person lived, and the clerk maintains the ongoing record of papers filed in the estate. (Florida Courts)
Therefore, the county probate system is usually the first place to look when trying to determine whether a will has already become part of the public court record.
A probate file often contains more than the will. Depending on the state and the estate, the court record may include:
Beyond that, these records can also confirm details such as the date of death and the names of the spouse, children, and other relatives. As FamilySearch notes, probate takes place whether or not the person left a will, so an estate file can exist even when no one filed a will.
You do not necessarily have to visit the courthouse.
Instead, many counties provide online access to probate or estate case information. Although the exact system differs by county and state, the basic search process is generally similar.
Begin with the county where the deceased person maintained their primary residence at the time of death.
However, do not automatically search the county where the person died. For example, someone could have died in a hospital, nursing facility, vacation destination, or another state while remaining legally domiciled elsewhere.
Similarly, if the deceased person recently moved or maintained residences in different states, you may eventually need to investigate another jurisdiction.
First, search for the official court or clerk website for that county.
Then, depending on the jurisdiction, look for a section labeled:
Whenever possible, use the official government court or clerk website rather than a commercial public-record website.
Most court search systems allow you to search by a person’s name.
Enter the deceased person’s full legal name. If the system provides additional search fields, information such as the date of death, date of birth, or approximate filing date may help narrow the results.
Also, be especially careful with common names. Finding an estate for someone with the same name does not necessarily mean that you have located the correct person.
If someone has opened probate, the search may display an estate case.
The available information varies by court, but you may be able to see:
If the court provides document access, look for a will or codicil among the filings.
Some courts make documents available online. Others, however, provide only the docket or case information and require you to contact the clerk for the actual document.
Do not assume that a will does not exist simply because you cannot see the document online.
Instead, call or contact the clerk responsible for probate records and provide the deceased person’s name and, if available, the estate case number.
Ask:
A standard copy may be sufficient if you simply want to review the document. On the other hand, a certified copy may be necessary for certain legal purposes.
Searching the probate case itself may be free, particularly when the county provides a public online case search.
However, free to search does not always mean free to obtain the document.
For example, a court may charge for printed copies, electronic documents, certified copies, or other services.
If your primary goal is simply to determine whether anyone filed a will, you may be able to obtain that information without purchasing a certified copy.
For a more detailed explanation of the court process, see our steps to find a will in probate court.
In some states, a person can deposit their will with the court while they are still alive. The court then keeps it sealed until after the person dies. This matters when you are searching, because a will can sit at the courthouse even if no one has opened probate and nothing shows up in an online case search.
| State | Where the will is held |
| Colorado | Any court, under the court’s rules Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-11-515 |
| Delaware | Register of Wills 12 Del. C. § 2513 |
| Maryland | County Register of Wills Md. Code, Est. & Trusts § 4-201 |
| Massachusetts | Probate court Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 190B § 2-515 |
| Michigan | Probate court Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2515 |
| Minnesota | Any court, under the court’s rules Minn. Stat. § 524.2-515 |
| Nebraska | County court Neb. Rev. Stat. § 30-2355 |
| New York | Surrogate’s Court N.Y. Surr. Ct. Proc. Act § 2507 |
| North Carolina | Clerk of superior court N.C. Gen. Stat. § 31-11 |
| Ohio | Probate court Ohio Rev. Code § 2107.07 |
| Texas | County clerk Tex. Estates Code ch. 252 |
| Vermont | Probate court for the district where the person lives 14 V.S.A. § 2 |
| Virginia | Clerk of the circuit court Va. Code § 64.2-409 |
| Wisconsin | Register in probate Wis. Stat. § 853.09 |
This list is not complete. Several other states have similar rules, especially states that follow the Uniform Probate Code. So if you are not sure, ask the probate court in the county where the person lived whether it holds wills for safekeeping.
The rules are similar in most of these states:
If you think someone deposited a will, call the probate clerk, give the person’s full legal name and date of death, and ask specifically whether the court is holding a will for safekeeping. Also, be ready to provide a death certificate.
Because probate falls under state law, each state organizes its records differently. The FamilySearch Research Wiki keeps a guide for every state that explains where the state holds probate records, which offices handle them, and which statewide databases and online records are available.
These state guides are especially helpful for older records. For a recent death, however, start with the probate court in the county where the person lived, as described above.
A probate court search is particularly useful when you want to know whether someone has already opened an estate proceeding and submitted a will to that court.
However, it has an important limitation.
