Question 1

What makes a will valid in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

A person 18 or older, of sound mind and memory, and not under restraint may make a will. A will (other than an oral will) must be in writing, handwritten or typed, and signed at the end by the testator (or by another person in the testator's conscious presence and at the testator's express direction). It must be attested and subscribed in the testator's conscious presence by two or more competent witnesses who saw the testator sign or heard the testator acknowledge the signature.

Question 2

Is a handwritten will valid in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Ohio does not recognize unwitnessed handwritten wills. A handwritten will is valid only if it is signed and witnessed by two competent witnesses like any other will. If a document was not properly executed, the probate court may still treat it as a will after a hearing if clear and convincing evidence shows the decedent prepared it, signed it intending it to be a will, and signed it in the conscious presence of two or more witnesses.

Question 3

Does a will need to be notarized in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Ohio has no separate self-proving affidavit procedure. The probate court admits a will to probate if proper execution appears from the face of the will; the court may, if it chooses, require testimony from the witnesses.

Question 4

Who inherits if someone dies without a will in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

If there is a surviving spouse and no children, or all of the decedent's children are also the surviving spouse's children, the spouse takes everything. If the spouse is not the parent of the decedent's only child, the spouse takes the first $20,000 plus one-half of the rest. With more than one child, the spouse takes the first $60,000 plus one-third of the rest if the spouse is a parent of some but not all of the children, or the first $20,000 plus one-third if the spouse is the parent of none of them; the children share the remainder. With no spouse or descendants, the estate passes to parents, then siblings (and their descendants), then grandparents and their descendants, then next of kin, then stepchildren, and finally to the state.

Question 5

What is a surviving spouse entitled to in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

After an executor or administrator is appointed, the probate court cites the surviving spouse to elect whether to take under the will or under the intestate statute. A spouse who elects against the will takes the intestate share, but not more than one-half of the net estate (one-third if two or more of the decedent's children or their descendants survive). The election must be made within five months after the initial appointment of the executor or administrator (the court may extend this for good cause); a spouse who does nothing is presumed to take under the will.

Question 6

What is the small estate limit in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Ohio does not use a small estate affidavit. Instead, the probate court may relieve an estate from administration on application (see simplified probate). A summary release from administration is available when estate assets do not exceed the lesser of $5,000 or the funeral and burial expenses, to a non-spouse who paid or is obligated in writing to pay those expenses; a surviving spouse may use it when assets do not exceed the spouse's support allowance plus up to $5,000 of funeral and burial expenses. The application must be on the Supreme Court form and signed before a notary or deputy probate clerk; real estate passes through a certificate of transfer.

Question 7

Is there a simplified probate process in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Release from administration: the probate court may relieve an estate from full administration if the estate assets are $35,000 or less, or $100,000 or less when all assets pass to the surviving spouse under the will or by intestacy. The court then orders distribution without appointing an executor or administrator.

Question 8

How does probate work in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Typical steps: apply to probate the will and/or for authority to administer the estate in the county probate court; the court issues letters and the fiduciary posts any required bond; the fiduciary files an inventory and appraisal within three months of appointment; creditors present claims within six months after death; the fiduciary files a final and distributive account within six months after appointment (or a certificate of termination when the fiduciary is the sole beneficiary), subject to statutory exceptions; real estate is transferred with a certificate of transfer.

Question 9

How long do creditors have to file claims against an estate in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Creditors must present claims within six months after the decedent's death, in writing to the executor or administrator (or listed counsel) or to the probate court with the case number, subject to limited exceptions in R.C. 2117.061.

Question 10

Who can be an executor in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

An executor named in a will may be an Ohio resident or a nonresident who is related to the testator by blood or marriage (or a resident of a state that allows unrelated nonresidents to serve, or a qualifying trust company). Administrators must be Ohio residents. Before letters issue, a fiduciary generally posts a bond of at least double the probable value of the personal property and annual real estate rents under the fiduciary's control; the court may waive or reduce bond when that value is under $10,000.

