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Lauderdale County, AL Probate Information
Quick facts
| Topic | Lauderdale County information |
|---|---|
| Court | Lauderdale County Probate Court |
| Courthouse address | Lauderdale County Courthouse, 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630 |
| Mailing address | Lauderdale County Probate Judge, PO Box 1059, Florence, AL 35631-1059. Ask the probate office before mailing a filing. |
| Phone | (256) 760-5804 for the probate court. The recording department is a separate desk at (256) 760-5800. |
| Fax | None published for the probate office. |
| Hours | 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. |
| Filing fee | The county currently publishes, with no effective date on that page, $45.00 for estates, covering the first five pages of the will with $3.00 per page after the fifth, and $45.00 for administrations. The statutory fee-item schedule appears at (Ala. Code § 12-19-90), and local charges can affect the total. Ask the probate office to quote the amount before paying. |
| Local forms | None for estates. The county publishes filing fees, recording costs, and a conservatorship and guardianship guide, but no estate petition form or packet. |
| E-filing | No estate e-filing channel is published. Ask the probate office what delivery method it accepts. |
| Case search | A county records portal operated for the probate judge offers a probate case records lookup and a land records lookup. Coverage and access terms are not published. Ask the probate office about a particular estate file. |
| Remote appearance | Set by the Lauderdale County Probate Court. Ask the probate office when a hearing is set. |
| Website | https://www.lauderdalecountyal.gov/home/departments/probate-office/ |
Before you begin — know the assets and liabilities
Before you choose a Lauderdale County probate path, identify the assets and the debts. Lauderdale County publishes a starting estate filing amount, but it also says additional charges can apply, and the choice between probating a will, seeking administration, or using a smaller-estate route depends on what the estate actually holds. Sunset's asset discovery searches more than 2,300 financial institutions to find accounts and policies the family may not know about.
Debt information matters just as much. Notice has to reach heirs and creditors, and estate settlement can stall if a bank account, insurance policy, mortgage, medical bill, or other claim appears after the petition is filed.
Which court handles jurisdiction
The Lauderdale County Probate Court serves Lauderdale County from the Lauderdale County Probate Office in the Lauderdale County Courthouse at 200 South Court Street in Florence. The county publishes one probate location, and no branch probate counter is published.
Florence is the county seat. The county also includes Killen, Rogersville, Waterloo, Anderson, Lexington, St. Florian, and surrounding unincorporated communities. Because Lauderdale County sits at Alabama's northwest corner near the Tennessee line and north of the Tennessee River, families in the Shoals area should check the decedent's county of domicile before filing.
Venue for an Alabama estate is the probate court of the county where the decedent was domiciled at death, or, for a decedent who lived outside Alabama, a county where the decedent left assets (Ala. Code § 43-8-162).
The jurisdiction process
- Confirm that the estate belongs in Lauderdale County. Use the county where the decedent was domiciled at death, or, for a nonresident decedent, a county where Alabama assets are located (Ala. Code § 43-8-162).
- If there is a will, secure the original. A person holding the will has a duty to deliver it to the probate court or to someone who can have it probated (Ala. Code § 43-8-270), and an Alabama will must be filed for probate within five years after death (Ala. Code § 43-8-161).
- List the assets, debts, heirs, and any real property before drafting. Lauderdale County publishes no estate petition packet, and the probate judge cannot advise on the law or provide forms.
- Budget the filing. Lauderdale County currently publishes, with no effective date on that page, $45.00 for estates, covering the first five pages of the will with $3.00 per page after the fifth, and $45.00 for administrations. The statutory fee-item schedule appears at (Ala. Code § 12-19-90), and the county says additional charges may apply.
- Prepare the petition and any supporting documents. If a document must be sworn or recorded, have it notarized before you arrive unless the probate office tells you otherwise.
- File at the Lauderdale County Probate Office in the courthouse at 200 South Court Street, Florence. The office is open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Call (256) 760-5804 before assuming a petition can be mailed.
- Pay the amount the probate office quotes. Use the probate court line at (256) 760-5804 for estate questions. The separate recording department line is (256) 760-5800.
