Required for attorneysProbate filings are e-filed through eFileIL by attorneys and self-represented filers alike. An original will cannot be e-filed and is filed with the clerk on paper. A self-represented filer without home internet access, an email account, or a credit card or bank account can file on paper after filing the Certification for Exemption From E-filing. On paper: Original wills, which are filed with the clerk on paper (Ill. S. Ct. R. 9(c)(1)).
Self-represented filing
AllowedThe clerk's forms page carries the court's probate practice guide and takes forms in person or by mail with the filing fee. The court requires an attorney for a person seeking letters in a complex or contested proceeding, and the clerk does not give legal advice or attorney referrals.
Self-help center
First floor of the courthouse, off the main lobbyA retired-attorney navigator staffs the legal self-help center on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and a JusticeCorps fellow or member on most Tuesdays and Thursdays.
A computer in the clerk's file viewing room is available to attorneys and the public for e-filing. Wills are deposited with the clerk on paper and numbered in a year-WI series.
Probate is the court-supervised process of settling someone's estate after they die — validating the will, paying debts and taxes, and transferring what's left to the heirs. In Champaign County, probate runs through the Circuit Court at 101 East Main Street, Urbana. The court sits in the 6th Judicial Circuit. The same 6th Judicial Circuit also serves De Witt, Douglas, Macon, Moultrie and Piatt.
The personal representative opens the case, gives notice to heirs and creditors, files an inventory of the estate's assets, settles outstanding debts and taxes, and then distributes the remainder under the will — or under Illinois intestacy law when there is no will.
Most Illinois estates take 9 months to 14 months to move through this process. Creditors have 6 months755 ILCS 5/18-3, 5/18-10, 5/18-11, 5/18-12Verified Oct 18, 2026View source to present a claim, counted from the first publication of the notice to creditors.
What Probate Costs in Champaign County
What probate costs in Champaign County, Illinois comes down to a handful of line items — the court filing fee, attorney and executor compensation, publication, and sometimes a bond — scaled by the estate's size and whether the will is contested. The case itself runs through the Circuit Court at 101 East Main Street, Urbana. The court is part of the 6th Judicial Circuit.
The Circuit Court charges $284705 ILCS 105/27.1b(a)(2) (Clerks of Courts Act, as last amended by P.A. 104-468, eff. 7-1-26); former 705 ILCS 105/27.3f repealed by P.A. 104-468, eff. 7-1-26Verified Oct 17, 2026View source to open a probate case. Additional filings during administration — inventory, accounting, the final petition — add to the total.
Estimate the costs for this estate:
Attorney fees in Illinois are negotiated, typically 1.9%Modeled estimate under 755 ILCS 5/27-2 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 3%Modeled estimate under 755 ILCS 5/27-2 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source of estate value. Flat-fee arrangements are common for straightforward estates.
Illinois allows executors 'reasonable compensation' — around 2.2%–3.8% of a $500,000 estate, judging by what the states with statutory schedules pay755 ILCS 5/27-1 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source. Family members who are also beneficiaries often waive the fee — executor pay is taxable income while inheritances are not.
Illinois requires publishing notice to creditors in a local newspaper, and the estate pays for it.
A surety bond may be required unless the will waives it or all beneficiaries consent. Premiums run roughly 0.5%Industry surety premium estimate; the bond itself under 755 ILCS 5/12-2 (bond required), 5/12-4 (security excused by will)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source of estate value annually.
Probate in Illinois typically runs 9 months to 14 months, and costs accrue throughout that period.
How to File Probate at the Circuit Court
Probate cases in Champaign County, Illinois are filed at the Circuit Court. The court sits in the 6th Judicial Circuit.
A retired-attorney navigator staffs the legal self-help center on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and a JusticeCorps fellow or member on most Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Can You File Without an Attorney?
In Illinois, informal probate is not available755 ILCS 5/6-4, 5/9-4 (court admits the will and issues letters; no registrar/clerk informal appointment)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source, so self-filing means a formal court petition rather than a registrar filing.
Every petition for letters carries an affidavit of heirship that sets out the full family tree.
The affidavit establishes how each potential heir is related to the decedent, including heirs who have died, and says whether the decedent was ever married or in a civil union; a list of names is not enough.
An executor named in a will is appointed without a hearing; other petitions need waivers or a hearing.
A petition for an administrator, or for administration with the will annexed, carries written waivers from everyone with an equal or greater right to act or nominate; without them the petitioner sets a hearing and gives notice before letters issue.
Filed with the opening petition at the Circuit Court: Copy of the death certificate, which the Cook County Clerk asks for when the will is filed; the Probate Act and the court rules do not require one, and a plain copy serves; Original will and any codicils, filed with the clerk on paper (755 ILCS 5/6-1 "Immediately upon the death of the testator any person who has the testator's will in his possession shall file it with the clerk of the court of the proper county"; Ill. S. Ct. R. 9(c)(1) excepts original wills from e-filing entirely — they "may not be electronically filed")755 ILCS 5/6-2, 5/6-8 (admit will & issue letters testamentary); 755 ILCS 5/9-3, 5/9-4 (letters of administration & preference); 755 ILCS 5/12-2 to 12-5 (oath & bond); 755 ILCS 5/28-2 (independent administration); 755 ILCS 5/6-13, 5/9-1 (who may act)Verified Aug 24, 2026View source.
Death Certificates and the Coroner in Champaign County
In Illinois a death is registered locally, and in Champaign County certified copies of the death certificate are issued by Champaign County Clerk's Office, Vital Records as well as by Illinois Department of Public Health - Division of Vital Records.