Question 11

Does Ohio allow transfer-on-death deeds?

Accepted Answer

Yes. An owner of real property may sign a transfer on death designation affidavit naming one or more beneficiaries; a married owner's spouse also signs. The affidavit must be sworn before a person authorized to administer oaths and must be recorded with the county recorder where the property is located before the owner's death. It does not need delivery to, or consideration from, the beneficiaries.

Question 12

What does a quitclaim deed need to be valid in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

A deed must be signed by the grantor and acknowledged before a notary public, a judge or clerk of an Ohio court of record, a county auditor or engineer, or a mayor. Witnesses are not required. Before recording, the grantee files a statement of the value of the property conveyed with the county auditor on the form prescribed by the tax commissioner; the deed is then recorded with the county recorder.

Question 13

What are the requirements for a power of attorney in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Ohio follows the Uniform Power of Attorney Act. A power of attorney must be signed by the principal (or by another person at the principal's direction and in the principal's conscious presence). A signature acknowledged before a notary is presumed genuine. A power of attorney is durable unless it expressly says it ends on the principal's incapacity. A statutory form power of attorney, with a notary acknowledgment, is provided in R.C. 1337.60.

Question 14

What are the requirements for a health care directive in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Health care power of attorney: must be signed at the end by the principal, state its date, and be either witnessed by two adults or acknowledged before a notary. Relatives, the named agent, the attending physician, and the administrator of a nursing home caring for the principal cannot be witnesses. Living will (declaration): an adult of sound mind may sign one, signed at the end and dated, with two qualifying adult witnesses or a notary; it must use the terms 'terminal condition' and/or 'permanently unconscious state', and withholding nutrition and hydration in a permanently unconscious state requires a conspicuous statement initialed or signed by the declarant.

Question 15

Does Ohio have an estate or inheritance tax?

Accepted Answer

No state estate or inheritance tax. Ohio's estate tax applies only to people who died before January 1, 2013.

Question 16

How do I make a living will in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Ohio's living will is called a 'declaration' under the Modified Uniform Rights of the Terminally Ill Act. An adult of sound mind may sign one; it must be signed at the end by the declarant (or by another at the declarant's direction), dated, and either witnessed by two adults or acknowledged before a notary. Relatives by blood, marriage or adoption, the attending physician, and the administrator of a nursing home where the declarant is receiving care cannot serve as witnesses. The declaration must use the terms 'terminal condition' and/or 'permanently unconscious state', and refusing nutrition and hydration in a permanently unconscious state requires a conspicuous statement that the declarant initials or signs. The statute does not require a single mandatory form.

Question 17

How do I make a medical power of attorney in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Ohio calls it a durable power of attorney for health care (health care power of attorney). It must be signed at the end by the principal (or by another at the principal's direction), state its date of execution, and be either witnessed by two adults or acknowledged before a notary. Relatives by blood, marriage or adoption, the named agent, the attending physician, and the administrator of a nursing home where the principal is receiving care cannot be witnesses. The statute does not require a single mandatory form.

Question 18

How do living trusts work in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Ohio has adopted the Ohio Trust Code (R.C. Chapters 5801 to 5811), based on the Uniform Trust Code. A trust is created only if the settlor has capacity, indicates an intention to create the trust, the trust has a definite beneficiary (or is a charitable, animal-care or permitted noncharitable-purpose trust), the trustee has duties to perform, and the same person is not the sole trustee and sole beneficiary. For trusts created by instruments signed on or after January 1, 2007, the settlor may revoke or amend the trust unless its terms expressly make it irrevocable. Assets must be retitled to the trustee (funded) for the trust to control them; property held in the trust at death passes under the trust terms without probate, while assets left in the decedent's own name may still need probate or release from administration.

