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Putnam County, OH Probate Information
Quick facts
| Category | Current rules |
|---|---|
| Court | Putnam County Probate Court, the probate division of the Putnam County Court of Common Pleas under the Ohio Revised Code (R.C. 2101.01). Its formal name in the Supreme Court of Ohio's own court list is the Putnam County Court of Common Pleas, Probate and Juvenile Division, and the county's organization chart lists it as the Probate / Juvenile Court. One elected probate judge presides over both the Probate Division and the Juvenile Division, which is common in Ohio's smaller counties. The county's other common pleas court, the General and Domestic Relations Division, is a separate court with a separate judge and does not handle estates |
| Filing office | The probate court's own office at the courthouse in Ottawa. The elected probate judge is also the clerk of the probate court (R.C. 2101.11(A)(1)(a)), so estates, wills and guardianships are filed with the probate court directly. The Putnam County Clerk of Courts, (419) 523-3110, serves as clerk only for the Putnam County Common Pleas Court and the Putnam County Municipal Court by its own description, and does not open estates |
| Courthouse | 245 East Main Street, Ottawa, OH 45875, the Putnam County Courthouse on Main Street in Ottawa, which the county also brands the Putnam County Government Center. The county publishes no suite or floor for the Probate and Juvenile Division, so ask at the counter when you arrive. Suite 301 at the same address, which some directories print for the probate court, is the Clerk of Courts and Common Pleas Court suite |
| Mailing address | The court publishes no separate post office box, so mail filings go to 245 East Main Street, Ottawa, OH 45875. Call (419) 523-3012 before mailing an original will or another original document |
| Phone | (419) 523-3012, the number the county publishes for the Probate and Juvenile Court on its own courts page and for marriage-license appointments on the Common Pleas Court page (verified July 2026). This is the probate office's line, and it is not the Clerk of Courts number |
| Fax | (419) 523-9291, published as the Probate and Juvenile Court's fax and distinct from the (419) 523-5284 Common Pleas and Municipal fax. No published rule authorizes filing an estate document by fax in the Probate Division, so call (419) 523-3012 before faxing anything you intend as a filing |
| Office hours | Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., as published on the county's courts page and Common Pleas Court page and matching the courthouse's posted hours (verified July 2026). This is a small combined probate and juvenile office, so call (419) 523-3012 to confirm the counter is staffed before driving to Ottawa |
| Filing fee | Ohio sets most probate fee items by statute: $35.00 to appoint a fiduciary and $15.00 to probate a will (R.C. 2101.16(A), effective September 30, 2025), $60.00 to relieve an estate from administration or to grant a summary release, $10.00 for an inventory with appraisement, $12.00 for an account, and $1.00 per page for certified copies. On top of those items each probate court sets its own advance deposit for costs by local rule, up to $125.00 (R.C. 2101.16(E)), and may add computerization and dispute-resolution charges (R.C. 2101.162, R.C. 2101.163). Putnam County Probate Court publishes no cost or deposit schedule anywhere, and it publishes no probate local rules, so the total you will be asked for at the counter is not on paper: call (419) 523-3012 and ask what to bring before you file |
| Local forms | None for estates. Putnam County publishes no local estate forms and no cover sheet, so you file the statewide Standard Probate Forms prescribed by the Supreme Court of Ohio. The only court forms the county publishes are domestic relations forms, which belong to a different division |
| E-filing | None. Putnam County Probate Court has no electronic-filing system, and the county's published local rules, which do carry a facsimile-filing rule, apply only to the General Trial, Domestic Relations and Criminal Divisions. You file on paper, in person at the counter in Ottawa or by mail |
| Case search | None published for probate. Putnam County runs two online case portals, one for the Common Pleas Court and one for the Municipal Court, and both are the Putnam County Clerk of Courts system by their own welcome text. Because the probate judge is the probate court's own clerk, neither portal is the probate docket. Records in a Putnam County estate are requested from the probate court's office in Ottawa, in person, by mail or by calling (419) 523-3012 |
| Remote appearance | Nothing is published for the Probate Division. The court publishes no local rules and no remote-appearance policy, so ask the office at (419) 523-3012 whether a given hearing can be handled by telephone or video |
| Website | https://putnamcountyohio.gov/courts/ carries the Probate and Juvenile Court's phone, fax and hours, and https://putnamcountyohio.gov/courts/common-pleas-court/ describes the Probate Division and links the county's local rules. There is no probate-court web page of its own, and the Supreme Court of Ohio's trial-court directory lists no probate entry at all for Putnam County |
Before you begin — know the assets and liabilities
Before you file anything in Putnam County, know exactly what is in the estate. Which Ohio route fits depends on whether there is a will, on who inherits, and on the value and titling of the assets, because a full administration, a release from administration and a summary release are different filings with different forms and different notice steps. Those routes and their dollar ceilings are statewide and are explained on the Ohio state page. Getting it right before your first trip matters more here than in a metro county: Putnam County Probate Court has no e-filing, no online docket and no published filing checklist, so a wrong or incomplete filing means another drive to Ottawa or another round of mail.
