Probate in Dane County

Probate Court Record

Dane County Circuit Court

Dane County · 5th Judicial District

Hours

Monday-Friday 7:45 AM-4:30 PM

Office

Room 1005, 215 South Hamilton Street, Madison, WI 53703

Files probate

Register in Probate

Filing in person

Walk-ins accepted

Self-represented filing

Allowed

Self-help forms

How to file probate in Dane County →

Verified October 16, 2026 · Source

Do I need a lawyer for probate in Dane County? →Settling an estate in Dane County →

Medicaid Planning Firms Serving Dane County

Serves Green, Dane, Lafayette, and Rock counties from Monroe, with a second office in New Glarus. Takes personal representatives step by step through probate after a death, and handles elder law work — Medicaid applications, crisis planning, and irrevocable trusts that protect assets from nursing home costs.

Serves 4 countiesEstate PlanningProbateElder LawAsset ProtectionMedicaid Planning

Serves clients throughout Wisconsin from offices in Appleton and Green Bay. Helps personal representatives through informal and formal probate, protects other beneficiaries' interests in disputes over estate administration, and brings will contests. Also handles adult and minor guardianships and elder-law and Medicaid planning. Estate planning consultations are offered at no charge.

Serves the whole stateFree consultationEstate PlanningProbateProbate LitigationElder LawGuardianshipMedicaid Planning

Serves the Green Bay area from its appointment-only De Pere office, one of five Wisconsin offices of a firm established in Oshkosh in 1849. Handles court-supervised probate, trust administration for successor trustees, and estate disputes including beneficiary and breach-of-fiduciary-duty claims and guardianships. Its elder-law attorneys also handle Medicaid and long-term-care planning.

Since 1849Serves the whole stateEstate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbateProbate LitigationElder Law+3

Serves Monroe, Jackson, Vernon, Juneau, La Crosse, and Adams counties from Tomah, and takes probate cases throughout Wisconsin. Walks personal representatives through the whole probate, from court appointment through distribution and closing, and administers trusts for successor trustees. Attorney Joshua D. Shudlick is a NAELA member.

Solo PracticeServes the whole stateEstate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbateElder LawMedicaid Planning

Serves the Chippewa Valley from Eau Claire, with a second office in Marshfield, and takes clients throughout Wisconsin. Handles formal and informal probate administrations and trust administrations outside of court, alongside elder law, Medicaid eligibility, and special needs trusts. Aric Burch is a Certified Elder Law Attorney; the initial consultation carries a fee.

Serves the whole stateEstate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbateElder LawSpecial Needs Planning+2

Serves Eau Claire in person and clients throughout Wisconsin by video and phone from its office on Pinnacle Way. Plans estates with wills, revocable living trusts, and powers of attorney on flat-fee packages, favoring private administration outside probate, and takes Medicaid planning matters. Attorney Thomas B. Burton is licensed in Wisconsin and Minnesota; initial consultations carry a fee.

Solo PracticeServes the whole stateVirtual consultationsEstate PlanningMedicaid Planning

All 12 Wisconsin Medicaid planning firms serving Dane County →

Forms for Planning and Settling an Estate in Wisconsin

Free Wisconsin forms to plan or settle an estate: a will, trust, powers of attorney, TOD deed and the probate forms. Prepare each form for Wisconsin.

$12/month

Revocable Living Trust

Create a revocable living trust to avoid probate, protect privacy, and control asset distribution.

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Healthcare Power of Attorney

Wisconsin requires 2Wis. Stat. § 155.30Verified Jul 15, 2026View source witnesses for a healthcare power of attorney; notarization is not requiredWis. Stat. § 155.30Verified Jul 15, 2026View source.

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Free

Financial Power of Attorney

Wisconsin treats a power of attorney as durable by defaultWis. Stat. § 244.05Verified Sep 20, 2026View source, and it is signed with no witness or notary requirementWis. Stat. § 244.05Verified Sep 20, 2026View source.

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Tools for Planning and Settling an Estate in Wisconsin

Free calculators and checklists to plan or settle an estate in Wisconsin: will and trust costs, probate, executor pay and taxes. Run each tool for Wisconsin.

How Much Does a Revocable Living Trust Cost?

An attorney-prepared revocable living trust in Wisconsin runs $3,320Estimate: 10 hours at $332, Clio's Wisconsin Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $4,980Estimate: 15 hours at $332, Clio's Wisconsin Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source for an individual, against $0 to $549 up front plus a subscription with an online service.

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What Does Estate Planning Actually Cost?

An attorney-prepared revocable trust in Wisconsin runs $3,320Estimate: 10 hours at $332, Clio's Wisconsin Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $4,980Estimate: 15 hours at $332, Clio's Wisconsin Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source and a simple will $981Estimate: 3 hours at $327, Clio's Wisconsin Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $1,962Estimate: 6 hours at $327, Clio's Wisconsin 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.

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How Much Life Insurance Do I Need?

In Wisconsin, four years at a public university cost about $73,752NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2023, Table 330.20, public 4-year in-state tuition, fees, room and board, academic year 2022-23Verified Oct 17, 2026View source and the cost of living is 6% below the U.S. averageBEA Regional Price Parities, all items, by state, 2024Verified Oct 17, 2026View source; no state estate or inheritance tax appliesWis. Stat. § 72.36 (Sunset; 2013 Wis. Act 20) — the ch. 72 estate tax "does not apply to deaths occurring after December 31, 2012, unless the federal estate tax law is modified to provide a federal estate tax credit for state death taxes." Ch. 72 remains on the books as a dormant federal-credit (pickup) tax that computes to $0, not a repealed one. Wisconsin has no inheritance tax for decedents dying on or after January 1, 1992 and no gift tax for gifts made on or after January 1, 1992 (WI DOR, Estates, Trusts, and Fiduciaries common questions).Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.

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How Do I Settle an Estate?

Settling an estate in Wisconsin: the personal representative files the estate inventory within 180 daysWis. Stat. §§ 858.01, 858.13, 858.15, 858.17Verified Sep 15, 2026View source of appointment; creditors have 4 monthsWis. Stat. §§ 859.01, 859.02, 859.07, 859.25Verified Oct 19, 2026View source to present claims; a simple estate closes in 6 months to 9 months.

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