Question 19

What does an executor have to do in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Main duties and deadlines for an Ohio executor or administrator: within two weeks after a will is admitted to probate, give notice of the probate to the surviving spouse, the heirs and the beneficiaries named in the will; within three months after appointment (unless the court extends the time), file an inventory of the decedent's Ohio real estate and personal property with date-of-death values; creditors must present claims within six months after death; file a final and distributive account within six months after appointment, unless an exception applies or the court allows more time (a certificate of termination may be used in some cases); and, for real estate passing by will or intestacy, apply for a certificate of transfer after the inventory and before the final account.

Question 20

How do I get letters testamentary in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

The county probate court (Probate Division of the Court of Common Pleas) issues them. When a will is admitted to probate, the court issues letters testamentary to the executor named in the will if that person is suitable, competent, accepts the appointment, and gives bond if required. If there is no will (or no executor can serve), the court grants letters of administration, with priority to a surviving spouse who lives in Ohio and then to next of kin who live in Ohio. Applicants use the Supreme Court of Ohio's standard probate forms, such as the Application to Probate Will (Form 2.0) and the Application for Authority to Administer Estate (Form 4.0). Bond is generally double the probable value of the personal property and annual rents under the fiduciary's control, but may be waived by the will or reduced or waived by the court in some cases.

Question 21

Does Ohio have an affidavit of heirship?

Accepted Answer

Ohio has two statutory tools. (1) Determination of heirship: whenever property passes by intestate succession, or under a will to a beneficiary not named in the will, a complaint may be filed in the probate court to determine who is entitled to the property (R.C. Chapter 2123), and it proceeds like a civil action. (2) Affidavit of facts relating to title: an affidavit by a person with knowledge of the facts about death, relationship, family history or heirship may be recorded with the county recorder, and it is evidence of those facts as they affect title to real estate. Real estate passing through a probate estate is normally transferred by a certificate of transfer issued by the probate court.

Question 22

How can you avoid probate in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Non-probate transfers available in Ohio: (1) Transfer on death designation affidavit for real estate, recorded before death (R.C. 5302.22). (2) Survivorship tenancy in real estate, where the survivor takes the decedent's share (R.C. 5302.20). (3) Payable-on-death bank and credit union accounts (R.C. 2131.10). (4) Transfer-on-death registration of securities, which is nontestamentary (R.C. Chapter 1709). (5) Transfer-on-death designation on the title of a motor vehicle, watercraft or outboard motor (R.C. 2131.13), and joint ownership of a vehicle with right of survivorship (R.C. 2131.12). (6) A surviving spouse may take one or more automobiles worth up to $65,000 in total outside the estate (R.C. 2106.18). (7) Release from administration for estates of $35,000 or less, or $100,000 or less when everything passes to the surviving spouse (R.C. 2113.03), and summary release for very small estates (R.C. 2113.031). (8) Revocable living trust (Ohio Trust Code).

Question 23

Where can I get a power of attorney form in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Ohio law sets out a "Statutory Form Power of Attorney" for property and financial matters (Ohio Rev. Code 1337.60). The form ends with a signature and acknowledgment section for the principal and a notary public. A signature on a power of attorney acknowledged before a notary public is presumed to be genuine (1337.25). A durable power of attorney for health care must be signed by the principal at the end of the document and dated, and either witnessed by at least two adults or acknowledged before a notary public. Relatives of the principal by blood, marriage or adoption, the named attorney in fact or alternate, the attending physician, and the administrator of a nursing home where the principal receives care cannot be witnesses (1337.12).

Question 24

How do I search probate court records in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Probate is handled by the county probate court, which has exclusive jurisdiction, except as otherwise provided by law, to take proof of wills, grant and revoke letters testamentary and of administration, and direct and control executors and administrators, settle their accounts and order the distribution of estates (Ohio Rev. Code 2101.24).

Question 25

How do I transfer a car title after someone dies in Ohio?

