California Probate Code Sections
The California Probate Code governs wills, intestate succession, probate administration and trusts. This index lists the 107 sections that decide most California inheritance disputes, grouped by what they actually do, and links each one to a plain explanation of the mechanism and to its official text at the Legislature's own site.
Inheritance problems tend to arrive attached to a number. A trustee's letter cites section 16061.7. A lawyer mentions a 17200 petition. A court form refers to section 13100. This page takes the number and gives you the mechanism — what it does, when it applies, and where to read the rest.
Each section links to the page that explains it. That is deliberate: one page owns each section, so you are never choosing between four articles that half-answer the same question.
Capacity and undue influence
What the law requires of someone signing a will or trust, and when a gift to a caregiver is presumed invalid.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 810 | Presumption of capacity | /lack-of-capacity/ |
| 811 | Mental function deficits and the required correlation | /lack-of-capacity/ |
| 812 | General standard of capacity to make a decision | /lack-of-capacity/ |
| 6104 | Duress, menace, fraud, or undue influence | /undue-influence/ |
Wills, heirs and intestate succession
Who inherits when there is a will, when there is none, and when someone was left out.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 6100 | Who may make a will | /will-requirements/ |
| 6110 | How a California will is executed | /will-requirements/ |
| 6111 | Holographic wills | /will-requirements/ |
| 6112 | Interested witnesses | /will-requirements/ |
| 6120 | How a will is revoked | /will-requirements/ |
| 6124 | The presumption when a will cannot be found | /will-requirements/ |
| 6400 | Property not disposed of by will passes to heirs | /intestate-succession/ |
| 6401 | Intestate share of the surviving spouse | /intestate-succession/ |
| 6402 | Distribution of the share not passing to a spouse | /intestate-succession/ |
| 6403 | 120-hour survival requirement | /intestate-succession/ |
| 6406 | Relatives of the halfblood | /intestate-succession/ |
| 6451 | Effect of adoption on the parent-child relationship | /intestate-succession/ |
| 6520 | Setting apart a probate homestead | /family-allowance/ |
| 6540 | Who is entitled to a family allowance | /family-allowance/ |
| 6800 | Escheat where no one takes the estate | /missing-heirs-and-escheat/ |
Opening a probate
Starting the case, who has priority to serve, and how a will is proved or challenged.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 7000 | Title passes at death to devisees or heirs | /probate-administration/ |
| 7001 | Property remains subject to administration | /probate-administration/ |
| 7051 | Proper county is the county of domicile | /locations/ |
| 7052 | Venue where the decedent was not domiciled in California | /locations/ |
| 8000 | Petition commencing administration | /petition-for-probate/ |
| 8003 | Timing of the hearing on a petition for administration | /petition-for-probate/ |
| 8100 | Contents of the notice of hearing | /petition-for-probate/ |
| 8120 | Publication of notice of hearing | /petition-for-probate/ |
| 8200 | Custodian must deliver the will within 30 days | /petition-for-probate/ |
| 8270 | Petition to revoke probate of will | /will-contest/ |
| 8400 | No power to administer until letters issue | /petition-for-probate/ |
| 8402 | Who is not competent to serve as personal representative | /petition-for-probate/ |
| 8461 | Order of priority for appointment as administrator | /petition-for-probate/ |
| 8480 | Bond required before letters issue | /probate-bond/ |
| 8481 | When a bond is not required | /probate-bond/ |
| 8482 | Fixing the amount of the bond | /probate-bond/ |
Administering an estate
The duties that run from appointment to distribution, including creditor claims and deadlines.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 8800 | Inventory and appraisal, four-month deadline | /executor-duties/ |
| 8850 | What the inventory must contain | /inventory-and-appraisal/ |
| 8900 | Who appraises the property in the inventory | /inventory-and-appraisal/ |
| 8902 | Delivering the inventory to the probate referee | /inventory-and-appraisal/ |
| 8904 | Independent expert appraisal | /inventory-and-appraisal/ |
| 9100 | Time for a creditor to file a claim | /probate-timeline/ |
| 9250 | Allowance or rejection of a creditor claim | /creditor-claims/ |
| 9353 | Ninety days to sue on a rejected claim | /creditor-claims/ |
| 9600 | Personal representative duty of ordinary care and diligence | /executor-duties/ |
| 9650 | Right and duty to take possession of estate property | /executor-duties/ |
| 10309 | Conditions for confirming a private sale of real property | /selling-estate-property/ |
| 10311 | Overbid at the confirmation hearing | /selling-estate-property/ |
| 10501 | Acts still requiring court supervision under the IAEA | /executor-duties/ |
| 10580 | When notice of proposed action must be given | /selling-estate-property/ |
| 10581 | Who must receive notice of proposed action | /selling-estate-property/ |
| 11640 | Petition for final distribution | /probate-timeline/ |
| 12200 | Outer deadline to petition for distribution or report status | /probate-timeline/ |
| 12501 | Definition of ancillary administration | /ancillary-probate/ |
| 12510 | Commencing an ancillary administration proceeding | /ancillary-probate/ |
Fees and compensation
What the personal representative and the estate attorney are paid, and how the figure is calculated.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 8961 | What the probate referee is paid | /inventory-and-appraisal/ |
| 8963 | The floor and ceiling on the referee’s commission | /inventory-and-appraisal/ |
| 10800 | Statutory compensation of the personal representative | /probate-costs-and-fees/ |
| 10810 | Statutory compensation of the estate attorney | /probate-costs-and-fees/ |
| 10811 | Extraordinary compensation for the estate attorney | /probate-costs-and-fees/ |
Small estates and shortcuts
The procedures that avoid full administration when the estate is under a statutory limit.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 13100 | Small estate affidavit, collection without administration | /small-estate-affidavit/ |
| 13101 | What the small estate affidavit must state | /small-estate-affidavit/ |
| 13151 | Petition to determine succession to a primary residence | /succession-to-real-property/ |
| 13152 | Contents of the section 13151 petition | /succession-to-real-property/ |
| 13650 | Spousal property petition | /spousal-property-petition/ |
Transfers outside probate
