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Blount County, TN Probate Information
Quick facts
| Topic | Blount County information |
|---|---|
| Court handling estates | Court of General Sessions of Blount County sitting in probate. The filing office is the Blount County Clerk and Master's Office. |
| Courthouse address | Blount County Justice Center, 930 East Lamar Alexander Parkway, Maryville, TN 37804. |
| Mailing address | The county publishes only the Justice Center street address for this office, not a separate mailing address. |
| Phone | (865) 273-5500. The county's probate page gives this number for probate questions. |
| Fax | (865) 273-5519. The county publishes a fax filing charge and a required court-approved fax cover sheet. |
| [email protected]. | |
| Office hours | Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The county publishes no lunch closure or earlier filing cutoff. |
| Filing fee | Blount County's schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026, lists $345.00 for a testate or intestate estate, $345.00 for a small estate under T.C.A. § 30-4-101 et seq., and $431.40 for a testate or intestate estate with publication. The statewide statutory clerk's fee component is $275, effective January 1, 2026, under 2025 Public Chapter 486 and T.C.A. § 8-21-401, with litigation taxes and costs added. |
| Local forms | Yes. Blount County publishes and requires the Blount County Probate Information Sheet for both the standard estate route and the small estate route under T.C.A. § 30-4-101 et seq. |
| Electronic filing | Tennessee has no statewide trial-court electronic filing system. The Blount County Clerk and Master's Office does not publish an electronic filing channel for estates on its website. |
| Case search | Blount County publishes a free public search at blount.tncrtinfo.com for current public court records filed from August 1, 2019 to present, with some earlier cases available and confidential cases excluded. If an estate does not appear, call the Clerk and Master's Office. |
| Remote appearance | Tenn. Sup. Ct. R. 55, adopted June 8, 2023, leaves teleconferencing, video conferencing and other remote court technology to the trial court's discretion under Rule 55. Blount County publishes Zoom instructions for Chancery Court, but the estate docket is in general sessions sitting in probate, so ask the Clerk and Master's Office how the Probate Judge handles any remote request. |
| Website | Blount County Clerk and Master's Office: www.blounttn.gov/308/Clerk-Masters-Office. Probate page: www.blounttn.gov/2190/Probate. |
Before you begin — know the assets and liabilities
Before you start estate settlement in Blount County, list the accounts, vehicles, personal property, real estate issues, debts, beneficiaries and possible creditors. Blount County asks for the original will if there is one, an original death certificate, photo identification, full mailing addresses for beneficiaries and heirs, and a completed Probate Information Sheet.
Sunset's asset discovery searches across 2,300 institutions so you can find accounts before you decide which local route to use. That matters in Blount County because the office asks for asset and debt lists for the small estate route under T.C.A. § 30-4-101 et seq., and the estate settlement path changes if real property must be handled.
Which court handles jurisdiction
Tennessee law sends an estate to the court exercising probate jurisdiction in the county where the person lived at death, which is the venue rule used for small estates and tied to the county of residence (T.C.A. § 30-4-102). Blount County's own probate materials state that the decedent must have been a resident of Blount County at the time of death.
For Blount County, one office serves the whole county: the Clerk and Master's Office in the Blount County Justice Center in Maryville. The county's own site lists Alcoa, Friendsville, Louisville, Maryville, Rockford and Townsend among its cities and towns, but estate papers go to the Maryville office.
Blount County is not a standard chancery filing county for estates. Private Acts of 1947, ch. 345 placed probate jurisdiction in the Court of General Sessions of Blount County, and T.C.A. § 16-16-201 recognizes that Tennessee's chancery default yields where a public, private, special or local act provides otherwise. Locally, the Clerk and Master's Office still takes the filings.
The jurisdiction process
- Confirm that the decedent lived in Blount County at death. Blount County's published materials say the decedent must have been a Blount County resident, and Tennessee venue for this filing is tied to the county where probate jurisdiction is exercised (T.C.A. § 30-4-102; T.C.A. § 16-16-201).
- Gather the required items before going to Maryville: the original will if there is one, an original death certificate, photo identification, the names and full mailing addresses of beneficiaries and heirs, and a completed Blount County Probate Information Sheet. For a small estate under T.C.A. § 30-4-101 et seq., the county also asks for a list of debts and a list of assets in the decedent's name alone.
- If there is no will, call the Clerk and Master's Office at (865) 273-5500 before going in. The county's probate page directs intestate families to call so the office can tell them whether they should consult counsel.