Accepted Answer

Ohio titles are handled by the clerk of the court of common pleas title office. If the title names a transfer-on-death beneficiary, the beneficiary applies for a new title and presents the title and the death certificate. If the vehicle was owned jointly with right of survivorship, the survivor presents the title and the death certificate. A surviving spouse may select one or more automobiles not otherwise disposed of, worth up to $65,000 in total, by submitting the title(s) with a surviving spouse affidavit giving the date of death, a description and approximate value of each vehicle; these vehicles are not estate assets. Otherwise, title passes through the estate: the executor or administrator transfers it (some transfers need probate court approval), or the heir applies with an affidavit and a copy of the court order or instrument showing ownership. Liens are not affected.

Requirements for a valid will	A person 18 or older, of sound mind and memory, and not under restraint may make a will. A will (other than an oral will) must be in writing, handwritten or typed, and signed at the end by the testator (or by another person in the testator's conscious presence and at the testator's express direction). It must be attested and subscribed in the testator's conscious presence by two or more competent witnesses who saw the testator sign or heard the testator acknowledge the signature. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2107.02; 2107.03
Handwritten (holographic) wills	Ohio does not recognize unwitnessed handwritten wills. A handwritten will is valid only if it is signed and witnessed by two competent witnesses like any other will. If a document was not properly executed, the probate court may still treat it as a will after a hearing if clear and convincing evidence shows the decedent prepared it, signed it intending it to be a will, and signed it in the conscious presence of two or more witnesses. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2107.03; 2107.24
Self-proving affidavit	Ohio has no separate self-proving affidavit procedure. The probate court admits a will to probate if proper execution appears from the face of the will; the court may, if it chooses, require testimony from the witnesses. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2107.18

Probate steps	Typical steps: apply to probate the will and/or for authority to administer the estate in the county probate court; the court issues letters and the fiduciary posts any required bond; the fiduciary files an inventory and appraisal within three months of appointment; creditors present claims within six months after death; the fiduciary files a final and distributive account within six months after appointment (or a certificate of termination when the fiduciary is the sole beneficiary), subject to statutory exceptions; real estate is transferred with a certificate of transfer. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2115.02; 2109.301; 2117.06
Simplified probate	Release from administration: the probate court may relieve an estate from full administration if the estate assets are $35,000 or less, or $100,000 or less when all assets pass to the surviving spouse under the will or by intestacy. The court then orders distribution without appointing an executor or administrator. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2113.03
Small estate affidavit	Ohio does not use a small estate affidavit. Instead, the probate court may relieve an estate from administration on application (see simplified probate). A summary release from administration is available when estate assets do not exceed the lesser of $5,000 or the funeral and burial expenses, to a non-spouse who paid or is obligated in writing to pay those expenses; a surviving spouse may use it when assets do not exceed the spouse's support allowance plus up to $5,000 of funeral and burial expenses. The application must be on the Supreme Court form and signed before a notary or deputy probate clerk; real estate passes through a certificate of transfer. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2113.031
Deadline for creditor claims	Creditors must present claims within six months after the decedent's death, in writing to the executor or administrator (or listed counsel) or to the probate court with the case number, subject to limited exceptions in R.C. 2117.061. Current version effective April 3, 2023. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2117.06
Who can be executor	An executor named in a will may be an Ohio resident or a nonresident who is related to the testator by blood or marriage (or a resident of a state that allows unrelated nonresidents to serve, or a qualifying trust company). Administrators must be Ohio residents. Before letters issue, a fiduciary generally posts a bond of at least double the probable value of the personal property and annual real estate rents under the fiduciary's control; the court may waive or reduce bond when that value is under $10,000. Residency rules as amended effective October 3, 2023. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2109.21; 2109.04
Finding probate court records	Probate is handled by the county probate court, which has exclusive jurisdiction, except as otherwise provided by law, to take proof of wills, grant and revoke letters testamentary and of administration, and direct and control executors and administrators, settle their accounts and order the distribution of estates (Ohio Rev. Code 2101.24). Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2101.24

