Alachua County, FL Probate Information

Before you file anything in Alachua County, know exactly what is in the estate. Which Florida path fits depends on whether there is a will and on the value and type of the assets: formal administration under F.S. Chapter 733, summary administration under F.S. 735.201 for a smaller estate, or disposition of personal property without administration under F.S. 735.301 for a limited class of estates with no real property. The dollar thresholds that separate these paths are statewide and are explained on the Florida state page; identify the estate first so you and your attorney file the right petition once.

Identify every bank and credit-union account, retirement plan, brokerage holding, life-insurance policy, vehicle, and parcel of real property, along with every debt, before you go to the Clerk. Whether the decedent's Gainesville or rural Alachua County home was homestead property matters, because Florida homestead often passes outside the probate estate and is not counted toward the summary-administration limit. Sunset's asset-discovery work, searching more than 2,300 financial institutions, exists for this step.

The Circuit Court of the Eighth Judicial Circuit serves Alachua County along with Baker, Bradford, Gilchrist, Levy, and Union counties. Within Alachua, the court covers the whole county, including Gainesville (the county seat), Alachua, Newberry, High Springs, Archer, Hawthorne, Micanopy, and the surrounding communities. Alachua probate matters are filed with the Clerk of the Circuit Court at the Alachua County Family and Civil Justice Center, 201 E. University Avenue in Gainesville, where the Probate Division is heard.

Venue for a decedent's estate is governed by F.S. 733.101. Administration is proper first in the county where the decedent was domiciled at death, then, if the decedent had no Florida domicile, in a county where the decedent's property is located, and, if the decedent had neither domicile nor property in Florida, in the county where any debtor of the decedent resides. In practice, file in Alachua County for a decedent who lived here.

A dedicated Probate Case Manager and a courthouse Self-Help Center. The Eighth Circuit directs all probate inquiries to its Probate Case Manager rather than the judge's office: email [email protected] (preferred, with the full case number in the subject line) or call (352) 264-6991. Hearing time is requested through the case manager, since filing a petition alone does not place a matter before the court. The circuit also runs a Self-Help Center on the 4th floor of the Alachua County Family and Civil Justice Center, Room 413, (352) 548-3781, with appointments to answer procedural questions; the University of Florida's Heirs' Property Clinic has hosted free probate-forms workshops there.

The Eighth Circuit publishes its own probate forms and checklists. Unlike smaller counties, the Eighth Circuit posts probate divisional procedures, forms that self-represented parties may use, and checklists that it asks attorneys to submit with proposed orders, at circuit8.org. The Clerk's probate page adds a summary administration form and checklist and a disposition of personal property without administration packet.

Many hearings are on Zoom. The Eighth Circuit conducts many probate hearings remotely, typically routine case management or short non-evidentiary or uncontested matters; contested evidentiary hearings are generally held in person. If a hearing is noticed to occur by Zoom, do not come to the courthouse. For a hearing set in person, a party who wants to attend by electronic means must file a motion, showing good cause, at least 10 days before the hearing date.

The Clerk publishes a dated probate fee schedule. The Alachua County Clerk posts a probate fee schedule, current as of January 1, 2026, with the county totals for formal administration, summary administration, disposition without administration, and a caveat. Depositing a will is free, and a receipt for the will costs $7.00. Confirm the current figures with the Clerk before filing.

Florida makes counsel the norm in probate. Under Fla. Prob. R. 5.030, the personal representative must be represented by a Florida-licensed attorney unless the personal representative remains the sole interested person, or is the only beneficiary with no other interested persons, or is a Florida-licensed attorney. Because most Alachua estates have more than one interested person, most formal and summary administrations here are handled through counsel, who also e-files through the statewide portal. Consider an attorney early when the estate holds real property that must be sold, when a will contest or heir dispute is likely, when the estate is insolvent or creditors are pressing, or when the estate includes a business interest or out-of-state property. Sunset can connect families to a vetted Florida probate attorney serving Alachua County and the Eighth Judicial Circuit.

Find the accounts and assets. Sunset searches more than 2,300 financial institutions and public records to surface bank and credit-union accounts, retirement plans, brokerage holdings, life insurance, Alachua County real estate, and unclaimed property, so you know the estate's value and which Florida estate settlement path fits before you file.

Generate the probate packet. Sunset assembles the petition and supporting paperwork for your path, ready to file with the Clerk of the Circuit Court in Gainesville through the statewide e-filing portal or on paper.

Find a local probate attorney. Because Fla. Prob. R. 5.030 requires a Florida-licensed attorney in most administrations, Sunset connects families to a vetted Florida probate attorney serving Alachua County and the Eighth Judicial Circuit.

Sunset is free for families. Revenue comes from bank partners that pay Sunset while estate funds sit in an FDIC-insured estate account ($3M coverage).