How much does probate cost in California?

Families often hear that probate is expensive without hearing why. In California the main costs are not a mystery: the Probate Code sets the executor's and the attorney's compensation for ordinary work as a percentage of the estate, and the Judicial Council publishes the court's filing fees. Our estate planning page explains why many families plan to keep their property out of probate. This page shows how the statutory fees are figured, what else a probate case costs in Los Angeles County, and what changes the total. It reflects Probate Code sections 10800 to 10832 as published by the Legislature and the Statewide Civil Fee Schedule effective January 1, 2026.

How does a probate case run up its costs, step by step?

1. The will goes to the court. Whoever holds the original will must deliver it to the clerk of the superior court within 30 days after learning of the death, unless a petition for probate has already been filed (Probate Code section 8200). The fee for delivering a will is $50 under the statewide fee schedule, and it can be reimbursed from the estate if a case is opened.
2. Someone petitions to open the estate. Any interested person may petition the court to appoint a personal representative, with or without a will (section 8000). The first petition for letters costs $435 to file under Government Code section 70650. In Los Angeles County the probate clerk's office is at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse, 111 N. Hill St., Room 429, and parties with attorneys must file electronically, according to the Superior Court's probate filing page.
3. Notice goes out and the court holds a hearing. Notice of the petition is delivered to heirs and beneficiaries and published, in the form section 8100 sets out. The court's January 2026 notice describes probate courtrooms at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse, which our page on what to expect at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse describes for civil cases.
4. Letters issue and creditors get their window. Once appointed, the personal representative receives letters. Creditors must file claims within the later of four months after letters first issue or 60 days after notice is delivered to them (section 8100).
5. The estate is inventoried and appraised. The personal representative files an inventory and appraisal within four months after letters issue (section 8800). A probate referee appraises much of the property and is paid a commission of one-tenth of one percent of the value appraised, plus expenses (section 8961).
6. Fees can be paid in part along the way. Four months after letters issue, the personal representative may ask the court for an allowance on account of the executor's or the attorney's compensation for work done so far (section 10830).
7. The final account fixes the total. With the final account and petition for distribution, the court makes an order fixing the compensation for all services, less anything already paid (section 10831). Many petitions filed after letters issue, such as one to sell property, settle an account or approve compensation, carry their own $435 fee under Government Code section 70658.

What is the statutory fee schedule?

Section 10800 sets the personal representative's compensation for ordinary services, and section 10810 sets the same schedule for the attorney for the personal representative. Each is a separate fee, so an estate that pays both pays the schedule twice.

The figure the percentages apply to is not the family's equity. Sections 10800(b) and 10810(b) define the value of the estate accounted for as the appraisal value of the property in the inventory, plus gains over appraisal value on sales, plus receipts, less losses on sales, "without reference to encumbrances or other obligations on estate property." A house appraised at $900,000 counts as $900,000 even if $500,000 is still owed on the loan. Property that never enters the probate estate, such as a house held in a funded living trust, is not in the inventory and so is not in the calculation.

These figures are the ordinary compensation the statute provides; the court fixes the actual amounts in its orders under sections 10830 and 10831.

What else does probate cost in Los Angeles County?

Court fees in probate are statewide. The Statewide Civil Fee Schedule notes that a few counties add a courthouse construction surcharge to some fees; Los Angeles County is not one of them.

Beyond the court, the probate referee's commission is one-tenth of one percent of the value the referee appraises, computed without the property the personal representative or an independent expert appraises, plus the referee's actual and necessary expenses (section 8961). The personal representative may also hire tax counsel, accountants or other tax experts and pay them from the estate (section 10801(b)). Those payments are separate from the statutory fee.

What changes the answer?

Extraordinary services

The schedule covers ordinary services only. For extraordinary services, the court may allow additional compensation in an amount it finds just and reasonable, for the personal representative under section 10801(a) and for the attorney under section 10811(a). Section 10811(b) allows compensation for a paralegal's extraordinary work under an attorney's supervision, and section 10811(c) permits a contingent fee for extraordinary work only if the agreement is in writing, meets Business and Professions Code section 6147 and is approved by the court after notice. Extraordinary compensation can be allowed before final distribution if the administration will run unusually long, present payment would benefit the estate, or there is other good cause (section 10832).

What the will says

If the will provides for the executor's or the attorney's compensation, that provision is the full and only compensation (sections 10802(a) and 10812(a)). The executor or attorney may petition to be relieved of it, and the court may allow more if that is to the advantage of the estate and in the best interest of the people interested in it.

Side agreements for more

An agreement between the personal representative and an heir or beneficiary for higher compensation than the statute provides is void (section 10803), and so is an agreement between the personal representative and the attorney for a higher attorney fee (section 10813).

An attorney who is also the executor

A personal representative who is an attorney may receive the executor's compensation, but not a second fee as attorney for the estate unless the court approves it in advance and finds it is to the advantage of the estate (section 10804).

