Serves Portage, Wood, Marathon, Waushara, Adams, and Waupaca counties from Main Street in Stevens Point, in practice since 1886. Handles informal and formal probate, summary settlements, special administrations, settlement of revocable and irrevocable trusts, and estate and fiduciary tax returns, plus guardianships and conservatorships.
What to Do When Someone Dies in Wood County, Wisconsin
How probate works in Wood County: the Circuit Court record, what the process costs, and how to file there.
Probate Court Record
Wood County Circuit Court
Wood County · 9th Judicial District
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-noon and 12:45 PM-4:30 PM
Office
3rd Floor, 400 Market Street, Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494
Website
Files probate
Register in Probate
E-filing
Self-represented filing
Allowed
Self-help forms
E-filing
Required for attorneysAttorneys must e-file probate cases in Wisconsin circuit courts. A self-represented filer may register to e-file or file on paper with the Register in Probate. On paper: Self-represented parties are not required to e-file and may file paper documents (Wis. Stat. § 801.18(3)(b)-(c)); The original will is filed on paper, and a will deposited for safekeeping may not be e-filed (Wis. Stat. § 801.18(9)(i)-(j)).
Self-represented filing
AllowedThe probate office sells an informal probate packet and other form sets, and the same forms are on the Wisconsin court system website. Office staff cannot give legal advice.
Accepted payment
- At the counterCash, Check.Forms bought from the probate office are paid in exact cash or by check.
400 Market Street
Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54495
Fax
1-715-421-8896
Departments
- Register in Probate1-715-421-8524 · Takes probate filings · 3rd Floor · Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-noon and 12:45 PM-4:30 PMThe Register in Probate handles probate, wills, trusts, guardianships, conservatorships, commitments, adoptions and juvenile matters. An original will is filed by bringing it to the probate office, at no charge.
About the court
- The Register in Probate is on the third floor of the Wood County Courthouse and closes for lunch from 12:00 to 12:45.
Verified October 16, 2026 · Source
How Probate Works in Wood 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 Wood County, probate runs through the Circuit Court at 400 Market Street, Wisconsin Rapids. The court sits in the 9th Judicial District.
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 Wisconsin intestacy law when there is no will.
Most Wisconsin estates take 9 months to 12 months to move through this process. Creditors have 4 monthsWis. Stat. §§ 859.01, 859.02, 859.07, 859.25Verified Oct 19, 2026View source to present a claim, counted from the opening of the estate.
What Probate Costs in Wood County
What probate costs in Wood County, Wisconsin 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 400 Market Street, Wisconsin Rapids. The court is part of the 9th Judicial District.
Wisconsin charges $36 - $36 (graduated by the net probate estate)Wis. Stat. § 814.66(1)(a)2.Verified 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 Wisconsin are negotiated, typically 1.8%Modeled estimate under Wis. Stat. § 851.40(1) (just and reasonable compensation for services under chs. 851-879, incl. ch. 865 informal administration; no statutory percentage for attorneys): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 9, 2026View source to 2.9%Modeled estimate under Wis. Stat. § 851.40(1) (just and reasonable compensation for services under chs. 851-879, incl. ch. 865 informal administration; no statutory percentage for attorneys): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 9, 2026View source of estate value. Flat-fee arrangements are common for straightforward estates.
Wisconsin sets executor compensation by statute — about $10,000 on a $500,000 estate, roughly 2.0%Wis. Stat. § 857.05(2) (2% commission on inventory value less mortgages and liens plus net principal gains, subject to court approval; a different rate by written agreement; extraordinary services)Verified Sep 9, 2026View source. Family members who are also beneficiaries often waive the fee — executor pay is taxable income while inheritances are not.
Wisconsin 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 Wis. Stat. § 856.25 (bond solely within court discretion; will requests not binding)Verified Sep 9, 2026View source of estate value annually.
Probate in Wisconsin typically runs 9 months to 12 months, and costs accrue throughout that period.
How to File Probate at the Circuit Court
Probate cases in Wood County, Wisconsin are filed at the Register in Probate of the Circuit Court. The court sits in the 9th Judicial District.
Can You File Without an Attorney?
Wisconsin has no statewide fill-in probate petition, so the opening petition is drafted as a legal pleading, and informal probate is availableWis. Stat. Ch. 865 (informal administration by probate registrar)Verified Sep 9, 2026View source.
For a full cost comparison and filing checklist, see the Wood County Self-Filing Assessment.
What to Bring
Filed with the opening petition at the Circuit Court: Certified copy of the death certificate — NOT a filed document in Wisconsin. No statute or statewide probate form requires one to open an estate or obtain Letters; where a Register in Probate asks to see one, the clerk abstracts it onto form GF-162 and hands the original back (Wis. Stat. § 69.24(1)(a) makes copying a vital record a Class I felony); Original will and any codicils, filed with the court (Wis. Stat. § 856.05 — duty to deliver the will within 30 days of knowledge of the death)Wis. Stat. ch. 856 (formal opening, qualification, letters) & ch. 865 (informal administration); § 856.21 (persons entitled to domiciliary letters — priority); § 865.08 (informal appointment; letters)Verified Aug 24, 2026View source.
Death Certificates and the Coroner in Wood County
In Wisconsin a death is registered locally, and in Wood County certified copies of the death certificate are issued by Register of Deeds, Wood County as well as by Wisconsin Department of Health Services - Vital Records Office.