Vital Records Office Record
County Clerk
Champaign County · Champaign County Clerk's Office, Vital Records
The office takes walk-ins for death certificates and issues the copy on the same visit. A mail request is paid by money order, cashier's check or certified check, never a personal check.
Clearing title to real estate after a death, whether by a personal representative’s deed, an affidavit of survivorship, or a court order, happens at the County Clerk and Recorder.
Deeds and other real property documents for Champaign County are recorded with the County Clerk and Recorder at 102 East Main Street, Urbana, IL 61801. Phone: 1-217-384-3774. Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-4:30 PM (opens 9:00 AM on the 2nd Wednesday of the month).
The County Clerk and Recorder charges $70 flat, regardless of page count.
Champaign County accepts electronic recording through ePN, Indecomm, Simplifile, CSC and Hopdox.
Illinois allows independent administration755 ILCS 5/28-1, 5/28-2 (independent administration granted unless the will forbids it or an interested person objects)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source, so the personal representative manages, pays and distributes the estate without returning to the court for approval at each step. A probate attorney earns the fee when the estate is contested, includes a business or out-of-state real estate, has unclear or insolvent debts, or when beneficiaries disagree.
Probate attorney fees in Illinois are based on reasonable compensation, billed hourly or as a flat fee. Ask a Champaign County firm to quote a structure up front.
A probate attorney files the petition with the Circuit Court, publishes the required creditor notices, prepares the inventory and accounting, handles creditor claims and tax filings, and guides the final distribution. They represent the personal representative — not the beneficiaries — a distinction that matters if a dispute develops.
Ten-attorney firm on West University Avenue in Champaign serving the Champaign-Urbana area. Handles probate, trusts, guardianships, and estate planning alongside taxation, real estate, and business matters. Partner R. Michael Brown, a certified public accountant and certified financial planner, leads the estate planning, trust, and probate work.
PracticesEstate PlanningProbateTax PlanningConservatorshipand 2 more
Serves Champaign County from West Springfield Avenue in Champaign. Guides executors and beneficiaries through probate and estate administration, administers trusts, and plans to reduce estate and gift taxes. A real-estate-centered practice whose history traces to 1922.
Champaign practice on South Prospect Avenue serving Champaign County and central Illinois. Mark Ingersoll guides clients seeking appointment as executor or administrator through each step Illinois probate requires, and drafts wills and trusts. Every matter stays with him rather than passing to an associate or paralegal.
PracticesEstate PlanningProbateWills Trusts
Office
1701 S. Prospect Ave., Suite 205Champaign, IL 61820
Serves Champaign and McLean counties from offices in Champaign and Bloomington. Its estate and trust group handles estate administration and probate alongside estate and charitable gift planning, with eight attorneys in the practice, two of them at the Bloomington office.
Champaign firm on N. Dunlap Avenue serving Champaign-Urbana and central Illinois since 1946, with 19 attorneys. Guides executors named under a will — and administrators of estates where someone died without one — through probate, and settles estates and trusts. Also drafts wills, trusts, powers of attorney for property and healthcare, and advance directives.
Urbana firm on N. Broadway Avenue serving Champaign County and east-central Illinois, with a second office in Rantoul. Handles probate and trust administration for executors and trustees, plus guardianship matters, and drafts wills, revocable living trusts, and powers of attorney. Estate and inheritance tax strategies are part of the planning work.
PracticesEstate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbateTax Planningand 3 more
Firm listings are for informational purposes only. SimplyTrust does not endorse or recommend any specific firm or attorney. Contact firms directly to verify their current practice areas and availability.
Data sourced from Illinois statutes and official state code. Fee percentages are modeled estimates; each figure's note says how. How we research.
Tools for Settling an Estate in Illinois
Free tools for settling an estate in Illinois: whether probate is needed, executor and trustee pay, creditor deadlines and taxes. Run each tool for Illinois.
How Do I Settle an Estate?
Settling an estate in Illinois: the personal representative files the estate inventory within 60 days755 ILCS 5/14-1Verified Oct 10, 2026View source of appointment; creditors have 6 months755 ILCS 5/18-3, 5/18-10, 5/18-11, 5/18-12Verified Oct 18, 2026View source to present claims; a simple estate closes in 6 months to 9 months.
See the Steps
How Do I Settle a Trust?
Settling a trust in Illinois happens outside court: the trustee acts under the state's Uniform Trust Code760 ILCS 3/101 et seq.Verified Oct 17, 2026View source, notifies the beneficiaries within 90 days760 ILCS 3/813.1Verified Oct 10, 2026View source, then pays the debts and distributes under the trust's terms.
See the Steps
Can I Self-File Probate?
In Illinois, informal probate is not available755 ILCS 5/6-4, 5/9-4 (court admits the will and issues letters; no registrar/clerk informal appointment)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source, so self-filing means a formal court petition rather than a registrar filing.
Enter the estate value to see Illinois attorney fees, executor fees, court costs and the timeline.
Examples:
General information about probate costs, not legal or financial advice. Fee bases vary by state and may use gross estate, personal property, inventory value or net property after debts. Actual costs vary by county, attorney and estate complexity. Consult a licensed attorney for legal questions.
$
See whether you can file probate yourself
Enter the estate value to see whether Illinois lets a self-represented person open probate, what the court requires, and what each route costs.
General information about filing probate without a lawyer, not legal advice. Both routes are priced by the probate cost estimator on the same estate; the attorney fee is the one line that differs. Actual costs vary by county, attorney and estate complexity. Consult a licensed attorney for legal questions.