Financial power of attorney	Ohio follows the Uniform Power of Attorney Act. A power of attorney must be signed by the principal (or by another person at the principal's direction and in the principal's conscious presence). A signature acknowledged before a notary is presumed genuine. A power of attorney is durable unless it expressly says it ends on the principal's incapacity. A statutory form power of attorney, with a notary acknowledgment, is provided in R.C. 1337.60. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 1337.24; 1337.25; 1337.60
Health care directive	Health care power of attorney: must be signed at the end by the principal, state its date, and be either witnessed by two adults or acknowledged before a notary. Relatives, the named agent, the attending physician, and the administrator of a nursing home caring for the principal cannot be witnesses. Living will (declaration): an adult of sound mind may sign one, signed at the end and dated, with two qualifying adult witnesses or a notary; it must use the terms 'terminal condition' and/or 'permanently unconscious state', and withholding nutrition and hydration in a permanently unconscious state requires a conspicuous statement initialed or signed by the declarant. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 1337.12; 2133.02
Official power of attorney forms	Ohio law sets out a "Statutory Form Power of Attorney" for property and financial matters (Ohio Rev. Code 1337.60). The form ends with a signature and acknowledgment section for the principal and a notary public. A signature on a power of attorney acknowledged before a notary public is presumed to be genuine (1337.25). A durable power of attorney for health care must be signed by the principal at the end of the document and dated, and either witnessed by at least two adults or acknowledged before a notary public. Relatives of the principal by blood, marriage or adoption, the named attorney in fact or alternate, the attending physician, and the administrator of a nursing home where the principal receives care cannot be witnesses (1337.12). Signature presumption: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-1337.25 ; health care: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-1337.12 Source: Ohio Rev. Code 1337.60, 1337.25, 1337.12

Living will / advance directive	Ohio's living will is called a 'declaration' under the Modified Uniform Rights of the Terminally Ill Act. An adult of sound mind may sign one; it must be signed at the end by the declarant (or by another at the declarant's direction), dated, and either witnessed by two adults or acknowledged before a notary. Relatives by blood, marriage or adoption, the attending physician, and the administrator of a nursing home where the declarant is receiving care cannot serve as witnesses. The declaration must use the terms 'terminal condition' and/or 'permanently unconscious state', and refusing nutrition and hydration in a permanently unconscious state requires a conspicuous statement that the declarant initials or signs. The statute does not require a single mandatory form. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2133.02
Medical power of attorney	Ohio calls it a durable power of attorney for health care (health care power of attorney). It must be signed at the end by the principal (or by another at the principal's direction), state its date of execution, and be either witnessed by two adults or acknowledged before a notary. Relatives by blood, marriage or adoption, the named agent, the attending physician, and the administrator of a nursing home where the principal is receiving care cannot be witnesses. The statute does not require a single mandatory form. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 1337.12
Revocable living trust	Ohio has adopted the Ohio Trust Code (R.C. Chapters 5801 to 5811), based on the Uniform Trust Code. A trust is created only if the settlor has capacity, indicates an intention to create the trust, the trust has a definite beneficiary (or is a charitable, animal-care or permitted noncharitable-purpose trust), the trustee has duties to perform, and the same person is not the sole trustee and sole beneficiary. For trusts created by instruments signed on or after January 1, 2007, the settlor may revoke or amend the trust unless its terms expressly make it irrevocable. Assets must be retitled to the trustee (funded) for the trust to control them; property held in the trust at death passes under the trust terms without probate, while assets left in the decedent's own name may still need probate or release from administration. Creation requirements: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-5804.02 Source: Ohio Rev. Code 5801.01; 5804.02; 5806.02
Ways to avoid probate	Non-probate transfers available in Ohio: (1) Transfer on death designation affidavit for real estate, recorded before death (R.C. 5302.22). (2) Survivorship tenancy in real estate, where the survivor takes the decedent's share (R.C. 5302.20). (3) Payable-on-death bank and credit union accounts (R.C. 2131.10). (4) Transfer-on-death registration of securities, which is nontestamentary (R.C. Chapter 1709). (5) Transfer-on-death designation on the title of a motor vehicle, watercraft or outboard motor (R.C. 2131.13), and joint ownership of a vehicle with right of survivorship (R.C. 2131.12). (6) A surviving spouse may take one or more automobiles worth up to $65,000 in total outside the estate (R.C. 2106.18). (7) Release from administration for estates of $35,000 or less, or $100,000 or less when everything passes to the surviving spouse (R.C. 2113.03), and summary release for very small estates (R.C. 2113.031). (8) Revocable living trust (Ohio Trust Code). TOD deed: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-5302.22; vehicle TOD: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-2131.13 Source: Ohio Rev. Code 5302.22; 5302.20; 2131.10; 1709.09; 2131.13; 2106.18; 2113.03

