San Francisco County Probate Records

San Francisco County probate records are official documents containing information about the administration of estates located within the county or owned by county residents. Examples of probate records include wills, court decrees, and filings.

In San Francisco, probate records are typically created due to the probate processes and the adjudication of probate matters, such as will execution and estate administration, that the County Probate Court oversees. Like San Francisco County court records, probate records are invaluable for learning about relevant individuals' ancestry. As a result, they may be sought for genealogical research purposes and related legal matters. Furthermore, probate records may contain an individual's final wishes regarding how their assets should be distributed and court rulings on the subject. Therefore, probate records may also be sought to verify inheritance claims and settle estate distribution disputes.

Are Probate Records Public?

Per rules 2.400(a) and 2.550(c) of the California Rules of Court, court records, including probate records, are presumed accessible to the public. As a result, members of the general public are allowed access to San Francisco County probate records except when the record is protected from public disclosure by court rules, federal/state laws, or court orders.

Generally, probate records protected from public access are typically only accessible to specific eligible individuals and entities. These include parties to the case, individuals who possess a court order granting them the right to access the record, and those with a statutory right to access the record. Probate records that are protected from public access include but are not limited to, financial statements, capacity declarations, physiological evaluations, mediation reports, and proposed conservatorships or guardianship investigative reports. Other protected records are detailed in the California Trial Court Records Manual Appendix 1 and Section 10.3.

What is Probate Court in San Francisco County?

The San Francisco County Superior Court's Probate Division handles cases involving wills, trusts, decedents' estates, elder abuse, and child guardianship. The Division also has exclusive jurisdiction over adult conservatorships and mental health conservatorships. The San Francisco Local Court Rules outline the county's hearing procedures and dictate how the Probate Division handles cases under its jurisdiction.

The only Superior Court in San Francisco County that has a Probate Division is located and can be contacted at:

Civic Center Courthouse
400 McAllister Street,
San Francisco, CA 94102
Phone: (415) 551-4000

Probate Court Case Lookup

Interested persons can look up Probate Court cases in San Francisco County through the Probate Division, online or in person.

Online
Probate Court cases can be searched and reviewed online through the Case Information website provided by the San Francisco County Probate Division. The website is divided into two sections: Case Calendar and Case Query. The Case Calendar section can be used to search for case calendars by case type and date. Only case calendars less than 120 days old are accessible through the Case Calendar section. Meanwhile, inquirers can use the Case Query section to look up unlimited and limited probate cases and other cases (Civil, Family Law, and Small Claims) filed from 1987 to the present. The Case Query section is searchable by case number or case name.

In-Person
Interested persons can look up probate court cases by visiting and querying the San Francisco County Probate Division during office hours (typically from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.). Inquirers must come with information identifying the desired probate case to facilitate their queries. These include a case number, case name, or filing date. The Probate Division Clerk's office contact information and physical address are detailed below:

Civic Center Courthouse
400 McAllister St.
Department 204
San Francisco, CA 94102-4514
Phone: (415) 551-3673

How to Find Probate Records Online Free

Interested persons can conduct free searches for probate records through official resources like the Case Information website. The Superior Court of San Francisco County provides a website that enables users to search for limited and unlimited probate cases online. Although users can search probate records for free through the website, they may be charged a fee to access and download records per California Rule of Court 2.506.

Alternatives to the Case Information Website are third-party aggregator websites that offer court record search services. These websites typically provide user-friendly search features interested persons can use to search for public probate court cases. However, while searches and access to basic probate records may be free, users are usually charged a fee to access or request comprehensive probate records through most third-party websites.

How Long Does Probate Take in California?

Finalizing a probate case in California can take 9 to 18 months or longer. The timeline mentioned above is typically impacted by several factors that can make the probate case last significantly longer or get resolved quicker. These factors include, but are not limited to, the estate's complexity and size, the presence of a will, disputes among beneficiaries, and court claims against the will.

Are Wills Public Record?

Yes. In San Francisco County, Wills become public records when they go through probate. Therefore, anyone can view and request copies of a probate Will through the probate court that handled the probate process.

Notwithstanding, wills filed with the San Francisco County Probate Division for safekeeping prior to going through the probate process are not public. Per Cal. Prob. Code § 8200, such wills are only accessible to individuals who provide a certified copy of the testator's death certificate or under the authority of a judicial order requiring access.

How to Find Out If Someone Has a Will

During a testator's (the writer of a will) lifetime, their will remains confidential. Hence, ascertaining if a living person has a will may be difficult. The only viable way to conduct such research is by contacting the person directly to inquire about their will. Alternatively, record seekers can ask the testator to allow them access to the will through the probate court, where they may have filed it for safekeeping.

Where the testator is deceased, interested persons can query the Probate Court in the county where the decedent last resided, owned property, or once lived to request a copy of their will. However, state law does not require testators to file their will with a probate court. As a result, a court may not be in custody of a decedent's will. In such cases, record seekers can contact the decedent's estate attorney to inquire about the decedent's will. Interested persons can also look through the decedent's possessions to ascertain if they stored their will independently. These include the decedent's home, office, personal safe, bank safety deposit box, and personal computer or hard drive (for electronic copies).

San Francisco County Family Court Case Search

Interested persons can search for San Francisco County Family Court Cases online through the Case Information website or in person at the San Francisco County Unified Family Court (UFC) clerk's office. Record seekers must provide information about sought-after family court cases, such as case numbers or names, to facilitate their requests. The clerk's office is open (from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.), and it is situated in room 402 in the Civic Center Courthouse. Interested persons can also reach the clerk's office by phone at (415) 551-3900.

Note that records of certain family court cases are confidential and only accessible to eligible persons. Examples of these confidential cases include adoption records, child custody evaluation reports, and juveniles' personal information.