Assets that pass by deed, beneficiary designation or survivorship rather than through the estate.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 210 | Recording an affidavit of death affecting real property | /affidavit-death-of-joint-tenant/ |
| 5600 | Revocable transfer on death deed, scope and sunset | /transfer-on-death-deed/ |
| 5652 | Effect of a revocable transfer on death deed | /transfer-on-death-deed/ |
| 5674 | Limit on beneficiary liability | /transfer-on-death-deed/ |
Trust administration and disclosure
What a trustee must do, what beneficiaries are entitled to see, and when the clock starts.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 16000 | Duty to administer the trust according to the trust instrument | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16002 | Duty of loyalty to the beneficiaries | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16003 | Duty to deal impartially with beneficiaries | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16004 | Duty to avoid conflict of interest | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16006 | Duty to take control of and preserve trust property | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16007 | Duty to make trust property productive | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16009 | Duty to keep trust property separate and identified | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16010 | Duty to enforce claims belonging to the trust | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16011 | Duty to defend actions against the trust | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16012 | Duty not to delegate the office of trustee | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16013 | Duty of cotrustees to participate and to prevent breach | /co-trustee-disputes/ |
| 16014 | Duty to apply the trustee’s full skills | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16040 | The prudent person standard of care | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16047 | The prudent investor rule | /trustee-duties/ |
| 16060 | Trustee duty to inform and report | /beneficiary-rights/ |
| 16061.7 | Trustee notification | /answers/what-is-a-16061-7-notice/ |
| 16062 | Duty to account to beneficiaries | /trust-accounting/ |
| 16063 | Contents of an account | /trust-accounting/ |
| 16064 | When the duty to account does not apply | /trust-accounting/ |
Changing or ending a trust
When an irrevocable trust can still be modified or terminated, and by whom.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 15403 | Modification or termination on consent of all beneficiaries | /trust-modification/ |
| 15404 | Modification by settlor and all beneficiaries | /trust-modification/ |
| 15409 | Modification on changed circumstances | /trust-modification/ |
Trustees: removal, pay and liability
Grounds to remove a trustee, what a trustee may charge, and what a breach costs them personally.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 15620 | Cotrustees must act unanimously | /co-trustee-disputes/ |
| 15622 | Cotrustee unavailable through absence or incapacity | /co-trustee-disputes/ |
| 15642 | Removal of trustee | /trustee-removal/ |
| 15680 | Trustee compensation under the trust instrument | /trustee-compensation/ |
| 15681 | Reasonable compensation where the trust is silent | /trustee-compensation/ |
| 15683 | Apportionment of compensation among cotrustees | /trustee-compensation/ |
| 16440 | Measure of liability for breach of trust | /trustee-surcharge/ |
| 16461 | Exculpation of a trustee by the trust instrument | /breach-of-fiduciary-duty/ |
Bringing a trust dispute to court
The petition that starts most trust litigation, and who pays the fees.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 17200 | Petitions concerning internal affairs of trust | /probate-code/17200/ |
| 17211 | Attorney fees on contest of a trustee account | /trust-litigation-attorney-fees/ |
Recovering property
Getting an asset back into a trust or estate, including the double-damages remedy.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 850 | Petition to determine title and order conveyance | /property-recovery/ |
| 855 | Civil claims joined to an 850 petition | /heggstad-petition/ |
| 859 | Twice the value of property taken in bad faith | /property-recovery/ |
No contest clauses and omitted family
When challenging an instrument forfeits a gift, and the protections for a spouse or child left out.
| Section | What it covers | Explained on |
|---|---|---|
| 21310 | Definitions for no contest clauses | /no-contest-clause/ |
| 21311 | When a no contest clause is enforceable | /no-contest-clause/ |
| 21620 | Omitted child born or adopted after execution | /disinheritance/ |
| 21622 | Child believed dead or unknown to the testator | /disinheritance/ |
If you are holding a document with a number on it
The three that arrive most often in the post are the section 16061.7 trustee notification, which starts a contest clock; a section 8000 petition for probate, which opens an estate; and a section 9100 creditor claim, which has its own deadline. If a deadline may already be running, thedeadline calculator will tell you where you stand in about a minute.
Need help with legal fees?
We litigate select cases on contingency, with no upfront fees.
Costs are separate from the fee, and whether you are responsible for them is set out in the written agreement before you sign anything.
How contingency fees work in California
A contingency fee means the attorney is paid from what is recovered rather than by the hour, so a beneficiary who cannot fund litigation out of pocket can still bring a claim. California regulates these agreements closely. Under Business and Professions Code section 6147, the agreement must be in writing and the attorney must give the client a duplicate copy, signed by both, when the contract is made. It must state the agreed contingency rate; how disbursements and costs incurred in prosecuting or settling the claim will affect that fee; and to what extent the client could be required to pay for related matters. Unless the matter falls under section 6146, the agreement must also state that the fee is not set by law and is negotiable. These are not formalities: failure to comply with any provision of section 6147 makes the agreement voidable at the client’s option, leaving the attorney entitled only to a reasonable fee.
Sources: Business and Professions Code s.6147 - Contingency fee contracts · Verified 2026-08-03.
Not every matter suits a contingency arrangement, and the firm does not take every case on one. Whether yours qualifies depends on the facts, the likely recovery, and the assets actually available to satisfy a judgment. Ask when you call.
We Answer 24/7 — Call Anytime · (415) 275-1492