Columbus funeral home, one of the firm's two in the city, with its own on-site crematory so a loved one never leaves its care.
What to Do When Someone Dies in Bartholomew County, Indiana
How probate works in Bartholomew County: the Circuit and Superior Courts record, what the process costs, and how to file there.
Probate Court Record
Bartholomew County Circuit and Superior Courts
Bartholomew County · Judicial District 21
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-4:30 PM
Office
234 Washington Street, Columbus, IN 47201
Website
E-filing
Self-represented filing
Allowed
E-filing
Required for attorneysAttorneys must e-file estate and guardianship cases through an Indiana certified e-filing provider; self-represented filers may file on paper with the clerk. On paper: Self-represented filers are not required to e-file.
Self-represented filing
AllowedSelf-represented litigants are held to the same standards as practicing attorneys, and court staff cannot help one side in a way that disadvantages the other. A letter to the court names the parties, the court and the case number.
Fax
1-812-379-1764
Departments
- Clerk1-812-379-1600The Clerk of the Circuit Court takes estate and guardianship filings at the courthouse and assigns each new case to a court.
- Superior Court 11-812-379-1623
- Superior Court 21-812-379-1610
About the court
- The courts returned to the courthouse at 234 Washington Street on August 25, 2025.
Verified October 15, 2026 · Source
How Probate Works in Bartholomew County
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 Bartholomew County, probate runs through the Circuit and Superior Courts at 234 Washington Street, Columbus. The court sits in the Judicial District 21. The same Judicial District 21 also serves Brown, Decatur, Jackson and Jennings.
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 Indiana intestacy law when there is no will.
Most Indiana estates take 9 months to 15 months to move through this process. Creditors have 3 monthsIC 29-1-14-1, 29-1-7-7, 29-1-14-9, 29-1-14-10Verified Oct 18, 2026View source to present a claim, counted from the first publication of the notice to creditors.
What Probate Costs in Bartholomew County
What probate costs in Bartholomew County, Indiana 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 and Superior Courts at 234 Washington Street, Columbus. The court is part of the Judicial District 21.
Indiana charges $177IC § 33-37-4-7(a) (as amended by P.L.106-2025); IC §§ 33-37-5-20, -21, -21.2, -25, -26, -27, -31Verified Oct 17, 2026View source to open probate, the same in every county. Additional filings during administration — inventory, accounting, the final petition — add to the total.
Estimate the costs for this estate:
Attorney fees in Indiana are negotiated, typically 1.8%Modeled estimate under IC 29-1-10-13 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 2.8%Modeled estimate under IC 29-1-10-13 (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.
Indiana allows executors 'reasonable compensation' — around 2.2%–3.8% of a $500,000 estate, judging by what the states with statutory schedules payIC 29-1-10-13 (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.
Indiana requires publishing notice to creditors in a local newspaper, and the estate pays for it.
Probate in Indiana typically runs 9 months to 15 months, and costs accrue throughout that period.
How to File Probate at the Circuit and Superior Courts
Probate cases in Bartholomew County, Indiana are filed at the Circuit and Superior Courts. The court sits in the Judicial District 21.
Beside the filing office, the court lists separate lines for Clerk, Superior Court 1, and Superior Court 2.
Can You File Without an Attorney?
Indiana has no statewide fill-in probate petition, so the opening petition is drafted as a legal pleading, and informal probate is not availableIC 29-1-7-13(b) (court grants letters); IC 29-1-10-3 (clerk administers oath only)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source.
For a full cost comparison and filing checklist, see the Bartholomew County Self-Filing Assessment.
Bartholomew County Filing Requirements
These are specific requirements for filing probate in this county. Following these guidelines will help avoid delays or rejected filings.
Before You File
Estate, guardianship and trust cases are assigned among the Circuit Court and Superior Courts 1 and 2 in rotation.
The clerk assigns a new estate, guardianship or trust case to one of the three courts on an equal, rotating basis, so the case number names the court that hears it. All three sit at the courthouse.
SourceEach prospective ward needs a separate guardianship case.