- The probate judge acts on the petition. In Alabama, the probate judge is both the judge and the filing officer.
- Give required notice to heirs and creditors. Known or reasonably ascertainable creditors must receive actual notice, and creditor notice is also published under Alabama probate procedure.
- Ask when you file whether a hearing will be set and whether phone or video participation is allowed for that matter. Lauderdale County publishes no probate hearing calendar.
- After appointment, obtain letters testamentary if there is a will or letters of administration if there is no will. Banks, title companies, and other institutions commonly ask for these documents.
- Administer and close the estate. Gather assets, safeguard property, address claims, account as required, and distribute only when the court process allows. If an equitable dispute arises after the administration is open, an interested party may petition to remove the administration to the circuit court (Ala. Code § 12-11-41).
- If Lauderdale County real property must be transferred or sold, record the deed in the same probate office through the recording department. The recording schedule, effective 6/1/2012, lists $16.00 for the first page and $3.00 for each additional page, deed tax of $.50 per $500 or fraction thereof, and a required Real Estate Sales Validation Form (Ala. Code § 40-22-1). Estate filing fee items are addressed separately in (Ala. Code § 12-19-90).
Forms and documents
Probate forms in Lauderdale County
Lauderdale County publishes no downloadable estate petition form, packet, or cover sheet. Its probate pages publish the office contact information, initial filing fees, recording costs, marriage certificate information, and a conservatorship and guardianship guide, but not estate forms.
Alabama also does not provide a public statewide probate form packet for families to file in every county. For a Lauderdale County estate, you should expect to prepare the petition with legal guidance or ask the probate office what it requires, without expecting the office to choose the path or draft the filing for you.
The county states that the probate judge cannot advise on the law or provide forms. That makes advance preparation especially important for estate settlement in Lauderdale County.
Fees
Lauderdale County is more specific than many Alabama counties because it publishes initial estate filing amounts. The county currently publishes, with no effective date on that page, $45.00 for estates, with the county's note that this covers the first five pages of the will and requires $3.00 per page after the fifth. It also currently publishes, with no effective date on that page, $45.00 for administrations. These figures correspond to probate fee items addressed in (Ala. Code § 12-19-90), but local charges and case circumstances can affect the amount due.
The county's own caveat matters: additional fees may apply for postage, sheriff service, and other circumstances, and the standard amount may not apply to every situation. Call the probate court line at (256) 760-5804 before sending payment or arriving with a check.
Real estate work uses a separate recording schedule. For deeds, the schedule effective 6/1/2012 lists $16.00 for the first page and $3.00 for each additional page, plus deed tax of $.50 per $500 or fraction thereof, and every deed must include a completed, signed, and dated Real Estate Sales Validation Form (Ala. Code § 40-22-1). Certified copies under that same effective 6/1/2012 schedule are $3.00 for the certification and $1.00 per page. Estate filing fee items are addressed separately in (Ala. Code § 12-19-90).
Local nuance
Lauderdale County-specific considerations
| Local point | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Two phone numbers | Use (256) 760-5804 for estate questions. The (256) 760-5800 line is the recording department, which matters when a deed must be recorded. |
| Published estate fees | The county currently publishes, with no effective date on that page, $45.00 for estates and $45.00 for administrations, with $3.00 per page after the fifth page of a will. The statutory fee-item schedule appears at (Ala. Code § 12-19-90), and the county says additional charges may apply. |
| 5:00 p.m. closing time | The probate office publishes hours of 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, which is later than many Alabama probate counters. |
| Same building for probate and recording | The probate office is inside the Lauderdale County Courthouse in downtown Florence. If an estate includes a house, the family may work with both the probate court line and the recording department in the same office. |
| Recording costs for estate real property | The recording schedule effective 6/1/2012 lists $16.00 for the first deed page, $3.00 for each additional page, deed tax of $.50 per $500 or fraction thereof, and certified copies at $3.00 for certification plus $1.00 per page. Deeds require a Real Estate Sales Validation Form (Ala. Code § 40-22-1). Estate filing fee items are addressed separately in (Ala. Code § 12-19-90). |
| County records portal | A portal operated for the Lauderdale County Commission and the probate judge offers a probate case records lookup and a land records lookup. Ask the probate office what a particular file shows and what access is required. |
| No published fax or probate email | The county publishes no fax number and no email address for the probate office, so phone and in-person contact are the reliable routes shown by the county. |
Recent updates
| Update | What it means for Lauderdale County families |
|---|---|
| Small-estate law changed statewide | Act 2025-431, effective October 1, 2025, rewrote Alabama's small-estate rules and tied the ceiling to the combined statutory allowances (Ala. Code § 43-2-696.02). For the current ceiling and fit, check the Alabama state probate page or ask the Lauderdale County Probate Office. |
Page last reviewed: August 2026.
