How to Find Probate Records
- 1). Determine the county in which the probate action is filed. If you do not know this, then you can start by searching each county in which the person owned property or the county in which the person died.
- 2). Check the website of the county probate clerk in which the probate action is filed. You may be able to find probate records over the Internet. If you cannot access the records over the Internet, then telephone the probate clerk's office to determine if the records can be mailed or faxed to you or whether you will need to pick them up in person. For instance, you cannot access Los Angeles County probate records over the Internet. You need to telephone the probate clerk, who will give you a case number and the location of the record. Then you will have to go to that location to view the records.
- 3). Search the database on the Internet for the name of the person whose estate you are interested in. To search the records of Tarrant County, Texas, you can input the person's last name; last name and first name; or last name, first name and middle initial. You can also search by attorney name, court docket or case number.
- 4). Review the case record for the documents you are looking for. Unlike Los Angeles County, you can actually browse files for Tarrant County probate cases over the Internet. However, you will not be able to see the actual documents in the file.
- 5). Go to the county probate clerk's office and give the clerk the name of the case and the number of the file you want to review. If you have done a search on a website such as that provided by Tarrant County, then you will need to tell the clerk the specific documents from the file you want to review or make copies of. If you have not been able to do a search of the file, then tell the clerk you want to review the case file and the clerk will hand you the file and allow you to review it. Both the Los Angeles and the Tarrant County websites list the address of the probate clerk's office.
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