• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

How to get a copy of a will...

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

gbplinda

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? IL

My mother is trying to locate a copy of my grandmother's will. She lived part time in Florida and had a living trust and a will. We need a copy of the will for a real estate transaction and my mother cannot locate the copy she had. We've been trying to contact the attorney that drew up the will and living trust for well over 6 months and she hasn't returned calls. We've contacted the courthouse down there and they informed us that the attorney's keep copies of the will in safe deposit boxes and we would have to contact them for it. We're at our wit's end and dont' know what to do...is there anything we can do to get the will?

Linda
 


Dandy Don

Senior Member
If you know what county the death occurred in, check online for county courthouse probate court records for that county and check, using your grandmother's name, to see if there is any record that probate was officially done for her. If probate has been done you can order a certified copy of the will from the courthouse. Or call the county again and ask them to check their online records for your grandmother's name.

Or, mention her name here and the approximate date of death and the city/state of deeath, and I can check online for you--there is one other website that will have this information.

The county may have not understood your question or exactly what you were asking--wills that have been probated would not be kept by the attorneys in safe deposit boxes--that is only for wills that have not been probated yet.

Was your mother the executor of this estate or was it someone else? You may want to consider asking the executor to get this information for you.

DANDY DON IN OKLAHOMA ([email protected])
 

John Beekman

Junior Member
Copy of Will

it is correct that you can get a copy of a will submitted for Probate in your County Courthouse-normally the Register of Wills. However, this is only if the Will was submitted for Probate. There is the possibility that the Will may not have been submitted for Probate. Such a circumstance would occur if the property of the deceased was held in "joint" name(s) with another person or persons. In such a case no Probate would be necessary as all such jointly held property would go dirctly to the surviving joint owner(s). Consequently, in such a case, you would not find the Will in the County Courthouse. If this applies, you would have to contact any known attorneys, relatives, etc. of the deceased to request a copy of the will. Additionally the executor ofthe estate would be required to place an ad in local newspapers adivising those who had claims against the estate to contact the executor. A search of your local newspapers would revel the name and phone number of the executor from which you can ask for a copy of the will.
 

Dandy Don

Senior Member
If you find that there is no record of a will being probated, consider consulting with a probate attorney to find out what your next options should be. Your mother may be able to get probate opened up without a will, and she also needs to be requesting a copy of the trust by having her attorney send the trustee a certified letter requesting such.

DANDY DON IN OKLAHOMA ([email protected])
 

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top