Identify every bank and credit-union account, retirement plan, brokerage holding, life-insurance policy, vehicle, farm asset, and parcel of real property, along with every debt, before you file. How each asset is titled decides whether it passes through the estate at all: property held jointly with right of survivorship, accounts with a named beneficiary, and land covered by a recorded transfer on death designation affidavit (R.C. 5302.22) go directly to the survivor or beneficiary and never reach the probate court. Sunset's asset-discovery work, searching more than 2,300 financial institutions, exists for this step, so that the application you hand across the counter in Ottawa lists the estate accurately the first time.
Which court handles jurisdiction
Putnam County Probate Court in Ottawa is the single probate filing office for the whole county. Everything is at one address, 245 East Main Street, and there is no branch, satellite or district office. The court serves every part of the county, including the villages of Ottawa, the county seat, Belmore, Cloverdale, Columbus Grove, Continental, Dupont, Fort Jennings, Gilboa, Glandorf, Kalida, Leipsic, Miller City, Ottoville, Pandora and West Leipsic, and the townships of Blanchard, Greensburg, Jackson, Jennings, Liberty, Monroe, Monterey, Ottawa, Palmer, Perry, Pleasant, Riley, Sugar Creek, Union and Van Buren, along with unincorporated communities such as Rimer, Vaughnsville, Kieferville and New Cleveland. The county's own list of communities names villages and townships only, with no city. Ottawa sits near the center of the county, so no part of Putnam County is a long drive from the courthouse, and because papers can be mailed to the court most of an uncontested estate can be handled without repeated trips.
Venue for an Ohio estate is the county where the decedent was a resident at the time of death (R.C. 2113.01). If the person lived in Putnam County, file in Putnam County Probate Court, even if they died in a hospital in Lima, Findlay, Defiance, Toledo or Columbus. Ohio's statute says resident, not domiciled, and the probate court of the county where the will is admitted is the court that grants letters. Ohio has no probate district, circuit or regional overlay: all 88 counties have their own probate court, seated at the county seat (R.C. 2101.01(A)), and Putnam County's sits in Ottawa.
Three courts share the address at 245 East Main Street, and only one of them handles estates. Putnam County Probate Court, reached at (419) 523-3012, is where wills, estates, guardianships, adoptions and marriage licenses are handled; the same elected judge also runs the Juvenile Division, so a reader who calls may hear the office answer as the Probate and Juvenile Court. The Putnam County Court of Common Pleas, General and Domestic Relations Division, and the Putnam County Municipal Court are separate courts served by the Putnam County Clerk of Courts at (419) 523-3110, and none of them opens an estate. Because directories mix these numbers up, and because at least one third-party probate directory prints a number the county does not publish at all, use the number the county publishes for the Probate and Juvenile Court.
The jurisdiction process
- Gather the documents. Collect the original signed will if there is one, a certified copy of the death certificate, the applicant's contact details and identification, the names and addresses of the surviving spouse, children, next of kin, legatees and devisees, and a list of the assets and debts with values. A person named in a will to settle the estate is an executor; a person appointed where there is no will is an administrator; Ohio's umbrella term for either, used throughout the Ohio Revised Code and the forms, is fiduciary.