SourceWhat to Bring
Filed with the opening petition at the Circuit and Superior Courts: Original will and any codicils, delivered to the court that has jurisdiction of the administration (IC 29-1-7-3); A certified copy of the death certificate is commonly requested by the court or by asset holders, but it is not an element of the petition under IC 29-1-7-5; Petition for probate of will and issuance of letters / petition for appointment, with the contents required by IC 29-1-7-5 (decedent, heirs, devisees/legatees, domicile, date of death, and the attorney who is to represent the personal representative)IC 29-1-7 (probate of wills & issuance of letters; petition contents IC 29-1-7-5); IC 29-1-10 (appointment & qualification of personal representatives); IC 29-1-7.5 (unsupervised administration)Verified Aug 24, 2026View source.
Death Certificates and the Coroner in Bartholomew County
In Indiana a death is registered locally, and in Bartholomew County certified copies of the death certificate are issued by Bartholomew County Health Department, Vital Records as well as by Indiana Department of Health - Division of Vital Records.
Vital Records Office Record
Local Health Department
Bartholomew County · Bartholomew County Health Department, Vital Records
Phone
Office
440 Third Street, Suite 303, Columbus, IN 47201
Website
Order online
Fax
1-812-379-1040
Local rule
- The office issues death certificates for deaths in Bartholomew County, from 1882.
Certified copy fees
| First certified copy | $12 |
Verified November 2, 2026 · Source
Coroner or Medical Examiner Record
Coroner
Bartholomew County · Bartholomew County Coroner
Phone
Website
Mail and offices
Fax
1-812-565-5693
Verified November 2, 2026 · Source
Funeral Homes in Bartholomew County
6 funeral homes and crematories in Bartholomew County, each listed with the services it offers, the faiths it serves, the languages its staff speak, its address and its phone.
Columbus funeral home, locally owned and operated since 1935, whose on-site crematory is the only locally owned crematory in the Columbus area.
Columbus funeral home in a historic house with a restored interior, stairways and fireplaces, in its present building since 1948, with a large lighted parking lot and handicap access. The firm traces to 1894, when it opened as the Davidson-Henderson Funeral Home.
Columbus funeral home with two chapels, opened in 1999 in the former Tovey's Shoe Store. Since 2023 it has run its own crematory, the Jewell-Rittman Cremation Center, and supervises every cremation locally rather than subcontracting it.
Columbus funeral home founded in the late 1800s and part of the Dignity Memorial network since 1998, with chapels for small private services or more than 200 guests. A large family lounge and family room sit off the main chapel, and the building has three public entrances and a large lighted parking lot.
Norman Funeral Home serves Hope and Haw Creek Township in Bartholomew County. The funeral business was established in 1880 and is run by the fifth generation of the same family. Since 1901 it has occupied the two-story brick building in Hope that still houses the funeral home today.
Funeral homes by city: Columbus, Hope
Listings are for informational purposes only. SimplyTrust does not endorse or recommend any funeral home or crematory.
Transferring Property in Bartholomew County
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 Recorder.
Deeds and other real property documents for Bartholomew County are recorded with the County Recorder at 440 Third Street, Columbus, IN 47201. Phone: 1-812-379-1520. Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-4:00 PM.
The County Recorder charges $25 flat, regardless of page count.
Bartholomew County accepts electronic recording through CSC and Simplifile.
Recording Office Record
County Recorder
Bartholomew County
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-4:00 PM
Office
440 Third Street, Columbus, IN 47201
Website
E-recording
Fees
Recording fees
| Flat fee (any length) | $25 |
| County Auditor's real property endorsement (transfer)Applies to a TOD deed | $10 |
| SDF-1 (State Form 46021) Sales Disclosure FormNot required for a TOD deed | $20 |
| Transfer tax on a TOD deed | No transfer tax applies to TOD deeds |
IC 36-2-7-10(c)(1)
Verified October 16, 2026 · Source
Forms that put a death on the title
- Free forms: Affidavit of Death Form · Affidavit of Heirship Form
Probate Attorneys Serving Bartholomew County
Indiana allows independent administrationIC 29-1-7.5-1, IC 29-1-7.5-2, IC 29-1-7.5-3Verified 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 Indiana are based on reasonable compensation, billed hourly or as a flat fee. Ask a Bartholomew County firm to quote a structure up front.
