Practices from Coushatta in Red River Parish, where the firm was founded in 1922, and from Shreveport, with clients in Caddo, Natchitoches, DeSoto, Bienville, Bossier, Claiborne and Sabine parishes. Opens and completes successions with or without a will, including complex successions alongside landowners' property and mineral work, and handles interdictions and continuing tutorships.
What to Do When Someone Dies in DeSoto Parish, Louisiana
How probate works in DeSoto Parish: the District Court record, what the process costs, and how to file there.
Probate Court Record
DeSoto Parish District Court
DeSoto Parish · 42nd Judicial District
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:30 AM-4:30 PM
Office
101 Texas Street, Mansfield, LA 71052
Website
E-filing
Self-represented filing
Allowed
Self-help forms
E-filing
OptionalCivil e-filing runs through the clerk's public portal. An E-Services account carries no monthly subscription; each package submission costs $5.00 plus payment processing fees.
Self-represented filing
AllowedThe clerk's Documents page carries a fillable Small Succession Affidavit with the 2024 updates, beside the civil fee schedule and other civil forms.
P.O. Box 1206
Mansfield, LA 71052
Fax
1-318-872-4202
Departments
- Stonewall Satellite Office1-318-925-6655 · 1746 Highway 171, Suite B, Stonewall, LA 71078 · Monday-Friday 8:30 AM-3:30 PMThe satellite office closes for lunch from 12:00 to 1:00 PM.
- Archives Building1-318-270-6207 · 214 Washington Avenue
About the court
- Louisiana uses "succession" instead of "probate" (civil law tradition). The Civil/Probate Division handles successions, tutorships and other civil cases, indexed by party name.
Verified October 15, 2026 · Source
How Probate Works in DeSoto Parish
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 DeSoto Parish, probate runs through the District Court at 101 Texas Street, Mansfield. The court sits in the 42nd Judicial District. Probate e-filing in DeSoto Parish goes through search.desotoparishclerk.org, a county-specific system.
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 Louisiana intestacy law when there is no will.
Most Louisiana estates take 6 months to 12 months to move through this process. Creditors have 3 monthsLa. C.C.P. arts. 3241-3249, 3301-3308; La. C.C. art. 3276Verified Oct 18, 2026View source to present a claim, counted from the date of death.
What Probate Costs in DeSoto Parish
What probate costs in DeSoto Parish, Louisiana 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 District Court at 101 Texas Street, Mansfield. The court is part of the 42nd Judicial District.
Procedures at this court that affect cost: Succession advance deposit varies by estate value; Certified copies of succession judgments cost $5.00 each; conformed copies $3.00.
Louisiana has no statewide succession filing fee: each parish clerk sets its own advance deposit, and the figure shown is a representative tier drawn from the posted parish schedules. A small succession pays half of regular court costs by statute. Publication of the tableau notice is bought from the parish journal on top of the depositLa. R.S. 13:841; La. CCP Art. 3421-3422; Acts 2026, No. 293, §1 (HB 215); Acts 2024, No. 90, §1 (SB 32)Verified Oct 17, 2026View source. Additional filings during administration — inventory, accounting, the final petition — add to the total.
Estimate the costs for this estate:
Attorney fees in Louisiana are negotiated, typically 1.9%Modeled estimate under La. C.C.P. arts. 3301, 3303 (attorney fees are an administration expense — La. Civ. Code art. 1415 — payable only on court authorization); art. 3351.1 (dual-role limit): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 3%Modeled estimate under La. C.C.P. arts. 3301, 3303 (attorney fees are an administration expense — La. Civ. Code art. 1415 — payable only on court authorization); art. 3351.1 (dual-role limit): 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.
Louisiana sets executor compensation at 2.5% of the estate by statuteLa. C.C.P. art. 3351 (2.5% of inventory default; court may increase if inadequate)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source. Family members who are also beneficiaries often waive the fee — executor pay is taxable income while inheritances are not.
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 La. C.C.P. arts. 3151 (administrator security, 1.25x inventory), 3153 (testator-named executor), 3154-3155 (forced heirs, spouse or creditor may compel), 3396.14 (independent administrator)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source of estate value annually.
Probate in Louisiana typically runs 6 months to 12 months, and costs accrue throughout that period.
How to File Probate at the District Court
Probate documents in DeSoto Parish can be filed in person at the District Court, by mail, or electronically. Most families handling probate themselves prefer paper filing, though e-filing is available. The court sits in the 42nd Judicial District.
Beside the filing office, the court lists separate lines for Stonewall Satellite Office and Archives Building.
Can You File Without an Attorney?
Louisiana has no statewide fill-in probate petition, so the opening petition is drafted as a legal pleading, and informal probate is not available.
For a full cost comparison and filing checklist, see the DeSoto Parish Self-Filing Assessment.
What to Bring
Filed with the opening petition at the District Court: Proof of the decedent’s death and of the heirs’ relationship — EITHER an official certificate issued by the proper public officer (a certified death certificate) OR an affidavit executed by two persons having knowledge of the facts, filed in the record of the succession proceeding (CCP arts. 2821-2822). The affidavit route — the customary "Affidavit of Death, Domicile and Heirship" — is what Louisiana practice actually files; no article requires a death certificateLa. Code Civ. Proc. arts. 2811, 3001-3198 (succession opening, appointment, letters); arts. 3396-3396.20 (independent administration)Verified Aug 24, 2026View source.
Death Certificates and the Coroner in DeSoto Parish
In Louisiana a death is registered locally, and in DeSoto Parish certified copies of the death certificate are issued by Desoto Parish Health Unit, DeSoto Parish as well as by Louisiana Department of Health - Vital Records Registry.
