To open a probate estate in Florida, you file a petition for administration with the circuit court in the county where the decedent lived, deposit the original will (if there is one) with the clerk, and ask the court to appoint a personal representative who will be issued Letters of Administration. Until those Letters are signed by the judge, no one has legal authority to gather assets, pay debts, or distribute property. Opening the estate, in other words, is the moment a grieving family member becomes a fiduciary with real power and real obligations.
I have walked a lot of personal representatives through this first step, and the same thing is usually true at the start: they are not sure where to begin, who is allowed to act, or how long any of it will take. This guide lays out the process the way I would explain it across my desk, with the actual Florida statutes and rules that govern each piece.
What “opening a probate estate” actually means
Probate is the court-supervised process of settling a deceased person’s affairs. Opening the estate is the administrative front end of that process. You are not finishing anything yet; you are simply getting a judge to recognize that a death occurred, confirm who is in charge, and grant that person legal authority to act on behalf of the estate.
Florida law gives you a few different paths depending on the size and nature of the estate. The two formal options most families encounter are formal administration and summary administration under Chapter 733 and Section 735.201 of the Florida Statutes. There is also a narrow “disposition of personal property without administration” for very small estates with no real property and limited assets. Which door you walk through changes what you file and what authority you get, so it is worth understanding the difference before you draft a single document.
Formal administration
Formal administration is the full process. It is required when the estate has more than $75,000 in non-exempt assets, or when the decedent has been dead for two years or less and the estate does not otherwise qualify for summary administration. This is the only path that produces a true personal representative with Letters of Administration and the broad authority that comes with them. If the estate needs to sell real property, litigate a claim, or deal with a contested will, you almost always want formal administration.
Summary administration
Summary administration is the shortcut. Under Section 735.201, it is available when either the value of the entire estate subject to administration (excluding exempt property such as the homestead) is $75,000 or less, or when the decedent has been dead for more than two years. There is no personal representative appointed in a summary proceeding; instead, the court enters an order distributing assets directly to the people entitled to them. It is faster and cheaper, but it offers less protection and is a poor fit when creditors or family conflict are in the picture.
Confirm you are eligible to serve as personal representative
Before you file anything, make sure the person you intend to nominate can legally serve. Florida is stricter than many states here. Under Sections 733.302 through 733.304, a personal representative must be at least 18, mentally and physically capable, and must not have been convicted of a felony. A non-resident of Florida can serve only if they are closely related to the decedent — a spouse, child, parent, sibling, or other defined close relative (or the spouse of such a relative). A friend or distant relative who lives out of state generally cannot serve.
If the decedent left a will, the person named as executor (Florida calls them the “personal representative”) has first priority, assuming they qualify. If there is no will, Section 733.301 sets the order of preference: the surviving spouse first, then the person selected by a majority of the heirs, then the heir nearest in degree of kinship.
Gather the documents you need to open the estate
Walking into the process organized saves weeks. Before filing, pull together the following:
- The original signed will and any codicils. Under Section 732.901, the custodian of a will must deposit the original with the clerk of court within 10 days of learning of the death. This is a legal duty, not a courtesy.
- A certified death certificate (order several copies — banks and the IRS will each want one).
- The decedent’s full legal name, last address, date of death, and Social Security number.
- A preliminary list of assets (bank accounts, real property, brokerage accounts, vehicles, business interests) with rough values, plus how each is titled.
- Names and addresses of the beneficiaries and heirs, and of the surviving spouse.
- A list of known creditors and outstanding debts.
You do not need every number to be perfect on day one. You do need enough to choose the right administration type and to complete the petition honestly.
Where and how to file the petition
The estate is opened in the circuit court of the county where the decedent was domiciled at death. For South Florida families, that usually means the probate division of the circuit court in Miami-Dade, Broward, or Palm Beach County. Venue matters — filing in the wrong county can cause delays and transfers.
The core opening documents in a formal administration are:
- Petition for Administration — identifies the decedent, the will, the heirs, the assets, and asks the court to appoint the personal representative.
- Oath of Personal Representative — the proposed PR swears to faithfully administer the estate.
