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Probate
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PROBATE
REGISTRY |
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OVERVIEW |
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Since
11 January 1858 the jurisdiction of proving wills in England and Wales
has been the responsibility of the state (before then wills were proved
in the ecclesiastical courts of the
Anglican Church).
The Probate Registry within
the Court Service maintains a National Probate
Calendar which indexes all wills and letters of administration proved
in England and Wales from 1858 to the present day (for the years 1861
right through to 1941, the National Probate Calendar can now be viewed
online)
The complete index
can only be viewed at the Principal Registry Office (see
below). However, most local District Probate Registries (see
below) have indexes covering at least the last fifty years.
Copies of the grant of probate
together with the associated will (if any) can be obtained in person from
the Principal Registry Office (see below), from a local
registry office (see below) or through the post from
the Postal Searches Office (see below) |
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POSTAL
SEARCHES OFFICE |
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Address |
The
Postal Searches and Copies Department, Leeds District Probate Registry,
York House, York Place, Leeds LS1 2BA |
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Telephone
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Search/copy requests must be submitted by post - please
note that this department is not contactable by telephone and can only answer
written enquiries. |
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Search
Fees |
the
standard fee for searching for the will of a named deceased is £6
- this covers a 4 year search period and includes a single copy
of the grant of probate together with the will (if any) - extending the
search period costs an additional £4 for each 4 year extension |
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Copy
Fees |
£6
for single copy of grant of probate together with the will (if any) |
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Application |
download
the PDF document Application
for Probate Search from the Court Service's website |
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Response
Time |
the
Probate Service aims to supply copies of the grant of probate together with
the will (if any) within 21 working days of your application |
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PRINCIPAL
REGISTRY OFFICE |
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Address |
Probate
Department, Principal Registry of the Family Division, First Avenue House,
42-49 High Holborn, London, WC1V 6NP |
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Telephone
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Helpline:
0845 3020900 - see Principal
Registry Office's web page for other telephone numbers |
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Opening
Hours |
see
the Principal
Registry Office's web page within the Court Service's website |
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Directions |
see
the street
map within the Court Service's website - the location of the Principal
Registry Office is also shown on this website's Central
London Archives Map |
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Self
Search |
the
Principal Registry Office is the only place where members of the
public can search the complete National
Probate Index dating
right back to 1858 |
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Copy
Fees |
£6
for single copy of grant of probate together with the will (if any) |
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Response
Time |
in
some cases you may be able to obtain a copy of the grant of probate and
associated will 'on the spot' - otherwise the Probate Service aims to supply
copies of the grant of probate together with the will (if any) within 21
working days of your application |
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LOCAL
REGISTRY OFFICES |
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District
Offices |
Birmingham,
Brighton,
Bristol,
Cardiff,
Ipswich,
Leeds,
Liverpool,
Manchester,
Newcastle,
Oxford,
Winchester |
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Sub-Registries |
Bodmin,
Caernarfon,
Carlise,
Carmarthen,
Exeter,
Gloucester,
Lancaster,
Leicester,
Lincoln,
Maidstone,
Middlesborough,
Norwich,
Nottingham,
Peterborough,
Sheffield,
Stoke-on-Trent,
York |
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Contact |
for
telephone numbers, opening hours and addresses click above on the office
you wish to visit |
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Self
Search |
if
you intend to visit a local registry office to search its probate indexes
you are strongly recommended to contact the registry office beforehand to
check what is available (note the Principal Registry Office is the only
place where members of the public can search the complete National
Probate Index ) |
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Copy
Fees |
£6
for single copy of grant of probate together with the will (if any) |
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Response
Time |
in
some cases you may be able to obtain a copy of the grant of probate and
associated will 'on the spot' - otherwise the Probate Service aims to supply
copies of the grant of probate together with the will (if any) within 21
working days of your application |
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COURT
SERVICES WEB SITE |
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Access |
Home
Page of the wills and probate section of the Court Service's vast website |
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Useful
Pages |
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This
page last updated: 25 September 2012 |
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