- Go to the Clerk and Master's Office at the Blount County Justice Center during business hours. The office no longer schedules in-person appointments, and the county's process requires every personal representative named in the will to come to the office, show photo identification and provide the required names and addresses.
- The probate clerk prepares the documents needed to start the case. Blount County publishes a seven-business-day preparation window for those documents.
- After the office contacts the personal representatives, review the prepared documents and sign them before one of the office's notaries if they are correct.
- Pay the filing fee and any publication charge due under the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. The schedule lists $345.00 for a testate or intestate estate and $431.40 when publication is included; the statewide statutory clerk's fee component is $275, effective January 1, 2026, under 2025 Public Chapter 486 and T.C.A. § 8-21-401. The office accepts cash, money order, cashier's check, bank-certified check and law firm checks as stated on its pages, and does not accept personal checks, business checks, debit cards or credit cards.
- The file goes to the Probate Judge for review and signature of the order opening the estate. If a hearing or remote setting is needed, ask the Clerk and Master's Office how the judge applies Tenn. Sup. Ct. R. 55, adopted June 8, 2023; the county publishes Chancery Court Zoom instructions, but the estate docket is a different court.
- After the signed order returns to the Clerk and Master's Office, the office prepares the authority documents. Tennessee calls those documents letters testamentary when there is a will and letters of administration when there is not (T.C.A. § 30-1-117). On Blount County's small estate route under T.C.A. § 30-4-101 et seq., the county states that regular letters testamentary or letters of administration are not issued.
- Administer the estate, track deadlines, and close the case through the Clerk and Master's Office. For estates requiring publication, Blount County prices publication of the notice to creditors at $86.40 under its schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026, and the creditor-notice process is governed by T.C.A. § 30-2-306.
Forms and documents
Probate forms in Blount County
Tennessee's Administrative Office of the Courts does not publish a statewide probate form set; its self-help center directs estate and probate readers to the clerk in their own county. Blount County answers that locally by publishing the Blount County Probate Information Sheet.
The Probate Information Sheet is required in Blount County. The county lists a completed sheet under what to bring for both a standard estate and a small estate under T.C.A. § 30-4-101 et seq. The form asks for the case type, decedent information, county of residence and death, date of death, will information, whether the will waives bond, inventory under T.C.A. § 30-2-301 or accounting, personal representative information, beneficiary information and closest-relative information.
The office also publishes its filing-fee schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026, and a court-approved fax filing cover sheet. The fax cover sheet is required for fax filings, and the county's schedule lists a $5.00 fax filing charge plus $1.00 per page, effective January 1, 2026, under the county schedule and subject to T.C.A. § 8-21-401. The cover sheet states that a fax transmission over ten pages, including the cover page, will not be filed unless the court authorizes it.
Fees
Blount County publishes a detailed Clerk and Master's fee schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. The statewide statutory clerk's fee component for a probate estate is $275, effective January 1, 2026, under 2025 Public Chapter 486 and T.C.A. § 8-21-401; Blount County's counter totals include additional court costs, litigation taxes or charges the county collects with the filing.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Testate or intestate estate | $345.00, under the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. |
| Testate or intestate estate with publication | $431.40, under the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. |
| Small estate under T.C.A. § 30-4-101 et seq. | $345.00, under the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. |
| Muniment of title under T.C.A. § 32-2-111 | $345.00, under the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. |
| Publication of notice to creditors under T.C.A. § 30-2-306 | $86.40 for two runs in The Daily Times, under the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. |
| Appointment of non-resident fiduciary | $10.00, under the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. |
| Request to sell real property, exempt property, homestead, insolvency or interpretation | $200.00, under the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. |
| Creditor claim | $50.00, filed in triplicate, under the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. |
| Exception to claim | $100.00, filed in triplicate, under the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. |
| Certified copy | $5.00 plus $0.50 per page, under the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. |
| Fax filing | $5.00 plus $1.00 per page, under the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. |
Fees are due at the time of filing. The county's probate page and fee schedule list cash, money orders, cashier's checks, bank-certified checks and law firm checks as accepted payment types, and state that personal checks, business checks, debit cards and credit cards are not accepted.
Timeline
- Before the visit, complete the Blount County Probate Information Sheet and gather the original will if there is one, an original death certificate, photo identification, and full mailing addresses for beneficiaries and heirs.
- During office hours, bring the packet to the Clerk and Master's Office in the Blount County Justice Center. The office no longer schedules in-person appointments.