Vital Records Office Record
Register of Deeds
Wood County · Register of Deeds
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-4:30 PM
Office
400 Market Street, 2nd Floor, Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494
Website
Certified copies
At the counter
Order online
P.O. Box 8095
Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54495-8095
Fax
1-715-421-8446
Certified copy fees
| First certified copy | $20 |
| Each additional copy ordered at the same time | $3 |
Verified November 2, 2026 · Source
Coroner or Medical Examiner Record
Coroner
Wood County · Wood County Coroner
Phone
Website
Verified November 2, 2026 · Source
Transferring Property in Wood 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 Register of Deeds.
Deeds and other real property documents for Wood County are recorded with the Register of Deeds at 400 Market Street, 2nd Floor, Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494. Phone: 1-715-421-8450. Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-4:30 PM.
Documents submitted by mail go to P.O. Box 8095, Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54495-8095.
The Register of Deeds charges $30 flat, regardless of page count.
Wood County accepts electronic recording through CSC, ePN, Hopdox, Indecomm and Simplifile.
Recording Office Record
Register of Deeds
Wood County
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-4:30 PM
Office
400 Market Street, 2nd Floor, Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494
Website
P.O. Box 8095
Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54495-8095
Fax
1-715-421-8446
Recording fees
| Flat fee (any length) | $30 |
| Transfer tax on a TOD deed | TOD deeds are exempt from transfer tax |
Wis. Stat. 59.43(2)(ag)
Verified October 17, 2026 · Source
Forms that put a death on the title
- Free forms: Affidavit of Death Form · Affidavit of Heirship Form
Probate Attorneys Serving Wood County
Wisconsin allows informal probate, so many families settle straightforward estates in Wood County 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 Wisconsin are based on reasonable compensation, billed hourly or as a flat fee. Ask a Wood 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.
Stevens Point trusts and estates firm founded in 2014, with a second office in Wisconsin Rapids. Settles probate estates and trusts through final accountings, tax filings, and distributions, and litigates will and trust interpretation, breach of fiduciary duty, undue influence, and disputes over who serves as fiduciary. Publishes its fee ranges: most settlements fall between $5,000 and $15,000.
Four-attorney firm on Grant Street in Wausau. Handles informal and formal probate, termination of a decedent's joint, life-estate, and marital property interests, transfer by affidavit for small estates, and trust administration, plus challenges to estate documents over competency or undue influence and breach-of-duty claims against personal representatives and trustees.
Serves Wisconsin from seven offices in the state, led by Milwaukee and Madison. The Trusts and Estates group handles formal and informal probate, post-mortem trust administration, claims against estates and trusts, and estate tax returns, and represents personal representatives, trustees, and beneficiaries in will contests, trust disputes, and contested guardianships. Founded in 1904.
Serves families across Wisconsin from offices in Oregon and Madison in Dane County and Brookfield in Waukesha County. Helps executors and personal representatives administer estates, from locating assets to paying debts and distributing to beneficiaries, and offers mediation and litigation for disputes among heirs. Founder Dan Krause is a Board Certified Estate Planning Law Specialist.
Serves clients throughout Wisconsin from offices in Madison, Janesville, Appleton, and Dodgeville. Advises executors on probate administration and handles trust administration, guardianships and protective placement, and litigation over contested wills and trusts, breach of fiduciary duty, undue influence, and creditor claims in estate proceedings. Founded in Madison in 1931.
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)·
- Wis. Stat. § 814.66(1)(a)2.
- Wis. Stat. § 857.05(2) (2% commission on inventory value less mortgages and liens plus net principal gains, subject to court approval; a different rate by written agreement; extraordinary services)
- Wis. Stat. §§ 859.01, 859.02, 859.07, 859.25
- Wis. Stat. ch. 856 (formal opening, qualification, letters) & ch. 865 (informal administration); § 856.21 (persons entitled to domiciliary letters — priority); § 865.08 (informal appointment; letters)
- Wis. Stat. Ch. 865 (informal administration by probate registrar)
- Wis. Stat. 59.43(2)(ag)
- Wood County Circuit Court, official page
- Wood County Register of Deeds, official page
- Wood County vital records and death investigation offices, official page
Data sourced from Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin
Free tools for settling an estate in Wisconsin: whether probate is needed, executor and trustee pay, creditor deadlines and taxes. Run each tool for Wisconsin.
How Do I Settle an Estate?
Settling an estate in Wisconsin: the personal representative files the estate inventory within 180 daysWis. Stat. §§ 858.01, 858.13, 858.15, 858.17Verified Sep 15, 2026View source of appointment; creditors have 4 monthsWis. Stat. §§ 859.01, 859.02, 859.07, 859.25Verified Oct 19, 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 Wisconsin happens outside court: the trustee acts under the state's Uniform Trust CodeWis. Stat. § 701.0101 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?
Wisconsin has no statewide fill-in probate petition, so the opening petition is drafted as a legal pleading, and informal probate is availableWis. Stat. Ch. 865 (informal administration by probate registrar)Verified Sep 9, 2026View source.
Get the Answer
Hire a Wisconsin Probate Attorney
Browse vetted Wisconsin attorneys handling probate matters.
Browse firms
Notify Banks & Financial Institutions
Each institution has a separate death claim process. Find yours below.
Is this your situation?
Get a complete guide for your specific circumstances.
