Estate Planning & Trusts practice with attorneys in the Montgomery and Birmingham offices. Represents personal representatives, trustees and beneficiaries in probate and trust administrations, will contests and suits over the construction of wills and trusts, and estate and gift tax audits before the IRS.
Gardendale is in Jefferson County.
More Estate Law Firms in Jefferson County
Birmingham firm handling probate in Jefferson County and across Alabama, including ancillary estates for property in other states. Guides personal representatives through asset valuation, creditor claims and distribution, represents successor trustees and beneficiaries in trust administration, and litigates will contests and fiduciary-duty disputes.
Firm whose Dothan practice serves Houston County and the Wiregrass, with its office of record in Birmingham. Handles estate administration, probate of wills and intestate estates, guardianships, conservatorships and claims against trustees who mismanage trust funds, along with wills, trusts and powers of attorney.
Vestavia Hills practice representing clients in Birmingham, Jefferson County and Shelby County. Daniel H. Chambers takes personal representatives through Alabama estate administration, from appointment and the inventory to creditor claims and distribution, and also handles wills, trusts, guardianships, conservatorships and special needs planning.
Downtown Birmingham firm in the Renasant Bank Building, a short walk from the Jefferson County Courthouse, practicing mainly in Jefferson and Shelby counties with estates open in 47 Alabama counties. Lindsey Eastwood handles probate and estate administration and litigates will contests, undue influence claims, beneficiary designation disputes and fiduciary breaches by executors and trustees.
Birmingham firm founded in 2007 that practices probate and estate planning statewide from offices in Birmingham, Chelsea, Huntsville and Montgomery. It opens, administers and closes estates with or without a will, including small estates by summary distribution, and administers trusts after a death. Probate phone consultations are free; in-person consultations are $100.
Probate in Jefferson County
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Jefferson County Probate Court
Jefferson County
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How to file probate in Jefferson County →
Verified October 15, 2026 · Source
Do I need a lawyer for probate in Jefferson County? →Settling an estate in Jefferson County →
Forms for Planning and Settling an Estate in Alabama
Free Alabama forms to plan or settle an estate: a will, trust, powers of attorney, TOD deed and the probate forms. Prepare each form for Alabama.
Revocable Living Trust
Create a revocable living trust to avoid probate, protect privacy, and control asset distribution.
Last Will and Testament
In Alabama, a will is signed before 2Ala. Code § 43-8-131Verified Oct 18, 2026View source witnesses, and a self-proving affidavit signed with it lets the court admit it without witness testimonyAla. Code § 43-8-131Verified Oct 18, 2026View source.
Healthcare Power of Attorney
Alabama requires 2Ala. Code § 22-8A-4(h)Verified Oct 15, 2026View source witnesses for a healthcare power of attorney; notarization is not requiredAla. Code § 22-8A-4(h)Verified Oct 15, 2026View source.
Financial Power of Attorney
Alabama treats a power of attorney as durable by defaultAla. Code § 26-1A-101 et seq. (esp. §§ 26-1A-104, -105, -106, -107, -109, -113, -119, -201, -217, -301); § 26-1-1 (age of majority); § 35-4-28 (recording); §§ 19-1A-9, -10 (digital assets)Verified Sep 18, 2026View source, and it is signed with no witness or notary requirementAla. Code § 26-1A-101 et seq. (esp. §§ 26-1A-104, -105, -106, -107, -109, -113, -119, -201, -217, -301); § 26-1-1 (age of majority); § 35-4-28 (recording); §§ 19-1A-9, -10 (digital assets)Verified Sep 18, 2026View source.
Pour-Over Will
In Alabama, a pour-over will is signed before 2Ala. Code § 43-8-131Verified Oct 18, 2026View source witnesses and moves anything left outside the trust into it through probate.
Tools for Planning and Settling an Estate in Alabama
Free calculators and checklists to plan or settle an estate in Alabama: will and trust costs, probate, executor pay and taxes. Run each tool for Alabama.
Trust or Will: Which Costs Less?
In Alabama, a will-based plan pays probate attorney fees of typically 1.6%Modeled estimate under Ala. Code § 43-2-682 (court fixes reasonable attorney fees at settlement): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 2.5%Modeled estimate under Ala. Code § 43-2-682 (court fixes reasonable attorney fees at settlement): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate; a funded revocable trust keeps those assets out of probate and off that fee.
Do I Need a Revocable Trust?
Probate in Alabama takes 6 months to 12 months for a simple estate and charges attorney fees of typically 1.6%Modeled estimate under Ala. Code § 43-2-682 (court fixes reasonable attorney fees at settlement): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 2.5%Modeled estimate under Ala. Code § 43-2-682 (court fixes reasonable attorney fees at settlement): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate; assets held in a revocable trust skip both.
How Much Does Probate Cost?
Probate on a $500,000 estate in Alabama costs an estimated $23,489Ala. Code § 43-2-682 (court fixes reasonable attorney fees at settlement)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source. Attorney fees run 1.6%Modeled estimate under Ala. Code § 43-2-682 (court fixes reasonable attorney fees at settlement): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 2.5%Modeled estimate under Ala. Code § 43-2-682 (court fixes reasonable attorney fees at settlement): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate under a reasonable-compensation standard.
What Are the Estate Laws in My State?
Probate on a $500,000 estate in Alabama costs an estimated $23,489Ala. Code § 43-2-682 (court fixes reasonable attorney fees at settlement)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source and takes 6 months to 12 months for a simple estate, with attorney fees of typically 1.6%Modeled estimate under Ala. Code § 43-2-682 (court fixes reasonable attorney fees at settlement): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 2.5%Modeled estimate under Ala. Code § 43-2-682 (court fixes reasonable attorney fees at settlement): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate. Estates under $47,000Ala. Code § 43-2-696.02Verified Sep 8, 2026View source can use a small-estate procedure instead.
How Do I Settle an Estate?
Settling an estate in Alabama: the personal representative files the estate inventory within 60 daysAla. Code §§ 43-2-835, 43-2-836Verified Sep 15, 2026View source of appointment; creditors have 6 monthsAla. Code §§ 43-2-60, 43-2-61, 43-2-350, 43-2-354, 43-2-371Verified Oct 18, 2026View source to present claims; a simple estate closes in 6 months to 12 months.
What Does Estate Planning Actually Cost?
An attorney-prepared revocable trust in Alabama runs $3,840Estimate: 10 hours at $384, Clio's Alabama Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $5,760Estimate: 15 hours at $384, Clio's Alabama Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source and a simple will $834Estimate: 3 hours at $278, Clio's Alabama Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $1,668Estimate: 6 hours at $278, Clio's Alabama Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source, against $0 to $549 up front plus a subscription with an online service.