A probate attorney files the petition with the Circuit and Superior Courts, 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.
Columbus firm serving Bartholomew County and south-central Indiana, started in 1985. Estate and trust administration work covers probate and trust administration, intestate estates where no will can be found, and litigation over the administration of an estate. Jeff Rocker expanded the firm's estate planning practice after joining in 2005.
Columbus firm serving Bartholomew, Jackson, Jennings, Decatur, Johnson, and Brown counties with probate administration — filing wills with the court, securing a decedent's assets, locating beneficiaries, closing accounts, and transferring assets to heirs. Also handles estate administration and trust administration.
Century-old Seymour firm serving Jackson County and southern Indiana from a single office. Attorney Greg S. Morin handles estate administration and trusts alongside estate planning, and the firm's elder-law practice covers Medicaid and long-term-care planning, incapacity planning, and guardianships.
Columbus firm handling probate for Bartholomew County families, from small-estate and unsupervised administrations to fully supervised proceedings. Works simple and contested matters alike, including will contests and estates complicated by jointly held property, life insurance proceeds, and trust-held assets. Also serves Hope, Taylorsville, and Jonesville.
Columbus estate-and-elder-law firm focused on estate and trust settlement for Bartholomew County and central-Indiana families. Work spans probate estates, trust settlements, heirship and small-estate affidavits, post-death tax advice, guardianships, Medicaid planning and special-needs trusts. Meets in the office, at a location of the client's convenience, or by teleconference.
Columbus firm (431 Washington St, Bartholomew County), family-owned and practicing in south-central Indiana for over 40 years. Handles probate, contested estates, power of attorney, conservatorship and guardianship matters, easing the administration process for surviving families. Four Whitted attorneys staff the practice.
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.
Legal Sources
(10)·
- IC § 33-37-4-7(a) (as amended by P.L.106-2025); IC §§ 33-37-5-20, -21, -21.2, -25, -26, -27, -31
- IC 29-1-10-13 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage)
- IC 29-1-14-1, 29-1-7-7, 29-1-14-9, 29-1-14-10
- IC 29-1-7 (probate of wills & issuance of letters; petition contents IC 29-1-7-5); IC 29-1-10 (appointment & qualification of personal representatives); IC 29-1-7.5 (unsupervised administration)
- IC 29-1-7-13(b) (court grants letters); IC 29-1-10-3 (clerk administers oath only)
- IC 29-1-7.5-1, IC 29-1-7.5-2, IC 29-1-7.5-3
- IC 36-2-7-10(c)(1)
- Bartholomew County Circuit and Superior Courts, official page
- Bartholomew County Recorder, official page
- Bartholomew County vital records and death investigation offices, official page
Data sourced from Indiana 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 Indiana
Free tools for settling an estate in Indiana: whether probate is needed, executor and trustee pay, creditor deadlines and taxes. Run each tool for Indiana.
How Do I Settle an Estate?
Settling an estate in Indiana: the personal representative files the estate inventory within 60 daysIC 29-1-12-1, IC 29-1-7.5-3.2Verified Sep 15, 2026View source of appointment; creditors have 3 monthsIC 29-1-14-1, 29-1-7-7, 29-1-14-9, 29-1-14-10Verified 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 Indiana happens outside court: the trustee acts under the state's trust statuteInd. Code 30-4-1-1 et seq.Verified Oct 17, 2026View source, notifies the beneficiaries, then pays the debts and distributes under the trust's terms.
See the Steps
Can I Self-File Probate?
Indiana has no statewide fill-in probate petition, so the opening petition is drafted as a legal pleading, and informal probate is not availableIC 29-1-7-13(b) (court grants letters); IC 29-1-10-3 (clerk administers oath only)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source.
Get the Answer
Hire an Indiana Probate Attorney
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