Serves Merced, Mariposa, and Stanislaus counties from Merced, with offices in San Jose, Modesto, and Mariposa. Represents trustees and executors on full and summary probate, sub-trust funding, fiduciary accountings, estate tax returns, and post-death tax planning, and handles probate, trust, and estate litigation. One of the few firms with a Mariposa County office.
Probate in San Joaquin County
Probate Court Record
San Joaquin County Superior Court - Probate Division
San Joaquin County
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-4:00 PM
Office
315 West Elm Street, Lodi, CA 95240
Website
E-filing
Filing in person
Walk-ins accepted
Self-represented filing
Allowed
Self-help forms
How to file probate in San Joaquin County →
Verified October 15, 2026 · Source
Do I need a lawyer for probate in San Joaquin County? →Settling an estate in San Joaquin County →
Trust Administration Firms Serving San Joaquin County
Elk Grove and Sacramento trust and estate practice representing executors, trustees, and beneficiaries through probate and trust administration and in probate litigation, trust and will contests, and financial elder abuse claims. Founder Jonathan Huber has been a State Bar of California certified specialist in Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law since 2013. No-cost initial consultation.
Modesto firm on K Street serving Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Merced, Mariposa, Tuolumne, and Calaveras counties with trust administration and probate alongside wills, trusts, and powers of attorney. Founded in 2009 by Gina Leguria, whose own family spent four and a half years in probate court after her father died, it also handles Medi-Cal and special needs planning.
Murphys firm with offices in Sonora and Modesto, serving Calaveras, Tuolumne, Stanislaus, San Joaquin, and Merced Counties with probate and trust administration alongside estate planning. Appears regularly in the Calaveras County Superior Court in San Andreas. Founding partner Jay Pink is an attorney, CFP, and CPA.
Modesto firm serving Stanislaus, Merced, San Joaquin, Tuolumne, Calaveras, and Fresno Counties with probate administration, trust administration, and estate and gift tax planning alongside wills and trusts. Offers a free consultation on all new probate matters.
Roseville firm handling probate and decedent estate administration, including ancillary probate, plus trust administration, conservatorships, and litigation in those areas — will contests and beneficiary disputes. Marlene Sanborn, a retired Air Force flight engineer, opened the firm in 2006 and has practiced law in California since 1998.
All 38 California trust administration firms serving San Joaquin County →
Forms for Planning and Settling an Estate in California
Free California forms to plan or settle an estate: a will, trust, powers of attorney, TOD deed and the probate forms. Prepare each form for California.
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Revocable Living Trust
Create a revocable living trust to avoid probate, protect privacy, and control asset distribution.
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Pour-Over Will
In California, a pour-over will is signed before 2Cal. Prob. Code § 6110Verified Oct 18, 2026View source witnesses and moves anything left outside the trust into it through probate.
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Tools for Planning and Settling an Estate in California
Free calculators and checklists to plan or settle an estate in California: will and trust costs, probate, executor pay and taxes. Run each tool for California.
How Do I Settle a Trust?
Settling a trust in California happens outside court: the trustee acts under the state's trust statuteCal. Prob. Code § 15000 et seq.Verified Oct 17, 2026View source, notifies the beneficiaries within 60 daysCal. Prob. Code §§ 16061.7, 16061.8, 16064, 16460Verified Sep 15, 2026View source, then pays the debts and distributes under the trust's terms.
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What's Fair Trustee Compensation?
In California, trustee compensation follows "reasonable compensation" (UTC § 708 or equivalent)Cal. Prob. Code §§ 15680-15688Verified Sep 18, 2026View source unless the trust instrument sets a different amount.
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How Do I Settle an Estate?
Settling an estate in California: the personal representative files the estate inventory within 120 daysCal. Prob. Code §§ 8800-8804, 8900-8903Verified Sep 15, 2026View source of appointment; creditors have 4 monthsCal. Prob. Code §§ 9050-9054, 9100-9104, 9150, 9153, 9256, 9353, 11420; CCP § 366.2Verified Oct 18, 2026View source to present claims; a simple estate closes in 9 months to 12 months.
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Do I Have to File Tax Returns for Someone Who Died?
California requires a final state income tax return for the decedent alongside the federal Form 1040Cal. Rev. & Tax. Code §§ 17041, 17043; Cal. Const. art. XIII, § 36(f)(2)Verified Sep 20, 2026View source; a federal estate tax return (Form 706) is required only for estates above $15,000,00026 USC 2001(c), 2010; P.L. 119-21 §70106Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.
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How Does Step-Up in Basis Work?
Inherited assets in California take a basis reset to fair market value on the date of death26 USC § 1014Verified Sep 15, 2026View source, and the gain on a later sale faces ordinary income tax at the state's regular ratesCal. Rev. & Tax. Code § 17041(a), (e), (h) — rate schedule; estates/trusts taxed at individual rates; annual bracket indexingVerified Sep 15, 2026View source.
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