Can You Probate a Will Without a Lawyer in Florida?

Losing a loved one is hard enough without a court process on top of it, so the first question many Florida families ask is whether they can handle probate themselves. For full formal administration, the answer is usually no. Florida Probate Rule 5.030 requires the personal representative (the person other states call the executor) to be represented by a Florida attorney, unless that person is the only interested person in the estate or is a licensed Florida attorney themselves. Whether you have a simpler path depends on two things: the size of the estate and how long ago the person died. Smaller estates can use summary administration, a shorter court process families may pursue without a lawyer, and as of July 1, 2026, that option covers nonexempt estates up to $150,000, double the old $75,000 limit. Estates below $20,000 in personal property may skip administration entirely.

That new $150,000 threshold comes from CS/HB 1337, passed unanimously and signed as Chapter 2026-57, Laws of Florida, and it is the most significant change to Florida probate in years. The official summary is on the Florida Senate’s page for HB 1337. It means many middle-class estates that would have required months of formal administration now qualify for a process measured in weeks. Even so, a will represents your loved one’s legacy, and the wishes of the testator (the person whose will it is) are honored only when the process is done correctly, which is why most families still work with a Florida probate attorney from the outset.

Probate a Will: The Probate Process

If you have lost a loved one in Florida and find yourself responsible for probating the will, it helps to know the basic framework. If you are in possession of the will, Fla. Stat. 732.901 requires you to deposit it with the clerk of the circuit court within 10 days of receiving notice of the testator’s death. That deadline applies whether or not any probate case is ever opened. From there, the court determines the will’s validity. Probate is the court process that moves assets from the testator to the people named in the will, or to family members under state law if there is no will. Which track the estate takes depends mostly on its size, as covered in the next section.

When You Can Probate a Will Without a Lawyer

Florida law leaves a few genuine do-it-yourself openings. Under Fla. Stat. 735.201, as amended effective July 1, 2026, an estate qualifies for summary administration when the nonexempt assets total $150,000 or less, or when the decedent has been dead for more than two years regardless of value. Protected homestead does not count toward that limit. Summary administration involves no personal representative and no ongoing court supervision, and a family may file the verified petition without an attorney, though every beneficiary must sign and small drafting errors are a common cause of rejected petitions. Below that, disposition without administration under Fla. Stat. 735.301 lets a family recover up to $20,000 in exempt personal property and final-expense reimbursements with a simple form and no court case at all, a limit that also doubled in July 2026. And in formal administration itself, Rule 5.030 excuses the attorney requirement when the personal representative is the sole interested person. Outside those situations, an attorney is required, not merely recommended.

Probate a Will: How Formal Administration Begins

The formal process begins when you, as the personal representative nominated in the will (or as another interested party), ask the circuit court to appoint you. The following generally applies:

• The probate proceeds in the county where the testator lived at the time of death.
• Heirs who would have inherited under state law had there been no will are notified and given an opportunity to object.
• The court validates the will.
• The court issues Letters of Administration giving you, as personal representative, authority to settle the estate in accordance with the will.

Validation of the Will

To prove the will is valid, the court may require the witnesses to give statements under oath. Many wills, however, are self-proving, meaning the testator and witnesses signed a notarized affidavit when the will was executed. In that case, submitting the will to the court is enough, which is one more reason properly drafted documents save families time later.

The Personal Representative’s Duties When You Probate a Will

Once the process begins in earnest, your job as personal representative focuses on gathering and inventorying the assets, addressing debts and taxes, distributing what remains to the named beneficiaries, and submitting a final accounting to the court showing what the estate contained, how you managed it, and how it was distributed. Anyone who objects to the final accounting may do so through the court. Our plain-language guide to the Florida Probate Code walks through these duties statute by statute. When everything goes smoothly, formal administration typically takes six months to a year; summary administration often finishes in one to two months. The closing steps are covered in our article on how to close a Florida estate.