- Call the probate office first. Putnam County publishes no probate local rules, no filing checklist and no cost schedule, so the one reliable way to learn what the counter expects, how many copies to bring and what to pay is to call (419) 523-3012 during office hours, Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Ask at the same time whether the court holds a will the decedent deposited with it for safekeeping.
- Get the statewide forms. Ohio uses one set of Standard Probate Forms prescribed by the Supreme Court of Ohio in every county, and Putnam County publishes no local estate form or cover sheet of its own. For a full administration the load-bearing items are Form 1.0 (Surviving Spouse, Children, Next of Kin, Legatees, and Devisees), Form 2.0 (Application to Probate Will) where there is a will, and Form 4.0 (Application for Authority to Administer Estate). Before appointment the application must name the surviving spouse and next of kin and state in general terms what the estate consists of and its probable value (R.C. 2113.07). Where the decedent lived in another state but owned Ohio property, the route is ancillary administration on Form 4.1 under R.C. Chapter 2129.
- File on paper in Ottawa or by mail. There is no e-filing in Putnam County: take the completed forms to the probate court's office at 245 East Main Street, Ottawa, OH 45875, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday, or mail them to the same address. The county publishes a fax number for the office, (419) 523-9291, but no rule authorizing a faxed estate filing, so confirm by phone before treating a fax as a filing, and never fax an original will.
- Pay the deposit and costs. Ohio fixes the fee items by statute, including $35.00 to appoint a fiduciary, $15.00 to probate a will, $60.00 to relieve an estate from administration or grant a summary release, and $10.00 for an inventory with appraisement (R.C. 2101.16(A), effective September 30, 2025). A probate court may also require an advance deposit for costs set by its own local rule, which by law cannot exceed $125.00 (R.C. 2101.16(E)), and may add a computerization charge and a dispute-resolution charge (R.C. 2101.162, R.C. 2101.163). Putnam County publishes none of its local figures, so call (419) 523-3012 and ask what the deposit is and what payment the office accepts.
- Give notice and let the court set the hearing. An application to probate a will and an application for letters are set for hearing by the court, and the surviving spouse, next of kin, legatees and devisees receive notice of the filing unless they sign the statewide waiver forms. Because Putnam County publishes no local notice rule, ask the office whether it prepares the notices or expects you to file them with the application, and get any waivers signed before you file.
- Take the appointment and collect the letters. On an admitted will the court issues letters testamentary to the executor; with no will it issues letters of administration to the administrator (R.C. 2113.05). Either way the appointment is recorded on Form 4.5 (Entry Appointing Fiduciary; Letter of Authority), and the certified letter of authority is what banks, transfer agents and title companies rely on. Certified copies cost $1.00 per page (R.C. 2101.16(A)), so ask for enough copies for every institution the estate deals with while you are at the counter.
- Send the Medicaid estate recovery notice within 30 days where it applies. Where the decedent was subject to the Medicaid estate recovery program, or the decedent's spouse was, the person responsible for the estate must submit a completed medicaid estate recovery notice form to the administrator of the medicaid estate recovery program not later than thirty days after letters are granted or an application for release or summary release is filed (R.C. 2117.061). Compliance is certified to the court on Form 7.0. This applies to a release from administration too, which surprises people.
- File the inventory within three months. The fiduciary must file an inventory of the decedent's real and personal property within three months after appointment unless the court grants an extension for good cause (R.C. 2115.02), on Form 6.0 (Inventory and Appraisal). Where an appraisal is needed for farm ground, a house or equipment, ask the office how it wants the appraiser handled, because Putnam County publishes no local appraiser rule.
- Handle creditor claims. In Ohio all claims against the estate must be presented within six months after the date of death, whether or not an executor or administrator was appointed in that period, and a claim presented later is forever barred (R.C. 2117.06). Ohio requires no newspaper advertisement of the grant of letters. The one statutory exception runs to Medicaid estate recovery, which may present its claim up to ninety days after it receives the recovery notice form or one year after death, whichever is later (R.C. 2117.061(D)).
