How long does probate take in California?

Commonly nine months to a year and a half, and often longer. Probate Code section 12200 expects the personal representative to close the estate or report status within one year of appointment — eighteen months if a federal estate tax return is required — but creditor periods, appraisals, and disputes routinely extend the schedule.

Plan on somewhere between nine months and a year and a half for an ordinary California probate, longer if anything is contested. The structure explains the pace. After the petition is filed, the court sets an initial hearing several weeks out; once the personal representative is appointed, creditors get a claim period running four months from the issuance of letters under Probate Code section 9100, and the representative must file an inventory and appraisal — prepared with a court-appointed probate referee — within four months under Probate Code section 8800. Real property sales, tax filings, and any will contest add months more. Probate Code section 12200 sets the benchmark: the representative should petition for final distribution or report status within one year of appointment, or eighteen months when a federal estate tax return is required, and the court may demand explanations for delay. Small-estate procedures and funded living trusts bypass this timeline entirely.

Authority: Cal. Prob. Code § 12200