Scenarios
| Scenario | Local path | Where Sunset helps |
|---|---|---|
| Surviving spouse with co-owned home | Start at the Lauderdale County Probate Office in the courthouse at 200 South Court Street, Florence. If there is a will, bring the original and remember the county currently publishes, with no effective date on that page, $45.00 for estates covering the first five will pages, with $3.00 per page after the fifth (Ala. Code § 12-19-90). If there is no will, the county currently publishes, with no effective date on that page, $45.00 for administrations (Ala. Code § 12-19-90). Call (256) 760-5804 to quote the amount before paying. How the home passes depends on the deed, and the same probate office is also where Lauderdale County deeds are recorded. | Sunset helps find accounts, policies, and debts before the filing so the estate settlement path matches what the spouse actually has to handle. |
| Out-of-state adult child with small estate | Call the Lauderdale County Probate Office at (256) 760-5804 before mailing anything. The county publishes a courthouse counter in Florence and a probate judge mailing address, but it does not publish a mailed-in route for an estate petition. Ask how the office wants the petition and original will delivered, whether a hearing is needed, and whether phone or video participation is possible. | Sunset helps assemble the asset picture remotely so the family knows whether a smaller-estate path or a full administration is the right question to ask before anything travels to Florence. |
| Parent settling predeceased child's estate, home must be sold | Open the administration in the Lauderdale County Probate Court and obtain letters of administration. If the estate includes a Lauderdale County house, the deed work goes through the recording department at (256) 760-5800. The recording schedule effective 6/1/2012 lists $16.00 for the first deed page, $3.00 for each additional page, deed tax of $.50 per $500 or fraction thereof, and a required Real Estate Sales Validation Form (Ala. Code § 40-22-1). Estate filing fee items are addressed separately in (Ala. Code § 12-19-90). If a dispute over the sale becomes an equitable dispute after the estate is open, an interested party may petition to remove the administration to the circuit court (Ala. Code § 12-11-41). | Sunset helps identify every account, policy, debt, and property issue so the sale and distribution are not reopened because an asset or claim was missed. |
Self-help resources
| Resource | How to use it | Limits |
|---|---|---|
| Legal Services Alabama | Call statewide intake at 866-456-4995. Spanish intake is available at 888-835-3505. Online applications are accepted, and intake hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. | Legal Services Alabama provides civil legal help for eligible low-income Alabamians and lists heirs property and estate planning among its practice areas. It does not advertise estate administration representation, so ask intake what help is available for your situation. |
| Alabama State Bar Lawyer Referral Service | Use the referral request process or call (334) 269-1515 or (800) 354-6154 to ask for an Alabama lawyer in the relevant area and county. | This is a referral service, not free representation. You contact the referred lawyer to schedule the consultation and discuss fees. |
| AlabamaLegalHelp.org | Legal Services Alabama points the public to this companion self-help and referral site. | Use it as a starting point for general information, then ask a lawyer or the probate office about Lauderdale County procedure. |
| Lauderdale County Probate Office | Call (256) 760-5804 or go to 200 South Court Street, Florence, during published hours to ask what the office requires, what amount is due, and how a hearing will be handled. | The probate judge cannot advise on the law or provide forms. Use the office for procedural routing, not legal strategy. |
When to hire an attorney
A lawyer is especially useful in Lauderdale County when the estate includes real property that must be sold, heirs disagree, a will contest is possible, debts may exceed assets, a guardianship or conservatorship issue is happening alongside the estate, or an equitable dispute may require removal of the opened administration to the circuit court. Lauderdale County publishes no estate petition packet, and the county states that the probate judge cannot advise on the law or provide forms. Sunset connects families with a vetted local probate attorney.
