Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Minnesota
is probate info considered public information?
If I want to visit the probate court in my city, am I able to get access to testate and intestate cases, in order to find out if the relatives that should be named in the petition are unknown or missing? Or is that confidential information?
Thank you.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: is probate info considered public information?
Probate records are public records. You should be able to look at the probate file, but if the file is incorrect and there are missing heirs, you
may have to file a petition of your own to correct the documents that are already on file.
Re: is probate info considered public information?
Everything on file in the probate court is open to the public. You should be able to ask to see anything. In Hennepin County where I practice, some files are hard to get at because they are archived in a storage room that is several levels below street level; but if you are willing to go down there and monkey around for a while, you can access everything.
On a very rare occasion, such as in a messy divorce, someone will ask for an order sealing a file so it is not available to the public. I've never heard of this being done with a probate file.
Good luck.
This response is for general information purposes only and does not create an attorney-client relationship. You are advised to consult the attorney of your choice concerning the details of your case.
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