About Probate Plainly
Probate Plainly is a free, independent reference site about probate legal notices in the United States. It is designed to help families, personal representatives, and professionals quickly find the rule they need and the official place to verify it.
What this site covers
We focus on the parts of probate notice practice that are easy to get wrong when you're under pressure: publishing the notice to creditors, finding an approved legal newspaper by county, understanding basic publication costs, filing proof of publication, and estimating creditor claim deadlines.
Our state-by-state section at /states is organized to help you get oriented fast. The goal is not to replace the court or the statute. The goal is to help you ask better questions, spot the right dates, and get to the official source with less confusion.
Who it's for
This site is for people handling an estate for the first time, along with probate lawyers, paralegals, legal notice publishers, court watchers, and anyone who needs a quick, careful reference. We write for real-world use: plain language first, official sourcing close behind.
If you see a rule change, a county newspaper list update, or a source that no longer works, please tell us. Probate notice rules can change, and careful corrections make the site better for everyone.
Who writes it
Probate Plainly is published by Directory Assistance Group, an independent publisher of free lookup tools and directories, and is written and maintained by a small editorial team. We are not lawyers, engineers, doctors, or government officials, and we do not claim to be. What we do is read the primary sources (statutes, agency guidance, university extension publications, and official court and health-department pages), turn them into plain steps, and link every claim back to where it came from.
How the site is paid for
The site is free to use and is supported by advertising, clearly labeled featured listings, and a few Amazon affiliate links. Advertisers do not choose or review our topics, and payment never changes what a guide says or the official details we list. Read our editorial standards for how we pick sources, correct mistakes, and keep ads separate from content.
Tell us what we got wrong
Rules change and local details vary. If you spot an error or an out-of-date figure, please send us a note with a link to the source. We read every correction and date-stamp the fix.