Probate in Montgomery County, Texas: Where to File and What to Expect

Filing with the County Clerk

The County Clerk is the clerk of Probate Court No. 1. Its probate page says the court hears all probate, guardianship, and mental health cases, plus related lawsuits. The same page says attorneys must e-file and encourages people without a lawyer to e-file too. Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 21(f)(1) generally doesn't require self-represented filers to e-file.

The court's Rules of Administration, adopted July 15, 2026, say probate cases are filed with the County Clerk and assigned among the county's statutory probate courts in rotation. With one court, every estate goes to Probate Court No. 1, and later lawsuits involving the same estate go to the court where it's pending.

The court splits its staff by case type. Probate coordinators handle administrations and muniments, divided by odd and even case numbers, and a separate coordinator handles heirships and small estate affidavits. Their contact details are on the court's contact page.

Wills often contain Social Security numbers, account numbers, or a child's birth date. The court points to a request form on the County Clerk's site that asks the clerk to redact that information.

Hearings, mostly on Zoom

Probate Court No. 1 runs its regular dockets by Zoom and posts the links on its schedule page. The schedule lists probate dockets on Wednesday and Thursday mornings and an heirship docket on Thursday afternoons. Your hearing notice says whether a hearing is in person or by Zoom. Call the court if it isn't clear, and tell the court beforehand if you want to appear in the courtroom. Trials are in person unless the court gives written permission.

The court's standing order on remote hearings sets the practical rules:

• You need a computer with internet access, a camera, and a headset with a microphone. If you can only join by phone, arrange it with the court coordinator the day before.
• Email any exhibits as PDFs to the other parties and the court reporter by 3:00 p.m. the day before, with the full cause number in the subject line.
• Dress for court, stay muted until your case is called, and don't join while driving.
• No one else in the room may take part unless called as a witness, and that includes helping a witness answer.
• If a hearing was set in person, you need the court's permission to appear remotely.

What the court expects at a probate hearing

The court's probate page lists what it expects in routine cases:

• Every needed filing must be complete at least two days before the uncontested docket, or the case comes off it.
• Bring someone who knows the family history and can testify. An attorney can't testify unless they know the family personally.
• Don't e-file the proof of death or the oath until after the hearing.
• In an heirship case, the applicant appears with two disinterested witnesses, and every heir either signs a waiver or is served citation through the County Clerk.

Do you need a lawyer?

Montgomery's probate court hasn't published a blanket rule like the written pro se policies some other Texas counties post. Its Rules of Administration apply to people without a lawyer the same as to attorneys, and they must give the court a current address, phone number, and email.

The court's small estate checklist says an applicant for a determination of heirship must be represented by an attorney. Its probate page has a section called "Representing Yourself" that lists court decisions without summarizing them. If you plan to apply for letters on your own, ask the probate coordinator first.

Small estate affidavits in Montgomery County

A small estate affidavit lets the heirs of someone who died without a will collect property worth $75,000 or less, not counting the homestead and exempt property, without opening an administration. Texas Estates Code Chapter 205 sets the rules. Probate Court No. 1's checklist adds what Montgomery looks for:

• Use the most recent form on the court's website. The Rules of Administration require the court's own form.
• Wait at least 30 days after the death, long enough to know about all the bills.
• Give every asset a value. The court can't approve an affidavit with an asset of unknown value.
• List every debt, including any attorney's fees for preparing the affidavit.
• Show each heir's share of every type of property. The court links descent and distribution charts to help.
• Have every heir with legal capacity sign before a notary, along with two disinterested witnesses who have no interest in the estate and aren't related to the person who died.
• If an heir is a minor, the court won't approve the affidavit unless the minor's share can go into the court's registry until they turn 18.

The statewide paths, briefly

Montgomery's courts apply the same Texas Estates Code as every other county. Which path fits depends mostly on whether there was a will and what the estate owes.

With no will and a small estate, heirs can use the small estate affidavit.

With a will and no unpaid debts except real-estate liens, a muniment of title application can transfer property without appointing an executor.

With no will and an estate that needs a court-appointed administrator, the path is an application for letters of administration.

When the family mainly needs to show who inherited real estate, an affidavit of heirship is recorded in the county deed records rather than filed with a court.

Our Texas probate overview walks through how to choose among them.

Common questions

How Legacywyse can help

Legacywyse asks about the family, the will, and the assets, then drafts the Texas forms your path calls for. For a Montgomery small estate affidavit, copy the draft's facts onto Probate Court No. 1's form and check it against the court's checklist. You handle filing.