Walk-ins acceptedCall 410-752-5131 to book an appointment and confirm the documents to bring; appointments are served ahead of walk-ins. A visitor without an appointment who arrives after 3:00 PM may be served the next business day.
Self-represented filing
AllowedRegister of Wills staff help a self-represented personal representative prepare the forms to open an estate but cannot give legal advice. The statewide Small Estate and Regular Estate packets are on the Register's forms page.
Accepted payment
At the counterAn invoice from the Register of Wills can be paid online by American Express, Discover, Visa or Mastercard through the Register's payment portal, with a 3% technology fee and a $50,000 limit.
Fax
1-410-752-3494
About the court
Baltimore City's Orphans' Court judges are members of the Maryland bar and may hear a matter alone. Everyone entering Courthouse East is subject to a search by courthouse security, and the office closes when the Circuit Court closes for weather.
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 Baltimore City, probate runs through the Register of Wills at Courthouse East, 111 North Calvert Street, 3rd Floor, Baltimore.
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 Maryland intestacy law when there is no will.
Most Maryland estates take 9 months to 12 months to move through this process. Creditors have 6 monthsMd. Code, Est. & Trusts §§ 7-103, 7-103.1, 8-103, 8-104, 8-105, 8-107Verified Oct 18, 2026View source to present a claim, counted from the date of death.
What Probate Costs in Baltimore City
What probate costs in Baltimore City, Maryland 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 Register of Wills at Courthouse East, 111 North Calvert Street, 3rd Floor, Baltimore.
Maryland charges $0 - $10,000+ (based on estate value)Md. Code, Est. & Trusts § 2-206(b)(2)-(5); § 5-606Verified 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 Maryland are negotiated, typically 2.1%Modeled estimate under Md. Est. & Trusts § 7-602 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 3.3%Modeled estimate under Md. Est. & Trusts § 7-602 (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.
Maryland sets executor compensation by statute — about $19,080 on a $500,000 estate, roughly 3.8%Md. Est. & Trusts § 7-601Verified Sep 8, 2026View source. Family members who are also beneficiaries often waive the fee — executor pay is taxable income while inheritances are not.
Maryland 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 Md. Est. & Trusts § 6-102Verified Sep 8, 2026View source of estate value annually.
Probate in Maryland typically runs 9 months to 12 months, and costs accrue throughout that period.
How to File Probate at the Register of Wills
Probate cases in Baltimore City are filed at the Register of Wills. File in person during business hours or by mail.
Beside the filing office, the court lists a separate line for Toll-free.
Can You File Without an Attorney?
In Maryland, informal probate is availableMd. Est. & Trusts § 5-301 et seq. (administrative probate; Register of Wills appointment)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source, and a self-represented executor can usually handle it for a simple, uncontested estate.
Filed with the opening petition at the Register of Wills: Proof of death: a death certificate (original or copy); other proof of death if a death certificate is not yet available; Original will and any codicils, if any (filed with the petition); Schedule A (RW1136) for a regular estate; Schedule B (RW1137) for a small estate; List of Interested Persons (RW1104), naming the heirs and legatees with addresses — due no later than 20 days after appointment (Est. & Trusts § 7-104); local offices commonly take it with the petitionMd. Code, Est. & Trusts §§ 5-104 (priority), 5-201 (petition contents), 5-301 (administrative probate), 5-401 (judicial probate), 5-601 (small estate)Verified Aug 24, 2026View source.
Death Certificates and the Medical Examiner in Baltimore City
In Baltimore City certified copies of the death certificate come from Maryland Department of Health - Division of Vital Records; this county's Local Health Department issues no copies to the public.
Vital Records Office Record
Maryland Department of Health - Division of Vital Records
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 the Circuit Court.
Deeds and other real property documents for Baltimore City are recorded with the Clerk of the Circuit Court at 100 North Calvert Street, Room 610, Baltimore, MD 21202. Phone: 1-410-333-3760. Hours: Monday-Friday 8:30 AM-4:30 PM.
The Clerk of the Circuit Court charges $60 for 1-9 pages, $115 for 10+ pages.
Baltimore City accepts electronic recording through Simplifile.
Maryland allows informal probate, so many families settle straightforward estates in Baltimore City without hiring an attorney. 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 Maryland are based on reasonable compensation, billed hourly or as a flat fee. Ask a Baltimore City firm to quote a structure up front.
A probate attorney files the petition with the Register of Wills, 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.
Serves Baltimore City and the surrounding counties from downtown Baltimore. Assists personal representatives in settling estates, from gathering assets and paying debts to distribution, tax returns and the estate accounting, and represents beneficiaries and excluded heirs in will contests and breach of fiduciary duty litigation. Serves estates of any asset level.
Serves Baltimore City and Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Harford and Howard counties from an office in Canton. Guides executors and trustees through probate and estate and trust administration, including accountings, tax returns and distributions, and represents beneficiaries and fiduciaries in will and trust contests and breach of fiduciary duty disputes. The firm's roots date to 1939.
Serves Baltimore City from an office on Light Street. The boutique practice covers estate administration and the probate process, estate planning, and estate litigation when family members cannot agree on how to resolve a dispute over a deceased person's assets. Will Hudson also handles adult and child guardianship matters.
Serves Baltimore City and Baltimore County, including Towson, Owings Mills and Dundalk, from 1 North Charles Street downtown. The trusts-and-estates practice handles probate, estate and trust administration, probate, estate and trust litigation, and guardianship, along with wills, powers of attorney, and special-needs and Medicaid asset-protection trusts.
PracticesEstate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbateProbate Litigationand 7 more
Office
1 North Charles Street, Suite 1101Baltimore, MD 21201
Serves Baltimore City, Baltimore County and Anne Arundel County from offices in downtown Baltimore, Towson and Annapolis. Its estates, trusts and fiduciary practice is litigation: caveat proceedings, petitions to remove a personal representative, exceptions to an estate accounting, disputes among estate and trust beneficiaries, and contested guardianships.
Serves Anne Arundel County from Millersville and takes trust administration matters statewide. Helps families administer a loved one's estate through probate and assists trustees with trust administration, alongside adult guardianship and Medicaid crisis planning. Limits its practice to estate planning and elder law; partner Greg Jimeno wrote "How To Protect Your Home And Life Savings In Maryland."
PracticesEstate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbateElder Lawand 5 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 Maryland 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 Maryland
Free tools for settling an estate in Maryland: whether probate is needed, executor and trustee pay, creditor deadlines, and inheritance taxes.
How Do I Settle an Estate?
Settling an estate in Maryland: the personal representative files the estate inventory within 90 daysET §§ 7-201, 7-202, 7-203Verified Sep 15, 2026View source of appointment; creditors have 6 monthsMd. Code, Est. & Trusts §§ 7-103, 7-103.1, 8-103, 8-104, 8-105, 8-107Verified 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 Maryland happens outside court: the trustee acts under the state's Uniform Trust CodeMd. Code Est. & Trusts § 14.5-101 et seq.Verified Oct 17, 2026View source, notifies the beneficiaries within 90 daysET §§ 14.5-813, 14.5-904; CJP § 5-101Verified Sep 15, 2026View source, then pays the debts and distributes under the trust's terms.
See the Steps
Can I Self-File Probate?
In Maryland, informal probate is availableMd. Est. & Trusts § 5-301 et seq. (administrative probate; Register of Wills appointment)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source, and a self-represented executor can usually handle it for a simple, uncontested estate.
Enter the estate value to see Maryland 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 Maryland 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.