- Within seven business days, the probate clerk prepares the documents needed to start the case.
- When the office contacts the personal representatives, they return to review the documents and sign them in front of one of the office's notaries.
- The office sets up the case and collects the filing fee due under T.C.A. § 8-21-401 and the Blount County schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026.
- The file is forwarded to the Probate Judge for review and signature of the order opening the estate.
- After the signed order returns, the Clerk and Master's Office prepares letters testamentary or letters of administration for a standard estate, as applicable under T.C.A. § 30-1-117.
Local nuance
Blount County-specific considerations
Blount County is one of the Tennessee counties where the local court answer is not the standard chancery answer. Private Acts of 1947, ch. 345 vested the Court of General Sessions of Blount County with probate jurisdiction, and T.C.A. § 16-16-201 allows that county-specific result where a public, private, special or local act provides otherwise.
The local split is practical: the estate is heard by the general sessions court sitting in probate, the county probate page refers to the Probate Judge, and the Clerk and Master's Office takes the papers. Do not use the Chancery Court Zoom page, Chancery Court docket notices or Chancery Court labels as the answer for an estate unless the Clerk and Master's Office tells you the estate matter has been placed on that calendar.
Blount County also publishes a current public case search at blount.tncrtinfo.com, but the public search screen does not display a probate-specific case type. Search by party name or case number and call the Clerk and Master's Office if an estate does not appear.
Recent updates
| What changed | Local effect |
|---|---|
| Blount County's Clerk and Master's filing schedule took effect January 1, 2026 and was revised June 29, 2026. | The schedule lists current probate charges, including $345.00 for a testate or intestate estate and $431.40 with publication, alongside the statewide statutory clerk's fee component of $275 effective January 1, 2026 under 2025 Public Chapter 486 and T.C.A. § 8-21-401. |
| The Clerk and Master's Office no longer schedules in-person probate appointments. | Families come to the office during published business hours instead of booking an appointment. |
| The county's Chancery Court Zoom instructions were updated as of June 1, 2026. | Those instructions are for Chancery Court. Estate matters are handled by general sessions sitting in probate, so ask the Clerk and Master's Office how Tenn. Sup. Ct. R. 55, adopted June 8, 2023, is applied in an estate matter. |
Page last reviewed: August 2026.
Scenarios
| Scenario | Likely Blount County path | Where Sunset helps |
|---|---|---|
| Surviving spouse with co-owned home | Start with the Clerk and Master's Office in Maryville, the original will if there is one, an original death certificate, photo identification, beneficiary and heir addresses, and the Blount County Probate Information Sheet. The standard estate charge is $345.00 under the county schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026, or $431.40 with publication under T.C.A. § 30-2-306. Real-property questions are a reason to speak with counsel. | Sunset helps identify accounts, organize the estate settlement packet, and connect the spouse with a local attorney if the home title or sale plan needs legal review. |
| Out-of-state adult child with small estate | Blount County's small estate route under T.C.A. § 30-4-101 et seq. is for personal property only, with the $50,000 limit under T.C.A. § 30-4-102 and the 45-day timing rule under T.C.A. § 30-4-103. The county prices it at $345.00 under the schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026, and adds $10.00 for a non-resident fiduciary under the same schedule if the personal representative lives outside Tennessee. The county's process still requires in-office signing. | Sunset helps find the accounts first, so the child can tell whether the small estate route fits before traveling to Maryville. |
| Parent settling predeceased child's estate, home must be sold | This is not the small estate route if the home must be handled, because Blount County's small estate route under T.C.A. § 30-4-101 et seq. is personal property only. The county's schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026, lists $345.00 for the estate filing and $200.00 for a request to sell real property. | Sunset helps build the asset list, prepare for the local forms, and connect the parent with an attorney for the sale authority and family notice issues. |
Self-help resources
| Resource | How it helps |
|---|---|
| Blount County Clerk and Master's Office probate page | Publishes the local what-to-bring list, appointment policy, payment methods, fee list and Probate Information Sheet. The county also says deputy clerks cannot tell you whether to probate an estate or answer legal questions. |
| Blount County Clerk and Master's Office filing fees page | Publishes the itemized fee schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026, including probate charges, publication, fax filing, copies and accepted payment methods under T.C.A. § 8-21-401. |
| Blount County online court records search | Provides a public search for current public court records filed from August 1, 2019 to present, with some earlier cases available and confidential cases excluded. Call the Clerk and Master's Office if an estate does not appear. |
| Tennessee courts self-help center | The Judiciary's estate and probate entry sends readers to the clerk in their own county. The page also explains that state court employees may not give legal advice or engage in the practice of law under T.C.A. § 16-3-804. |
| Tennessee court clerks directory | Provides the statewide clerk list the Judiciary points readers to when they need the correct local court office. |
| Justice for All | Public legal-help site named by the Tennessee Judiciary's self-help center. |
When to hire an attorney
How Sunset helps
Find the accounts and assets. Sunset helps families locate financial accounts and property leads before the Blount County paperwork is prepared, so the estate settlement starts from a clearer asset list.