- Account, then close. The fiduciary must render a final and distributive account within six months after appointment unless one of the statutory exceptions applies, and where the sole heir or beneficiary is also the fiduciary a certificate of termination may be filed instead (R.C. 2109.301). The account goes in on Form 13.0 (Fiduciary's Account) with vouchers for the disbursements. Where Ohio real estate passes through the estate rather than being sold, apply for a Certificate of Transfer on Form 12.0 and record the certificate with the Putnam County Recorder.
Forms and documents
Probate forms in Putnam County
Putnam County publishes no local estate forms. Ohio uses one set of Standard Probate Forms prescribed by the Supreme Court of Ohio and used in all 88 counties, and the Putnam County Probate Court neither publishes a form library of its own nor requires a local cover sheet for a decedent's estate. The only court forms on the county's website are domestic relations forms, which belong to the General and Domestic Relations Division rather than to probate. So the answer for a family settling an estate here is simple: download the statewide forms, complete them, and file them in Ottawa.
The load-bearing statewide items for a decedent's estate are Form 1.0 (Surviving Spouse, Children, Next of Kin, Legatees, and Devisees), Form 2.0 (Application to Probate Will), Form 4.0 (Application for Authority to Administer Estate), Form 4.1 (Supplemental Application for Ancillary Administration) where the decedent lived out of state, Form 4.5 (Entry Appointing Fiduciary; Letter of Authority), Form 5.0 (Application to Relieve Estate From Administration) with Form 5.1 (Assets and Liabilities of Estate to be Relieved from Administration), Form 5.10 (Summary Release From Administration), Form 6.0 (Inventory and Appraisal), Form 7.0 (Certification of Notice to Administrator of Medicaid Estate Recovery Program), Form 12.0 (Application for Certificate of Transfer) and Form 13.0 (Fiduciary's Account). Confirm the current version on the Supreme Court of Ohio forms page before you file, because form numbering and titles are revised from time to time.
Putnam County is unusual even among Ohio's small counties in that no probate local rules are published at all. The county's published local rules of court, adopted January 23, 2026 and effective February 23, 2026, state that they govern practice in the General Trial Division, the Domestic Relations Division and the Criminal Division, and the Supreme Court of Ohio's local rules index carries no probate-division rules for Putnam County, only that same Common Pleas document and the Municipal Court's separate rules. So there is no local rule on paper size, no local rule on who prepares the hearing notices, no local appraiser rule and no local cost schedule to read before you file. Treat the phone call to (419) 523-3012 as the substitute for a local rulebook.
| Resource | What it provides |
|---|---|
| Supreme Court of Ohio Standard Probate Forms, decedent's estate (supremecourt.ohio.gov) | The statewide forms you file in Putnam County, including Forms 1.0, 2.0, 4.0, 4.1, 4.5, 5.0, 5.1, 5.10, 6.0, 7.0, 12.0 and 13.0, with the numbered variants and the waiver forms |
| Putnam County courts (putnamcountyohio.gov) | The county page that publishes the Probate and Juvenile Court's phone, (419) 523-3012, its fax, (419) 523-9291, the 245 East Main Street address and the 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. hours |
| Putnam County Court of Common Pleas (putnamcountyohio.gov) | The county page that describes the Probate Division's subject matter, wills, estates, guardianships, adoptions and marriage licenses, and links the county's local rules of court |
| Putnam County Court of Common Pleas local rules of court (putnamcountyohio.gov) | The county's only published local rules, effective February 23, 2026, governing the General Trial, Domestic Relations and Criminal Divisions rather than probate. Useful for confirming what does not apply to an estate filing |
Recent updates
Page last reviewed: July 2026.
