When a California resident dies, there are two primary ways the assets in their estate can be distributed.

One way is what is known as “full” or “formal” probate – this is often appropriate where the estate was of a high value, or if there is a disagreement over who should inherit what.

The other way is known as “summary,” or simplified probate – this is for estates where the only person set to inherit property is the spouse, or for estates of small value where everyone is in agreement over who should inherit the property.

The information on this page is only about simplified probate and probate alternatives, not full probate.

How Do I Learn More About This?

You can start by Reading this brief article on the Judicial Branch website (click link to access article) that describes what kinds of estates are likely to require formal probate, and which may qualify for simplified probate.

We also have regular workshops with a volunteer attorney who describes these processes.  These will resume in June 2026.

Instructional Video on Summary Probate

 Below is a video of a workshop on Simplified Probate Procedures presented by local probate attorney Diane Dodds, recorded June 2025 to reflect the most recent statutory changes to these processes.

Ms. Dodds generously volunteers her time to provide monthly workshops on this subject, but if you are unable to attend, please check out her video here.  If you watch it on YouTube, it has timestamps in the description that allow you to skip easily to parts of the video that are relevant to your case.

During the video, Ms. Dodds mentions a packet of documents that go along with the video.  The forms have been uploaded to a web page you can visit on our website.

You can download the forms that you will need for this process by navigating to this page (click link to access).  Not all of the forms will apply in your case, but if these procedures are right for you, some will.