More than one executor or attorney

Two co-executors do not each receive a full fee. The court apportions one personal representative's compensation among them according to the services each actually performed, or as they agree (section 10805), and section 10814 applies the same rule to two or more attorneys.

Whether a full probate is needed at all

Smaller estates may qualify for an affidavit or a short court petition instead; our page on skipping probate for a small estate lists the current limits. For a home, the two common planning tools are a funded trust and a recorded deed that takes effect at death. We explain the first in how to put your house into a living trust in Los Angeles County. We compare the two side by side in transfer on death deed or living trust.

A worked example

For example, imagine a hypothetical widow in Glendale who dies with a will and no trust. Her house appraises at $900,000 and still carries a $400,000 mortgage. She also leaves a $100,000 brokerage account in her name alone. Her son is named executor and hires a lawyer to handle the case.

As an illustration of the arithmetic only: the estate accounted for starts at $1,000,000, because the mortgage is not subtracted. The statutory executor's fee is $4,000 on the first $100,000, $3,000 on the next $100,000 and $16,000 on the next $800,000, or $23,000, and the statutory attorney's fee is another $23,000. The son pays $435 to file the petition, and the referee's commission on the house would be one-tenth of one percent of the value the referee appraises, or $900 on $900,000, plus expenses. If the house is sold during the case for more than its appraisal, the gain is added to the base; if it sells for less, the loss is subtracted.

None of this predicts the final numbers. Whether the court allows extraordinary fees, whether the house is sold, and how long the case takes all depend on facts that come later. What the example shows is why the family's $600,000 of equity is not the figure that matters.

Common mistakes about probate costs

• Figuring the fee on equity. The base is the gross value accounted for; mortgages and other debts are not deducted (sections 10800(b) and 10810(b)).
• Forgetting there are two fees. The executor's fee and the attorney's fee are separate statutory amounts, each on the same schedule.
• Assuming a will avoids probate. The statutory will form itself warns that, with or without a will, assets in a person's name alone usually go through probate (section 6240). Even a valid handwritten will in California must be proved in court.
• Signing a side deal for a bigger fee. Agreements for more than the statute provides are void under sections 10803 and 10813.
• Leaving the house out of the trust. A trust that was signed but never funded leaves the house in the probate inventory, where it drives the fee.
• Missing the will deadline. A custodian who does not deliver the will within 30 days can be liable for damages caused by the delay (section 8200(b)).

What to do this week

1. Find the original will and any trust, and note who has custody of each.
2. List every asset with how it is titled: in the person's name alone, in a trust, in joint tenancy, or with a named beneficiary.
3. Total only the assets in the person's name alone, at gross value, to estimate the base under section 10810(b).
4. Compare that total with the small estate limits before assuming a full probate is needed.
5. Read the will for any clause about the executor's or the attorney's compensation.
6. If the person had a trust, find out whether the trustee has sent the required notice; our page on the trustee's notice and the 120-day deadline explains it.
7. Before hiring anyone, read our questions to ask before hiring an attorney and ask how fees will be requested from the court.

Frequently asked questions

Is the probate fee the same in every California county?

Yes for the statutory compensation, because sections 10800 and 10810 are state law. Court filing fees are also statewide, except that the fee schedule adds a local surcharge to some fees in Riverside, San Bernardino and San Francisco counties.

Who pays the executor and the attorney?

The estate does. The court's order under section 10831 authorizes the personal representative to charge the allowed compensation against the estate and to pay the attorney out of the estate.

When are the fees paid?

Usually at the end, when the court fixes compensation with the final account (section 10831). An allowance on account can be requested once four months have passed since letters issued (section 10830), and extraordinary compensation can be paid earlier only under section 10832.

Does the attorney's fee include court costs?

No. Filing fees, the referee's commission and expenses are separate costs of administration. The statute's percentages are compensation for the attorney's ordinary services.

Can a trust avoid these fees entirely?

Property held in a funded revocable trust is not part of the probate inventory, so it is not in the base for these statutory fees. A successor trustee still has legal duties, including a notice to beneficiaries and heirs after the death.

What if the family disagrees about the fees or the will?

Notice of a fee petition goes to each known heir and beneficiary whose interest would be affected, and the court decides at a hearing (sections 10830 and 10831). A contested estate becomes litigation, and our overview of the civil litigation process explains how contested cases move.

Does probate cost matter if I am still planning?

It is one of the main reasons people plan. Incapacity is the other: a power of attorney and a health care directive cover the years before death, which probate never does; see advance health care directive or power of attorney.

How can Glendale Law help?

We help executors understand what a probate case will involve, and we help families plan so their property passes without one where the law allows. If you are named in a will, or want to keep your home out of probate, call (818) 244-9000 or request a consultation.