Last verified 2026-07-14, every fact checked against the primary sources below

How probate works in Alameda County

Last verified: July 14, 2026

The short answer: If the person who died lived anywhere in Alameda County, you file the Petition for Probate (form DE-111) at the Berkeley Courthouse — the court is explicit that "probate documents shall only be filed in the Clerk's Office at the Berkeley Courthouse." The filing fee is $435. Attorneys must e-file; self-represented filers may file on paper. Before the hearing, a probate examiner posts notes on your case in the eCourt Public Portal about three weeks out, and every procedural issue must be cleared by noon two court days before the hearing or the matter can be dropped from the calendar.

Before you file anything, check whether you need probate at all. The simplified paths at the bottom of this page skip the process entirely for many families.

Alameda County probate at a glance

Where do you file probate in Alameda County?

Probate filings go to one place (alameda.courts.ca.gov):

Hearings are held in Departments 201 and 202 at Berkeley; probate trials go to Department 103 at the Wiley W. Manuel Courthouse in Oakland (hearings page). Do not file at the René C. Davidson Courthouse in Oakland — it appears on some of the court's own contact lists, but probate filings are Berkeley-only.

How much does it cost to file probate in Alameda County?

If you e-file, the court's e-filing transaction fee plus the provider's service fee come on top.

How do you file the petition?

E-filing has been mandatory for attorneys in all probate case types since October 23, 2023 (Local Rule 7.2, probate e-filing page). Self-represented litigants "are not required to file documents electronically; however, they are encouraged to do so."

Important paper exceptions under Local Rule 7.2(e) — these cannot be e-filed even by attorneys and must come in person, by drop box, or by mail: original wills and codicils, surety bonds, letters, DE-305 affidavits, small-estate affidavits under Probate Code § 13101, and bank statements supporting accountings (Title 7 local rules).

One operational wrinkle: e-filed documents "may require three or more days to appear on the Register of Action" (examiner notes page) — which matters when you are filing against the two-court-day clearing deadline below.

How long until the first hearing?

State law says the hearing on the petition "shall be set for a day not less than 15 nor more than 30 days after the petition is filed," or 30 to 45 days out if you request it (Prob. Code § 8003). Alameda's calendars do fill — adding a matter to a full calendar takes an ex parte application, and "only emergency situations will be considered" (Local Rule 7.5).

Use the gap well. You must publish notice of the hearing in a newspaper and mail notice to heirs before the hearing, and you should watch your examiner notes as the date approaches.

What are Probate Examiner Notes and how do you clear them?

A probate examiner reviews your petition and posts notes identifying any deficiencies (alameda.courts.ca.gov):

What local quirks should an executor know?

• Berkeley, not Oakland. Filings go only to the Berkeley Courthouse, whatever other addresses you find online.
• The dropped-hearing rule has teeth: procedural issues cleared after noon two court days out can cost you the hearing date, and the e-filing lag of up to three days means last-minute fixes should be filed on paper at the counter.
• The examiner phone window is one hour a day (9:00 to 10:00 a.m.). Plan around it.
• Remote appearances run on ZoomGov at the department's discretion, video only — telephone-only appearances are generally not allowed (remote appearances).
• Courtesy copies: proposed orders e-filed for a hearing must also be delivered on paper to the department the same day (Local Rule 7.2(g)).

Can you skip probate entirely?

Formal probate is the expensive road. Two shortcuts cover many Alameda County families, using the thresholds on Judicial Council form DE-300 (rev. April 2025) for deaths on or after April 1, 2025:

For what counts toward those numbers and what skips probate automatically, see our first-30-days guide.

The Estate Desk handles this for California families. theestatedesk.com