Scenarios
| Situation | Likely path in Putnam County | Where Sunset helps |
|---|---|---|
| Surviving spouse, co-owned home | If the Ottawa-area or Columbus Grove-area home was held jointly with right of survivorship, or was covered by a transfer on death designation affidavit recorded with the Putnam County Recorder before death (R.C. 5302.22), it passes to the survivor outside probate and the court is not involved in the house itself. If other assets stood in the decedent's sole name, the spouse files in Putnam County Probate Court: Form 2.0 and Form 4.0 with a will, leading to letters testamentary, or Form 4.0 alone with no will, leading to letters of administration. Where the spouse inherits everything, the estate may qualify to be released from administration rather than fully administered (R.C. 2113.03), which is a shorter filing on Forms 5.0 and 5.1. Papers go across the counter at 245 East Main Street or in the mail. | Asset discovery to confirm how the home and the accounts are titled and what actually has to reach the court. Packet generation for the Putnam County filing, whether a full administration or a release. A vetted attorney referral if the title or a claim turns out to be contested. |
| Out-of-state adult child, small estate | Where the whole estate is worth $35,000 or less, or $100,000 or less where a surviving spouse inherits everything, an interested party can apply to relieve the estate from administration on Forms 5.0 and 5.1 instead of running a full administration (R.C. 2113.03). A release does not shorten the six-month creditor window (R.C. 2117.06) and, where the decedent was subject to Medicaid estate recovery, still requires the thirty-day recovery notice (R.C. 2117.061). Because Putnam County has no e-filing and no online docket, an out-of-state child files by mail to 245 East Main Street, Ottawa, OH 45875 and calls (419) 523-3012 to confirm what the office needs, rather than flying in to file. | Asset discovery to establish the estate's value from out of state and confirm which route it qualifies for. Packet generation for the release or the full administration, assembled so it can be mailed to Ottawa and accepted the first time. |
| Parent settling a predeceased child's estate, home must be sold | Because real property has to be sold, this goes through a full administration: with no will the parent files Form 4.0 in Putnam County Probate Court, is appointed administrator, and receives letters of administration; with a will the parent probates it on Form 2.0 and receives letters testamentary. The inventory follows within three months (R.C. 2115.02) on Form 6.0, and because the court publishes no local appraiser rule you should ask the office at (419) 523-3012 how it wants an appraisal of a house, farm ground or equipment handled. Where the property is transferred to heirs rather than sold, the route is a Certificate of Transfer on Form 12.0, recorded with the Putnam County Recorder. Any hearing is held at the courthouse in Ottawa. | Asset discovery for the child's accounts, insurance and real property. Packet generation for the administration and the inventory. Attorney referral where the sale, a mortgage payoff or a dispute among heirs makes counsel worthwhile. |
Self-help resources
| Resource | What it offers |
|---|---|
| Putnam County courts (putnamcountyohio.gov), (419) 523-3012 | The county page that publishes the Probate and Juvenile Court's own phone and fax, the 245 East Main Street address in Ottawa and the Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. hours. Court staff can explain procedure and tell you what the counter expects but cannot give legal advice |
| Putnam County Court of Common Pleas, Probate Division description (putnamcountyohio.gov) | The county's short description of what the Probate Division hears, wills, estates, guardianships and adoptions, plus marriage licenses, and the link to the county's local rules of court |
| Supreme Court of Ohio Standard Probate Forms, decedent's estate (supremecourt.ohio.gov) | The statewide forms used in every Ohio county, including Putnam, with the numbered variants and waivers. These are the only estate forms you need here |
| Supreme Court of Ohio Ohio trial courts directory (supremecourt.ohio.gov) | Official court names and links for every county's common pleas divisions. Note it carries no probate entry for Putnam County, so use the county's own courts page for contact details |
| Supreme Court of Ohio local rules of court (supremecourt.ohio.gov) | The statewide index of trial-court local rules, useful if an estate touches a neighboring county whose probate court does publish rules and a cost schedule |
| Putnam County Recorder (putnamcountyrecorder.com) | Where a transfer on death designation affidavit (R.C. 5302.22) is recorded before death and where a Certificate of Transfer on Form 12.0 is recorded after an estate is administered |
