Self Help

Clearing Probate Notes

Kern County’s Probate Court hears several types of cases. The kinds of cases heard in the Probate Court include Guardianships, Conservatorships, and Decedents’ Estates.

For each of these kinds of cases, the court wants to ensure that when a hearing date arrives, the parties have filed all necessary paperwork, and that the paperwork has clear and complete information.

Superior Court staff members called Probate Examiners review cases in the Probate Court that have a scheduled hearing date to make sure the parties in the case have notified all necessary parties, filed all the forms required so the hearing is ready to proceed, and that the forms aren’t missing important information.

If there are missing forms, or the forms are incomplete or unclear, the Probate Examiners will give the party that asked for the hearing date “notes” to explain what is missing to get them ready for their hearing.

This page is here to help you understand how to fix the issues the Probate Examiners identify. This is called “clearing probate notes.”

If you want to better understand what is meant by “Clearing Probate Notes” with specific reference to Kern County’s Probate Court, click the link below to learn:

What Are Probate Notes And How Do I Find Them?

Guardianship & Conservatorships – Issues With Notice

One of the most important steps in preparing for a hearing in a Guardianship or Conservatorship matter is to provide proper notice to the parties who are entitled to it. This just means they have to be informed of the hearing far enough in advance – it does not mean that you have to make sure they show up on the hearing date.

If your probate notes tell you that you have failed to notify someone who should have been informed of the hearing to appoint a conservator or a guardian, you may want to check out the following slideshow.

Please pay close attention to the top of each slide – this slideshow contains information that has to do with Guardianships and Conservatorships.

Notifying Parties of Upcoming Hearings for Guardianships & Conservatorships

CLICK HERE FOR THE GC-020 – NOTICE OF HEARING GUARDIANSHIP OR CONSERVATORSHIP

Decedents’ Estates (Wills) –

Issues With Notice

One of the most common issues people have when they start probate is failure to notify the proper parties. A Notice of Petition for Probate has to be published in one of the Adjudicated Newspapers of Kern County plus parties with an interest in the estate must be notified by a special mailing.

The list of newspapers above includes price quotes from July 2024 for the cost of publishing your Notice, but we strongly encourage you to call the newspaper to get current price information before selecting them for publication.

Whether your issue was with publication of your Notice, or if it was getting it mailed to the people with an interest in the estate, you can check out the content below for information on how to provide proper notice of your Petition for Probate.

Problems with Notice in Decedents’ Estates

Using a Verified Supplement to Clear Probate Notes

For all probate matters (Guardianships, Conservatorships, and Decedents’ Estates), there may be times where the probate examiners will need more information from you to determine that you are ready for your hearing.

If the note they provide is not about your failure to give a party Notice, then it usually a note you can clear with a Verified Supplement. Check out the slideshow below to get a tutorial on how this works.

Check out the following slideshow if you want some information on Using a Verified Supplement to Clear Probate Notes.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD AN EDITABLE VERIFIED SUPPLEMENT.

Contact