What Is Probate in California?

Probate is the court-supervised administration of a deceased person's estate: proving the will if there is one, appointing an executor or administrator, collecting the assets, paying creditors and taxes, resolving disputes, and distributing what remains to the beneficiaries or heirs. In Los Angeles County these cases run through the probate department, including at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse downtown.

California probate is famously slow and expensive relative to trust administration. Statutory attorney and executor fees are set as percentages of the gross estate, and even routine administrations commonly take a year or more. Assets held in a funded living trust, in joint tenancy, or with beneficiary designations bypass probate entirely, and small estates under the statutory threshold can use simplified transfer procedures instead.

Litigation inside probate includes will contests, disputes over who should serve as personal representative, creditor claim fights, petitions over mismanaged or missing property, and heirship battles. The probate court also hears trust disputes, conservatorships, and Probate Code section 850 petitions to move property into or out of estates and trusts.

What the Process Involves

Probate is the court-supervised process of validating a will where one exists, appointing a personal representative, identifying and inventorying assets, giving notice to and paying creditors, resolving disputes, filing final tax returns, and distributing what remains under the will or by intestate succession.

The personal representative is a fiduciary and answers to the court. The estate is appraised by a court-appointed probate referee, and the representative generally must account to the beneficiaries and obtain court approval before the estate can be closed.

The Statutory Fee Structure

California is unusual in setting statutory compensation for both the personal representative and the estate's attorney as a percentage of the gross value of the estate accounted for, on a declining scale. Because the calculation uses gross value rather than equity, a heavily mortgaged Los Angeles home generates fees based on the full appraised value, not on what the family actually inherits.

Extraordinary services, such as litigation or the sale of real property, can be compensated on top of the statutory amount by court approval. This fee structure is the single most persuasive practical argument for funding a living trust.

When Probate Can Be Avoided or Simplified

Assets held in a funded living trust, property in joint tenancy, accounts with valid beneficiary designations, and property passing to a surviving spouse through a spousal property petition generally avoid full probate.

California also provides small estate procedures, including a declaration for collecting personal property and petitions for real property of small value, with thresholds set by statute and adjusted periodically. A Heggstad petition can also bring a specific asset into an existing trust without full administration.