| Ohio Legal Help (ohiolegalhelp.org) | Plain-language Ohio probate guides, including release from administration and summary release, from a statewide non-profit. Not a government site, and its Putnam County court listing carries a suite number that belongs to the Clerk of Courts, so confirm court details with the court itself |
| Legal Aid of Western Ohio (lawolaw.org), (877) 894-4599 | Free civil legal help for eligible low-income residents. LAWO serves 32 northwest and west central Ohio counties, including Putnam, from offices that include Lima, Findlay and Defiance, with one intake line. Confirm it can take a probate matter before relying on it |
| Pro Seniors (proseniors.org), (800) 488-6070 | Statewide legal helpline for Ohio residents age 60 and over, listed by Ohio Legal Help as serving Putnam County |
| Ohio Legal Help: find your legal aid (ohiolegalhelp.org) | Confirms which legal-aid program covers a given Ohio county and how to apply |
| Ohio State Bar Association lawyer referral (ohiobar.org) | Referrals to Ohio probate attorneys, useful in a county with a small local bar |
When to hire an attorney
Many Putnam County estates are uncontested and can be handled without an attorney, particularly where a surviving spouse inherits everything and the estate qualifies to be relieved from administration rather than fully administered. Consider counsel when a will is contested or a dispute among heirs is likely, when farm ground, a farming operation, tile and drainage interests or mineral rights have to be valued, sold or divided, when real property has to be sold, when the estate is insolvent or a creditor is pressing a claim inside the six-month window (R.C. 2117.06), when a wrongful-death or injury claim is part of the estate, when the estate includes a business or out-of-state property, or when a guardianship for a minor or an incompetent adult has to run alongside the estate. The practical local factor is that Putnam County publishes no probate local rules, no forms, no cost schedule and no docket search, so a self-represented filer here is working from the statewide forms and one phone line, with no local rulebook to check against. Court staff can explain procedure but cannot give legal advice. Sunset can connect families to a vetted Ohio probate attorney serving Putnam County and the surrounding northwest Ohio counties.
How Sunset helps
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, Putnam County real estate and unclaimed property, so you know the estate's value and which Ohio route fits for estate settlement before you drive to Ottawa.
Generate the probate packet. Sunset assembles the paperwork for your route, whether a full administration or an application to relieve the estate from administration, on the statewide Standard Probate Forms, ready to file on paper with the Putnam County Probate Court at the counter or by mail.
Find a local probate attorney. When a matter is contested or otherwise calls for counsel, Sunset connects families to a vetted Ohio probate attorney serving Putnam County.
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).
Frequently asked questions
Where do I file for probate in Putnam County?
With the Putnam County Probate Court at the Putnam County Courthouse, 245 East Main Street, Ottawa, OH 45875. It is the probate division of the Putnam County Court of Common Pleas (R.C. 2101.01), formally the Putnam County Court of Common Pleas, Probate and Juvenile Division, and because the elected probate judge is also the court's clerk (R.C. 2101.11(A)(1)(a)) estates are filed with the probate court itself, not with the Putnam County Clerk of Courts. File in Putnam County if the person was a resident of the county at the time of death (R.C. 2113.01). The county publishes no suite or floor for the probate office, so ask at the counter when you arrive.
What is the phone number for the Putnam County Probate Court?
(419) 523-3012. That is the number the county publishes for the Probate and Juvenile Court on its own courts page, and the same number it gives for marriage-license appointments and copies, which are probate-court business in Ohio. Be careful with directories: (419) 523-3110 is the Common Pleas and Municipal line and reaches the Putnam County Clerk of Courts, which does not open estates, and at least one third-party probate directory prints a number the county does not publish anywhere. The office is open Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Can I file probate papers by mail in Putnam County?
Yes. The court publishes no separate post office box, so mail filings go to 245 East Main Street, Ottawa, OH 45875. Call (419) 523-3012 first if you are sending an original will or another original document, and ask what the office needs on intake, since the court publishes no filing checklist and no local rules. The county does publish a fax number for the office, (419) 523-9291, but no rule authorizing a faxed estate filing, so confirm by phone before treating a fax as a filing.
Is there e-filing for probate in Putnam County?