How Sunset helps
Find the accounts and assets. Sunset searches more than 2,300 financial institutions for accounts, policies, and other assets that families often miss. That helps you choose the right estate settlement path before filing in Lauderdale County.
Generate the probate packet. Lauderdale County publishes filing fees but no estate petition form or packet. Sunset helps organize the information needed for a probate attorney or filing preparation, including heirs, assets, debts, and the original will status.
Find a local probate attorney. If the estate has real property, creditor issues, family disagreement, or a likely hearing, Sunset can connect you with a vetted Alabama probate attorney who understands Lauderdale County practice.
Sunset is free for families. Families can use Sunset to organize estate settlement, find assets, understand next steps, and connect with professional help without paying Sunset a fee.
Frequently asked questions
Where do I file probate in Lauderdale County, Alabama?
File with the Lauderdale County Probate Office in the Lauderdale County Courthouse, 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630. The office is in historic downtown Florence between Alabama Street and College Street and is open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Call (256) 760-5804 to ask how the office wants the petition and original will delivered.
How much does it cost to file probate in Lauderdale County?
Lauderdale County currently publishes, with no effective date on that page, $45.00 for estates, covering the first five pages of the will with $3.00 per page after the fifth, and $45.00 for administrations. The statutory fee-item schedule appears at (Ala. Code § 12-19-90), and the county says additional fees may apply for postage, sheriff service, and other circumstances. Call (256) 760-5804 before paying.
What is the phone number for the Lauderdale County Probate Office?
The probate court line is (256) 760-5804, and that is the number for estate questions. The recording department is a separate desk at (256) 760-5800. The county publishes no fax number and no email address for the probate office.
Can I file a probate petition electronically in Lauderdale County?
Lauderdale County publishes no estate e-filing channel. It publishes a counter in the courthouse at 200 South Court Street in Florence, open until 5:00 p.m. on weekdays. Ask the probate office at (256) 760-5804 what delivery method it accepts, and make sure the original will physically reaches the office.
Does Lauderdale County have probate forms I can download?
No. Lauderdale County publishes its initial filing fees, recording costs, marriage certificate information, and a conservatorship and guardianship guide, but no estate petition form and no estate packet. Alabama does not publish a public statewide probate form packet for families to use in every county. The county states that the probate judge cannot advise on the law or provide forms.
How do I look up a probate case in Lauderdale County?
A county records portal operated for the Lauderdale County Commission and the probate judge offers a probate case records lookup alongside a land records lookup. What it indexes and what access is required are not published. Call the probate office at (256) 760-5804 to ask what a particular estate file shows. Under the recording schedule effective 6/1/2012, certified copies are $3.00 for the certification and $1.00 per page; estate filing fee items are addressed separately in (Ala. Code § 12-19-90).
What are the Lauderdale County Probate Office hours?
The office publishes hours of 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. The courthouse observes the county's published holiday schedule.
Are there probate hearings in Lauderdale County, and when will mine be scheduled?
The Lauderdale County Probate Court sets any hearing date, and the county publishes no probate calendar or filing-to-hearing window. Ask the probate office at (256) 760-5804 when you file whether a hearing will be needed.
Can I attend a Lauderdale County probate hearing by phone or video?
Whether a matter can be handled by phone or video is set by the Lauderdale County Probate Court. Ask the probate office when the hearing is set.
Do I have to travel to Florence to settle an estate in Lauderdale County?
The county publishes a counter in the Florence courthouse and does not publish a mailed-in route for estate petitions. Call (256) 760-5804 first and ask how the office wants the petition and original will delivered. A probate judge mailing address is listed as PO Box 1059, Florence, AL 35631-1059, but you should ask the office before using it for a filing.
Shaped by the families we've helped
Thank you to the thousands of families who have trusted Sunset to help settle their loved ones' estates. This page is shaped by the questions they actually asked and the obstacles they actually hit — and that hard-won experience is what keeps it accurate, current, and genuinely useful to the families who come next.