The probate court generally cannot show you a will that no one ever filed there.
For example, someone may have executed a will years before death and kept it at home, with an attorney, in a safe deposit box, or somewhere else.
Until someone submits that will to the appropriate court, a search of the probate case may provide no evidence that the document exists.
That is why these two questions are different:
“Has anyone filed a will with the probate court?”
and
“Did the deceased person have a will?”
A public court-record search can help answer the first question. However, it may not answer the second.
If your primary concern is determining whether a court filing occurred, see our guide on how to find out whether someone filed a will.
There are several reasons you may search the correct county and still find no will.
For example:
Therefore, you should not treat a lack of results in the county probate records as proof that no will exists.
Instead, it simply means that this particular public-record search did not locate one.
If the county probate search does not locate the will, there is another record-based resource that serves a different purpose.
The U.S. Will Registry maintains a national database documenting the locations of more than two million wills, helping families locate a will when needed. Attorneys and members of the public both register information about where wills are kept and who holds them. Registration is free to encourage everyone to participate.
A search of The U.S. Will Registry database costs a small fee of $19.95.
When a search finds matching registration information, it may help identify where someone stored the will or provide information associated with the attorney, family member, where stored in the home, online database or custodian. For families who locate the information they need, this can provide an important next step toward continuing the estate-settlement process.
If a search finds no matching registration, The U.S. Will Registry provides guidance on other steps that may help locate the will. It also explains how state law may affect family members if no one finds a will. As a result, a person should not assume they have no rights to an estate simply because no one can locate a will. After all, each state has laws that determine who may inherit when someone dies without a valid will.
If the will does not appear in the probate court records and a registry search does not locate matching information, there are still several conventional places to investigate.
These include thoroughly checking the deceased person’s home and personal records, looking for a safe deposit box, contacting attorneys the person may have used, and speaking with family members or close friends who may know where the person kept important documents.
In other words, these methods involve physically or personally searching for the will rather than searching a database or public record.
For detailed instructions on to settle an estate without a will, read: Intestate Succession – Settling an Estate Without a Will
If you are researching an ancestor or an older estate, probate records can reach back further than many birth and death records kept by civil authorities. FamilySearch estimates that courts probated estates for about 25 percent of heads of households in the United States before 1900, and that as much as half the population either left a will or appeared in one.
Older records may have moved from the county courthouse to county or state archives. In addition, researchers have transcribed, indexed, and published many early wills. Use the state guides in the table above to find where each state keeps records from a given period, and ask the probate clerk where the court stores older files.
The first place to search for a will in public records is generally the probate court or equivalent office in the county where the deceased person lived.
Many counties let the public search probate cases online at no cost. If someone has opened an estate and filed a will, the court record may identify the will and provide information about obtaining a copy.
However, county probate records have a significant limitation: they generally cannot tell you about a will that no one has filed with that court.
The U.S. Will Registry provides another record-based search. Although it is not a public-record database and a $19.95 search fee applies, its national database may contain information that helps locate a registered will.
Finally, if neither source provides the answer, the search can move beyond records to attorneys, personal files, safe deposit boxes, family members, and other conventional methods.
Start with the probate court or equivalent office in the county where the deceased person lived. Many counties let the public search probate and estate cases online at no charge. Depending on the jurisdiction, the office may go by Probate Court, Register of Wills, Surrogate’s Court, or Clerk of Court.
First, find the official probate court or clerk website for the county where the deceased person lived. Next, search the estate or probate records using the person’s full legal name. If an estate case appears, review the docket for a filed will. Finally, contact the clerk if the document itself is not available online.
Do not assume that no will exists. For example, no one may have filed the will, probate may not have started, or someone may have stored the document elsewhere. In that case, you can consider a national registry search and other methods such as contacting attorneys and checking the deceased person’s personal records.
No. A search of The U.S. Will Registry currently costs $19.95. This is separate from free county probate-record searches. If the search locates matching registration information, it may help identify where someone stored a registered will or provide information associated with its attorney or custodian.
Often, yes. Older probate records may be at the county courthouse, in county or state archives, or available as indexes and images on FamilySearch, which is free to use with an account. In addition, the state guides in the table above show where to look for each state.
This article was reviewed for legal accuracy by Shawn Patrick Wolf, Esq. Mr. Wolf is Board Certified in Wills, Trusts and Estates and in Tax Law. He serves on the Board of Directors of the East Coast Estate Planning Council and the Palm Beach Tax Institute.