Executor's duties	Main duties and deadlines for an Ohio executor or administrator: within two weeks after a will is admitted to probate, give notice of the probate to the surviving spouse, the heirs and the beneficiaries named in the will; within three months after appointment (unless the court extends the time), file an inventory of the decedent's Ohio real estate and personal property with date-of-death values; creditors must present claims within six months after death; file a final and distributive account within six months after appointment, unless an exception applies or the court allows more time (a certificate of termination may be used in some cases); and, for real estate passing by will or intestacy, apply for a certificate of transfer after the inventory and before the final account. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2107.19; 2115.02; 2117.06; 2109.301; 2113.61
Letters testamentary	The county probate court (Probate Division of the Court of Common Pleas) issues them. When a will is admitted to probate, the court issues letters testamentary to the executor named in the will if that person is suitable, competent, accepts the appointment, and gives bond if required. If there is no will (or no executor can serve), the court grants letters of administration, with priority to a surviving spouse who lives in Ohio and then to next of kin who live in Ohio. Applicants use the Supreme Court of Ohio's standard probate forms, such as the Application to Probate Will (Form 2.0) and the Application for Authority to Administer Estate (Form 4.0). Bond is generally double the probable value of the personal property and annual rents under the fiduciary's control, but may be waived by the will or reduced or waived by the court in some cases. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2113.05; 2113.06; 2109.04
Affidavit / determination of heirship	Ohio has two statutory tools. (1) Determination of heirship: whenever property passes by intestate succession, or under a will to a beneficiary not named in the will, a complaint may be filed in the probate court to determine who is entitled to the property (R.C. Chapter 2123), and it proceeds like a civil action. (2) Affidavit of facts relating to title: an affidavit by a person with knowledge of the facts about death, relationship, family history or heirship may be recorded with the county recorder, and it is evidence of those facts as they affect title to real estate. Real estate passing through a probate estate is normally transferred by a certificate of transfer issued by the probate court. Affidavit of facts relating to title: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-5301.252 Source: Ohio Rev. Code 2123.01; 2123.03; 5301.252; 2113.61
Transferring a car after death	Ohio titles are handled by the clerk of the court of common pleas title office. If the title names a transfer-on-death beneficiary, the beneficiary applies for a new title and presents the title and the death certificate. If the vehicle was owned jointly with right of survivorship, the survivor presents the title and the death certificate. A surviving spouse may select one or more automobiles not otherwise disposed of, worth up to $65,000 in total, by submitting the title(s) with a surviving spouse affidavit giving the date of death, a description and approximate value of each vehicle; these vehicles are not estate assets. Otherwise, title passes through the estate: the executor or administrator transfers it (some transfers need probate court approval), or the heir applies with an affidavit and a copy of the court order or instrument showing ownership. Liens are not affected. Source: Ohio Rev. Code 4505.10; 2106.18; 2131.13

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