Vital Records Office Record
Local Health Department
DeSoto Parish · Desoto Parish Health Unit
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-4:30 PM
Office
113 Jefferson Street, Mansfield, LA 71052
Website
Also issued by
The county recorder
Fax
1-318-872-2220
Local rule
- By law the health unit's local registrar can issue a death certificate only in the ten days after it is filed. The Clerk of Court, in Mansfield and Stonewall, also issues death certificates, for deaths in the last two years and at least six weeks after the death.
Certified copy fees
| First certified copy | $7 |
Verified November 2, 2026 · Source
Coroner or Medical Examiner Record
Coroner
DeSoto Parish · DeSoto Parish Coroner
Phone
Verified November 2, 2026 · Source
Transferring Property in DeSoto Parish
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 Clerk of Court.
Deeds and other real property documents for DeSoto Parish are recorded with the Clerk of Court at 101 Texas Street, Mansfield, LA 71052. Phone: 1-318-872-3110. Hours: Monday-Friday 8:30 AM-4:30 PM.
Documents submitted by mail go to P.O. Box 1206, Mansfield, LA 71052.
The Clerk of Court charges $100 for 1-5 pages, $200 for 6-25 pages, $300 for 26-50 pages, $300 plus $5 for each page beyond 50.
DeSoto Parish accepts electronic recording through ClerkNet (CSC, Simplifile and ePN).
Recording Office Record
Clerk of Court
DeSoto Parish
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:30 AM-4:30 PM
Office
101 Texas Street, Mansfield, LA 71052
Website
P.O. Box 1206
Mansfield, LA 71052
Fax
1-318-872-4202
Recording fees
| 1-5 pages | $100 |
| 6-25 pages | $200 |
| 26-50 pages | $300 |
| 51+ pages | $300 |
| Louisiana Clerks' Remote Access Authority (LCRAA) portal feeRequired with most deeds | $5 |
La. R.S. 13:844(A)(1)
Verified October 16, 2026 · Source
Probate Attorneys Serving DeSoto Parish
Louisiana allows independent administrationLa. C.C.P. art. 3396.2Verified 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 Louisiana are based on reasonable compensation, billed hourly or as a flat fee. Ask a DeSoto Parish firm to quote a structure up front.
A probate attorney files the petition with the District 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.
Slidell solo practice of D. Bruce Cameron, with more than 20 years of succession and estate administration work in St. Tammany Parish and along the Northshore. Represents heirs, beneficiaries and executors from identifying assets and paying creditors to distribution, and in estate disputes over undue influence, incapacity and fraud. Evening and weekend appointments are available.
Shreveport attorney Carl H. Franklin has handled successions and probate for over 39 years, for clients in Caddo, Bossier, Webster, De Soto, Lincoln, Rapides and other parishes. Handles testate and intestate successions, from inventorying property and creditor notices to transferring titles, and works with out-of-state executors remotely. He offers a free phone consultation.
Baton Rouge firm serving clients throughout Louisiana, including out-of-state heirs with Louisiana property. Handles uncontested, contested, ancillary and corrective successions, trust administration, interdictions, succession litigation and appeals. Morgan Field has represented succession clients before the Louisiana Supreme Court; flat fees are available for many uncontested matters.
Haik, Minvielle, Grubbs & D'Albor, LLP
1101 East Admiral Doyle Drive, Suite 503, New Iberia, LA 70560
New Iberia firm with a satellite office in New Orleans, serving Iberia, St. Mary, St. Martin and Vermilion parishes and the rest of Louisiana. Handles successions with or without a will, from identifying assets and debts to putting heirs into possession and filing required accountings. Also drafts wills and special needs and spendthrift trusts.
Houma attorney with a Metairie office by appointment, handling successions in Terrebonne, Lafourche, Jefferson, Orleans and every other Louisiana parish. Handles administered successions, simple possessions, small-succession affidavits, successions for relatives who died years ago, and ancillary probate for out-of-state owners of Louisiana real estate. John E. Sirois is also a CFP.
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
(9)·
- La. C.C.P. art. 3351 (2.5% of inventory default; court may increase if inadequate)
- La. C.C.P. art. 3396.2
- La. C.C.P. arts. 3241-3249, 3301-3308; La. C.C. art. 3276
- La. Code Civ. Proc. arts. 2811, 3001-3198 (succession opening, appointment, letters); arts. 3396-3396.20 (independent administration)
- La. R.S. 13:841; La. CCP Art. 3421-3422; Acts 2026, No. 293, §1 (HB 215); Acts 2024, No. 90, §1 (SB 32)
- La. R.S. 13:844(A)(1)
- DeSoto Parish District Court, official page
- DeSoto Parish Clerk of Court, official page
- DeSoto Parish vital records and death investigation offices, official page
Data sourced from Louisiana 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 Louisiana
Free tools for settling an estate in Louisiana: whether probate is needed, executor and trustee pay, creditor deadlines and taxes. Run each tool for Louisiana.
How Do I Settle an Estate?
Settling an estate in Louisiana: creditors have 3 monthsLa. C.C.P. arts. 3241-3249, 3301-3308; La. C.C. art. 3276Verified Oct 18, 2026View source to present claims; a simple estate closes in 3 months to 6 months.
See the Steps
How Do I Settle a Trust?
Settling a trust in Louisiana happens outside court: the trustee acts under the state's trust statuteLa. R.S. 9:1721 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?
Louisiana has no statewide fill-in probate petition, so the opening petition is drafted as a legal pleading, and informal probate is not available.
Get the Answer
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