Do I Need to Let Anyone Know About My Hearing in the Probate Court in Los Angeles County California?
There are many things that you need to do before your hearing in the probate division of the Los Angeles County Superior Court (LASC) in California. That’s the only court division there that handles cases involving probate estates of decedents, conservatorships of incapacitated adults, and trusts subject to court supervision or legal dispute. It also handles all guardianships of minors in need of someone to manage their affairs and all minor’s compromise cases.
This is the first post of a three-part post series. This post series pertains to notice of court hearings in the probate division of the Los Angeles County Superior Court.
Specifically, do the following for probate court hearings:
- First, you need to file your petition or other pleading with the court. A “pleading” is virtually any document filed with the court before the conclusion of the court case. Through the pleading you will request that the court do something specific.
- Then you need to understand and follow the applicable rules.
- Finally, you need to be prepared for your court hearing. You’ll need to plan ahead to be prepared for it.
Make sure that you give notice of the court hearing.
Giving notice is letting other people know about the court hearing. That’s the first step to being prepared for the court hearing.
Providing notice of the court hearing is designed to ensure that the court has all pertinent information. By letting other people know about the court hearing, you give them the opportunity to provide that pertinent information. This is fundamental to the probate court providing justice.
Statutes and court rules normally require that you notify others of the court hearing. If you don’t follow those requirements, then the court may continue (or postpone) your court hearing to a later date. The court also may deny or dismiss your pleading altogether.
Different ways that you may need to give notice of a court hearing:
- Mailing Notice of Hearing
- Causing Personal Service of a Citation
- Publishing Notice in a Local Newspaper
For a discussion of these three different ways of giving notice of your court hearing, see our next two posts called “Do I Need to Let Anyone Know About My Hearing in the Probate Court in Los Angeles County California? (Part 2 of 3)” and “Do I Need to Let Anyone Know About My Hearing in the Probate Court in Los Angeles County California? (Part 3 of 3)”.
Time for Giving Notice
You need to provide these notices a certain number of days prior to the court hearing:
- Probate decedent’s estate court proceedings: At least 15 days prior to the court hearing
- Conservatorship court proceedings: At least 15 days prior to the court hearing
- Trusts subject to court supervision or legal dispute: At least 30 days prior to the court hearing
- Guardianship court proceedings: At least 15 days prior to the court hearing.
Get Help from an Experienced Los Angeles County Probate Attorney
Ensuring that you’ve let everyone know about the court hearing of your petition can be tricky. If you do it incorrectly, then the court will need to continue the hearing of your petition. It will need to give you another try to do things correctly. Even worse, the court could deny or dismiss your petition altogether.
Hiring an attorney with experience in the Los Angeles County probate court helps you avoid wasting a lot of time. In addition, the advice and guidance of an attorney experienced with probate court cases is invaluable for attaining your goals in cases involving probate estates of decedents, conservatorships of incapacitated adults, trusts subject to court supervision or legal dispute, guardianships of minors in need of someone to manage their affairs, and minor’s compromises.
At Meinzer Law Firm, P.C., we have over 20 years of experience in the Los Angeles County probate court. Contact Meinzer Law Firm, P.C., in Torrance to assist you with your Los Angeles County probate court case.
