Serves Barnstable, Plymouth, Bristol, Norfolk and Dukes counties from Hyannis. Advises personal representatives and trustees through estate administration, trust administration, probate and settlement of estates, and prepares estate, gift and fiduciary income tax returns. Founded in 1976 by F. Keats Boyd, Jr.; the initial strategy session is free.
Probate in Bristol County
Probate Court Record
Bristol County Probate and Family Court
Bristol County
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:30 AM-4:30 PM
Office
40 Broadway, Suite 240, Taunton, MA 02780
Website
E-filing
Filing in person
Walk-ins accepted
Self-represented filing
Allowed
Self-help forms
How to file probate in Bristol County →
Verified October 16, 2026 · Source
Do I need a lawyer for probate in Bristol County? →Settling an estate in Bristol County →
Trust Administration Firms Serving Bristol County
Handles probate in Middlesex and Essex counties from Woburn, with estate planning and elder law for residents of eastern Massachusetts. Attorney Matthew G. Karr guides personal representatives through probate administration and handles trust administration and MassHealth applications for long-term care. Estate planning documents are billed at a flat fee and include a no-charge 3-year review.
Serves the South Shore, MetroWest and southeastern Massachusetts from offices in Hingham, Holliston, Brockton and Plymouth. Counsels executors, administrators, trustees and heirs through testate and intestate probate, trust administration, ancillary probate and wrongful death estates, prepares federal and Massachusetts estate tax returns, and represents parties in contested wills.
Serves Worcester, Suffolk and Plymouth counties from offices in Worcester, Boston, Plymouth and Southborough. Administers estates and trusts, from Probate Court filings, inventories and annual accounts to estate tax returns and audits, and litigates contested wills, trust disputes and breach of fiduciary duty claims. Established in 1914.
Serves Cape Cod and the South Shore from offices in Hyannis and Plymouth. Settles estates for families with funded trust-based plans after a death, and states that it does not take on probate court administration. Attorney Keith McManus has practiced law in Massachusetts since 1996.
Serves Massachusetts from Waltham, concentrating on Greater Boston, with offices in New Hampshire and Florida. Guides executors, administrators and trustees through probate court proceedings, trust administration and distribution, and estate and fiduciary tax returns, and handles guardianship and conservatorship petitions. Founder David M. Beliveau is also a Certified Public Accountant.
All 23 Massachusetts trust administration firms serving Bristol County →
Forms for Planning and Settling an Estate in Massachusetts
Free Massachusetts forms to plan or settle an estate: a will, trust, powers of attorney, TOD deed and the probate forms. Prepare each form for Massachusetts.
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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 Massachusetts, a pour-over will is signed before 2M.G.L. c. 190B § 2-502Verified 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 Massachusetts
Free calculators and checklists to plan or settle an estate in Massachusetts: will and trust costs, probate, executor pay and taxes. Run each tool.
How Do I Settle a Trust?
Settling a trust in Massachusetts happens outside court: the trustee acts under the state's Uniform Trust CodeM.G.L. c. 203E § 101 et seq.Verified Oct 17, 2026View source, notifies the beneficiaries within 30 daysMGL c. 203E §§ 813, 1005Verified 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 Massachusetts, trustee compensation follows "reasonable compensation" (UTC § 708 or equivalent)Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 203E, § 708Verified 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 Massachusetts: the personal representative files the estate inventory within 90 daysMGL c. 190B §§ 3-706, 3-707, 3-708Verified Sep 15, 2026View source of appointment; creditors have 12 monthsMGL c. 190B §§ 3-306, 3-801, 3-803, 3-804, 3-805, 3-806Verified Oct 18, 2026View source to present claims; a simple estate closes in 6 months to 9 months.
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Do I Have to File Tax Returns for Someone Who Died?
Massachusetts requires a final state income tax return for the decedent alongside the federal Form 1040M.G.L. c. 62, § 4(b), (d); Mass. Const. Amend. Art. XLIV, as amended by Amend. Art. CXXI (Fair Share Amendment)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 Massachusetts 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 ratesM.G.L. c. 62 § 2(b)(3) (Part C gross income = gain from capital assets held > 1 year); § 4(c) (Part C taxed at the Part B rate; 3% on qualifying MA small-business stock held ≥ 3 years); § 4(a)(1) (Part A: 12% on capital gains, 8.5% on assets held ≤ 1 year); § 4(b) (Part B rate, floor 5%); § 4(d) (4% surtax above the indexed $1M threshold)Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.
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