One point the old version of this article got wrong deserves a plain correction: Florida has no state estate tax and no inheritance tax. The personal representative files the decedent’s final income tax returns, and a federal estate tax return is required only for estates above the federal exemption, which is $15 million per person as of 2026. The overwhelming majority of Florida estates owe no estate tax of any kind.

How a Probate Attorney Helps

A Florida probate attorney keeps the process moving in accordance with your loved one’s wishes, which is the bottom line in wills and probate. In practice, the attorney handles identifying the full range of assets, arranging appraisals for real property, collecting life insurance proceeds payable to the estate, opening the estate checking account, publishing notice to creditors and resolving claims, paying final bills in the priority the statute requires, preparing and filing the court documents, retitling assets to beneficiaries, and making final distributions after the accounting. Attorney fees for ordinary services follow a presumed-reasonable schedule in Fla. Stat. 733.6171, so families can estimate the cost up front. If the estate could have been structured to skip probate entirely, an estate planning attorney can also make sure the next generation is not back in probate court, using tools like revocable living trusts, beneficiary designations, and Lady Bird Deeds.

Your Options

If the estate’s nonexempt assets are $150,000 or less, or the death was more than two years ago, summary administration is usually the fastest and least expensive route, with or without counsel. If the estate exceeds that threshold, holds solely titled real property other than homestead, or involves any disagreement among beneficiaries, formal administration with a required attorney is the path. And if the person is still living, the best option is planning that avoids probate altogether.

Key Takeaways

• Formal administration in Florida requires an attorney under Probate Rule 5.030 unless the personal representative is the sole interested person or is a Florida attorney.
• As of July 1, 2026, summary administration covers nonexempt estates up to $150,000, doubled from $75,000 by Chapter 2026-57, and remains available for any estate once two years have passed since death.
• Whoever holds the will must deposit it with the clerk of court within 10 days of receiving notice of the death under Fla. Stat. 732.901.
• Florida has no state estate or inheritance tax; a federal estate tax return applies only above the $15 million exemption as of 2026.
• Formal administration typically runs six months to a year; summary administration often finishes in weeks.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. When does Florida law require a probate lawyer?

A. Florida Probate Rule 5.030 requires every personal representative in formal administration to be represented by a Florida attorney, unless the personal representative remains the sole interested person in the estate or is a licensed Florida attorney. Summary administration has no attorney requirement, though courts expect a properly drafted petition.

Q. What is summary administration and who qualifies now?

A. It is Florida’s simplified probate track under Fla. Stat. 735.201. As of July 1, 2026, an estate qualifies if its nonexempt assets are $150,000 or less, or if the decedent has been dead more than two years. Protected homestead does not count toward the limit, and no personal representative is appointed.

Q. How much does a probate attorney cost in Florida?

A. Fla. Stat. 733.6171 sets a fee schedule presumed reasonable for ordinary services, for example $3,000 for estates between $70,000 and $100,000 and 3 percent of value between $100,000 and $1 million. These are presumptions, not mandates, and flat fees can often be negotiated, especially for summary administration.

Q. How long does it take to probate a will in Florida?

A. Summary administration commonly takes one to two months from filing to the court’s order. Formal administration usually takes six months to a year, and longer if creditors, tax issues, or family disputes arise.

Q. Do all assets have to go through probate?

A. No. Assets with beneficiary designations, jointly owned property with survivorship rights, assets held in a living trust, and property passing by Lady Bird Deed transfer outside probate. Only assets titled solely in the decedent’s name with no designated recipient require it.

Honor Your Loved One’s Wishes With the Right Help

If you are holding a Florida will right now, start with three steps. Deposit the original will with the clerk of court in the county where your loved one lived, since the 10-day clock is already running, add up the nonexempt assets to see whether the estate falls under the new $150,000 summary administration limit, and schedule a consultation with a Florida probate attorney at Elder Needs Law, PLLC to confirm the right track before anything is filed. Bring one document, a simple list of what your loved one owned and roughly what each item is worth, since that list determines which process applies and what it will cost. Done right, probate becomes a defined series of steps with an end date, instead of a source of stress during a season of grief, and your loved one’s wishes are carried out exactly as written.