Generate the probate packet. Sunset organizes the information needed for the Blount County Probate Information Sheet, the will and death certificate checklist, beneficiary and heir addresses, and the local filing conversation.
Find a local probate attorney. When the estate involves real property, an intestate filing, creditor problems or family conflict, Sunset can connect you with a vetted Tennessee probate attorney who understands the local court structure.
Sunset is free for families. Families can use Sunset to organize estate settlement, understand next steps and decide when attorney help is needed at no cost.
Frequently asked questions
Where do I file probate in Blount County?
Take the estate papers to the Blount County Clerk and Master's Office at the Blount County Justice Center, 930 East Lamar Alexander Parkway, Maryville, TN 37804. The estate is handled by the Court of General Sessions of Blount County sitting in probate, while the Clerk and Master's Office takes the filing. Blount County's probate jurisdiction is local because Private Acts of 1947, ch. 345 placed probate in general sessions, and T.C.A. § 16-16-201 allows that county-specific result.
Is Blount County probate in chancery court or general sessions?
General sessions. Blount County's fee schedule lists General Sessions Probate among the courts handled by the Clerk and Master's Office, and the county's probate page refers to the Probate Judge. The Chancery Court still exists in Blount County, but it is not the local estate forum.
Do I need an appointment to open an estate in Blount County?
No appointment is booked. The county says the office no longer schedules in-person probate appointments and directs families to come during business hours, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
What does it cost to open an estate in Blount County?
Blount County's schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026, lists $345.00 for a testate or intestate estate, $345.00 for a small estate under T.C.A. § 30-4-101 et seq., and $431.40 for a testate or intestate estate with publication of the notice to creditors under T.C.A. § 30-2-306. The statewide statutory clerk's fee component is $275, effective January 1, 2026, under 2025 Public Chapter 486 and T.C.A. § 8-21-401.
How do I pay the Blount County probate fee?
The county lists cash, money orders, cashier's checks, bank-certified checks and law firm checks as accepted payment types under its schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026. The office says it does not accept personal checks, business checks, debit cards or credit cards. The payee is Blount County Clerk & Master.
Can I start a Blount County estate online?
The Blount County Clerk and Master's Office does not publish an electronic filing channel for estates on its website. Tennessee has no statewide trial-court electronic filing system. The county does publish fax filing at $5.00 plus $1.00 per page under its schedule effective January 1, 2026, revised June 29, 2026, but the schedule does not say that an estate-opening packet can be sent by fax, so ask the office before relying on that channel.
Is there a Blount County probate form I have to complete?
Yes. Blount County publishes the Blount County Probate Information Sheet and lists a completed copy under what to bring for both the standard estate route and the small estate route under T.C.A. § 30-4-101 et seq. The form asks for decedent information, will information, personal representative information, beneficiary information and closest-relative information.
Can I look up a Blount County estate case online?
Blount County publishes a public case search at blount.tncrtinfo.com. The county says current public court records are cases filed from August 1, 2019 to present, with some earlier cases available, and confidential cases excluded. The search does not show a probate-specific case type, so call the Clerk and Master's Office if the estate does not appear.
Can I attend a Blount County probate setting by video?
Tenn. Sup. Ct. R. 55, adopted June 8, 2023, says teleconferencing, video conferencing or other technology for court proceedings is allowed at the discretion of the trial court under Rule 55. Blount County publishes Zoom instructions for Chancery Court, but the estate docket is in general sessions sitting in probate, so ask the Clerk and Master's Office how the Probate Judge handles any remote request.
Do I have to travel to Maryville for a Blount County estate?
For the signing step described by the county, every personal representative named in the will comes to the Clerk and Master's Office, shows photo identification and signs in front of one of the office's notaries. One Maryville office serves Blount County communities including Alcoa, Friendsville, Louisville, Rockford and Townsend.
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.