- Designation of Resident Agent and Acceptance — names someone in Florida to accept service.
- Order Admitting Will to Probate and Letters of Administration — drafted for the judge’s signature.
One detail catches many families off guard: Florida Probate Rule 5.030 requires that a personal representative in a formal administration be represented by a licensed attorney, unless the PR is the sole interested person. This is not the case in every state, and it is one reason the do-it-yourself route rarely works in a Florida formal estate. If you are weighing whether you need counsel, our Florida probate overview explains how representation works at each stage.
Letters of Administration: your proof of authority
Once the judge signs the order and issues Letters of Administration, the personal representative is officially empowered. The Letters are the document you show a bank, a title company, or a transfer agent to prove you can act for the estate. Without them, financial institutions will (correctly) refuse to release a single dollar.
From here the real work begins: serving notice, taking control of assets, filing an inventory within 60 days under Rule 5.340, publishing the Notice to Creditors under Section 733.2121, and serving the formal Notice of Administration on interested persons. But opening the estate — getting those Letters — is the threshold you have to cross first.
Common mistakes when opening a Florida estate
A few errors come up again and again, and each one costs time:
- Sitting on the original will. The 10-day deposit deadline under Section 732.901 is real. Holding the will because the family is still grieving creates legal exposure.
- Choosing the wrong administration type. Filing for summary administration on an estate that needs to handle creditor claims or sell property often means refiling as a formal administration later.
- Nominating a disqualified personal representative. A felony conviction or out-of-state non-relative status will stop the appointment cold.
- Ignoring homestead. Florida’s constitutional homestead protections affect what is and is not part of the probate estate — a frequent point of confusion and litigation.
When a will’s validity is in question, the rules become more involved. Although the procedure differs by state, Morgan Legal’s explanation of how a will is contested in New York is a useful primer on the kinds of challenges — undue influence, lack of capacity, improper execution — that can surface during any probate. For a broader walk-through of the administration process generally, their guide to probate and estate administration is worth a read.
Getting help in South Florida
Opening a probate estate is procedural, but the procedure is unforgiving. A petition with the wrong venue, a disqualified nominee, or a missed deposit deadline can turn a few-week task into a few-month one. If you are a personal representative or named executor in Miami-Dade, Broward, or Palm Beach County, it is worth getting the opening filings right the first time.
Our team handles formal and summary administrations across South Florida, and we coordinate with Morgan Legal’s Florida probate practice on complex estates. If you have questions about a specific estate — or about whether you even need to open one — reach out to our office and we will tell you, plainly, where you stand. You can also review our guidance on wills if you are trying to understand the document that started this process.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to open a probate estate in Florida?
Getting the estate opened — filing the petition and receiving Letters of Administration — typically takes a few weeks once the documents are complete and the proposed personal representative qualifies. The full administration that follows usually runs six months to a year or more, depending on creditors, assets, and any disputes.
Do I need a lawyer to open a probate estate in Florida?
In most formal administrations, yes. Florida Probate Rule 5.030 requires the personal representative to be represented by an attorney unless the PR is the only interested person in the estate. Summary administration and disposition without administration may not require counsel, but legal help is still advisable.
What is the difference between formal and summary administration?
Formal administration is the full process and appoints a personal representative with Letters of Administration. Summary administration is a faster, simpler procedure available when the non-exempt estate is worth $75,000 or less, or the decedent has been deceased for more than two years; it distributes assets by court order without appointing a personal representative.
Who can serve as personal representative in Florida?
A personal representative must be at least 18, mentally and physically able to serve, and free of any felony conviction. Non-residents of Florida can serve only if they are a close relative of the decedent — such as a spouse, child, parent, or sibling — or the spouse of such a relative.
What happens if there is no will?
The estate is administered under Florida’s intestacy laws. The court appoints a personal representative following the priority in Section 733.301 — the surviving spouse first, then a person chosen by a majority of the heirs, then the nearest heir — and assets pass to heirs in the order set by statute rather than by a will.
For more on our Florida practice, see our overview of probate and estate administration in Florida. Morgan Legal Group's affiliated New York office also handles Medicaid asset protection trusts.