Free help / Find a will
Find a will
Start at home, then ask the people and offices below. If a search comes up empty, there's still a next step.
Rules for your state
Which court to ask, whether a will can be deposited and how to open a safe deposit box.
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- Washington, DC
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Where to look, in order
Look through their papers at home
Many people keep their will at home, often with other important papers.
- Check desks, filing cabinets, home safes, fireproof boxes, and folders marked will, estate, insurance or legal.
- Look in places people keep things they want safe, like a freezer bag, a Bible, under a mattress or the glove box of a car.
- Check their email and computer for a lawyer's name, a "last will" file, or an online will service.
- If you find the original, do not unstaple it or write on it. A will with staple holes or marks can raise questions in court.
Ask the people who might know
A will may be with a person named in it.
- Ask their spouse, adult children, closest friends, and anyone they might have named as executor.
- Ask their accountant, financial advisor and insurance agent. Advisors often know who their lawyer was.
- Ask their faith leader if they were close. People sometimes talk through these things with clergy.
Find and write to their lawyer
Lawyers often keep the original will in their office safe.
- Look for a lawyer's name on old bills, canceled checks, bank statements, business cards and property papers.
- Write to any lawyer you find, enclosing a copy of the death certificate. Ask whether they drew up a will or trust and whether they hold the original.
- If the lawyer retired or died, ask the local bar association who took over the practice. We found no state bar that says it searches for wills itself, so write to the firms nearby too.
Ask the probate court
A will may already be on file, either deposited during life or filed after the death.
- Call the clerk in the county where they lived and ask two questions. Is there a will on file for this person? Has anyone opened a probate case?
- Clerks differ. Some search for you with a name and year of death, and some can only tell you about cases already filed. New York courts, for example, say they cannot find a will for you.
- Ask about other counties too if they moved. Bring or send a copy of the death certificate.
Check for a safe deposit box
A key or a bank bill for a box can lead to the will, deeds and bonds.
- Look for a small flat key, and bank statements showing an annual box rental fee.
- Call each bank they used and ask whether there is a box in their name and what you need to open it.
- Bring a certified death certificate and your ID. A bank may also ask for court papers.
Know what to do with the original
Many states require whoever holds the original will to hand it over.
- Keep the original safe and make copies. Do not change, mark or remove anything.
- Give a copy to the person named as executor.
- If you only have a copy, talk to a probate lawyer. Courts can presume that an original nobody can find was canceled, and you may have to show otherwise.
- If you find no will at all, ask the court or a lawyer what happens next. Each state has rules for who inherits without one.
What about the state bar? We found no official page saying that a state bar searches for wills. Some states have other options. New Jersey has a voluntary will registry, and some courts accept wills for safekeeping.