No. Putnam County Probate Court has no electronic-filing system, so everything is filed on paper in person or by mail. The county's published local rules do contain a facsimile-filing rule, but those rules state on their face that they govern the General Trial, Domestic Relations and Criminal Divisions, not probate. Ohio has no statewide probate e-filing system either: the large metro counties run their own systems and most rural counties, including Putnam, are paper.
How do I look up a Putnam County probate case online?
You cannot. Putnam County publishes no online docket search for estates. The county's two online case portals, one for the Common Pleas Court and one for the Municipal Court, are both the Putnam County Clerk of Courts system by their own welcome text, and the Clerk of Courts is clerk only for those two courts, not for the probate court. To see what is on file in an estate, contact the probate court's office in Ottawa at (419) 523-3012 or visit the counter during office hours. Ohio law now requires every probate court to put its general docket for cases filed on or after September 30, 2025 online within eighteen months of that date (R.C. 2101.11(A)(1)(b)), so this should change; nothing is published for Putnam County yet.
What forms do I need for probate in Putnam County?
The statewide Standard Probate Forms prescribed by the Supreme Court of Ohio. Putnam County publishes no local estate forms and no cover sheet, so there is nothing county-specific to download, and the only court forms on the county website belong to the domestic relations docket. For a full administration the core items are Form 1.0 (Surviving Spouse, Children, Next of Kin, Legatees, and Devisees), Form 2.0 (Application to Probate Will) if there is a will, Form 4.0 (Application for Authority to Administer Estate), Form 6.0 (Inventory and Appraisal) and Form 13.0 (Fiduciary's Account); for a smaller estate, Forms 5.0 and 5.1 to be relieved from administration.
How much does it cost to file probate in Putnam County?
Ohio fixes most fee items by statute, including $35.00 to appoint a fiduciary, $15.00 to probate a will, $60.00 to relieve an estate from administration or grant a summary release, $10.00 for an inventory with appraisement and $1.00 per page for certified copies (R.C. 2101.16(A), effective September 30, 2025). Each probate court may also require an advance deposit for costs set by its own local rule, which cannot exceed $125.00 (R.C. 2101.16(E)), and may add computerization and dispute-resolution charges (R.C. 2101.162, R.C. 2101.163). Putnam County Probate Court publishes no cost or deposit schedule and no probate local rules, so no local total exists on paper: call (419) 523-3012 and ask what to bring before you file.
Does the Putnam County Probate Court publish local rules?
Not for probate. The only local rules the county publishes are the Putnam County Court of Common Pleas rules effective February 23, 2026, and their own adopting entry says they govern practice and procedure in the General Trial Division, the Domestic Relations Division and the Criminal Division. A June 29, 2026 entry added one more rule to that same set, a law-enforcement reporting plan, which is also not probate. The Supreme Court of Ohio's local rules index carries no probate-division rules for Putnam County: the only rules it links are that Common Pleas document and the Municipal Court's own rules. So unlike most Ohio counties there is no local probate rulebook to read for hours, deposits, notice practice or local forms, and the office's phone line is the substitute.
Is probate court the same as the juvenile court in Putnam County?
It is the same court and the same judge, in two divisions. One elected judge presides over both the Probate Division and the Juvenile Division of the Putnam County Court of Common Pleas, the Supreme Court of Ohio's court list names the court the Putnam County Court of Common Pleas, Probate and Juvenile Division, and the county's organization chart lists the office as the Probate / Juvenile Court. The county publishes one phone number and one fax number for both dockets, so the phone may be answered either way and the same small staff handles both. That arrangement is common in Ohio's smaller counties. It does not change the law that applies to your estate, but it does mean the office is small, so calling ahead is worth the time.
Do I have to travel to Ottawa to settle an estate in Putnam County?
Not usually just to file. Papers can be mailed to the probate court at 245 East Main Street, Ottawa, OH 45875, so a filer living out of state can open and run an uncontested estate largely by mail and phone. Plan on Ottawa for a hearing, and for picking up certified copies of the letter of authority, which cost $1.00 per page (R.C. 2101.16(A)) and are what banks and title companies ask for. Nothing about remote appearances is published for this court, so ask at (419) 523-3012 whether a particular hearing can be handled by telephone or video.
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.