Probate Court FAQ

Yes. SCAO-approved court forms can be accessed on the Michigan Courts Website.

Public files: Decedent estates, guardianships, and conservatorships.
Confidential files: Adoptions and mentally ill files. Also, some documents in guardianship files involving developmentally disabled individuals are confidential. Information regarding wills is confidential until the testator is deceased.

Adoption files are confidential. You can contact the Probate Court office and request a Release of Information pamphlet. The pamphlet outlines the procedures for obtaining non-identifying or identifying information.

You should contact an attorney. You should wait until you have been married at least nine months before starting the proceedings, as the adoption will not be confirmed until you have been married at least one year.

Probate Court holds the mental hearings, but can’t start a case. The first step is to contact the St. Joseph County Community Mental Health Agency: 

(269) 467-1000 | 677A E. Main St., Centreville

To file for a guardianship over a minor child, you should see an attorney. For guardianship of an adult, you can pick up a guardianship packet from the Probate Court office or request to have a packet mailed to you. This packet has a list of instructions and the necessary forms. It is not an easy process and requires service of papers by you and court hearings.

You can request a Petition and Order for Assignment form and instructions from the Probate Court office. This method is applicable for simple estates when the assets total $20,000 or less after the cost of the funeral and burial expenses are subtracted. This procedure does not follow provisions of a will, but has a set priority of how the assets must be assigned. You will need to provide copies of funeral bill and receipts if the funeral bill has been paid.

There is a Petition to Open Safe Deposit Box form which can be obtained from the Probate Court office. This Petition is to be used to open the safe deposit box and examine the contents for a will and/or burial plot deed only. The total cost for this procedure, including filing fee of $10.00 and certified copy fee of $11.00, is $21.00.

If you are in possession of the original will, you must deposit the will with the Probate Court within 30 days of the date of death. There is no charge to deposit the will. You cannot act as Personal Representative until an estate is opened in Probate Court and you are appointed Personal Representative by the Court. You must retain an attorney to complete the paperwork to open the estate.

The Probate Court office can only release that information when you have provided the Court with verification of the person’s date of death by supplying a copy of the death certificate or an obituary notice. You can then be told if we have a will on file.

You must withdraw your will in person. Bring your will receipt with you to the Probate Court office. If you have misplaced your will receipt, we have another form that can be completed. If you are unable to withdraw your will in person, you must complete an Authorization to Release Will Held for Safekeeping form to authorize a different person to remove your will. 

Call (269) 467-5538 to receive the form.

The cost is $25.00. You bring the will to the Probate Court office and then you will receive a written receipt in the mail which lists your will number.

Photo copies are 50 cents per page. Microfilm copies are $1.00 per page. Certified copies are $10.00 for the certifications fee, then an additional $1.00 for each page. The Court accepts payments by cash, money order, or personal check made payable to St. Joseph County Probate Court.

Court business hours are 8:00 am to 5:00 pm Monday through Friday, with the exception of holidays. Genealogy research can be done on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays only, from 9:00 am to 12 noon and from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm.