California Statutory Probate Fees
In California, if a person creates a will instead of a trust, or does no estate planning at all, the court will typically need to oversee the settlement the person’s estate after death. This court settlement process is called “probate.”
California state law sets the fees for probate cases. These set fees are called “statutory probate fees.” Over and above the standard fees below, the probate attorney and executor may request and be granted by the court an amount above the standard fees if extraordinary services are performed.
PROBATE FEE CALCULATOR
The calculator below estimates the cost of taking a person’s estate through a probate court process after death. State law sets probate fees as a percentage of the market value of a person’s assets subject to probate (real estate, bank accounts, business interests, etc.) without subtracting the person’s debts from that value. Retirement accounts that have designated beneficiaries and assets placed in a living trust are generally not subject to probate.
This calculator estimates statutory attorney’s fees and executor commissions for the administration of estates valued over $150,000.