Q: I am the personal representative for my father's estate. He died in California but I live out on the East Coast.
Do I have to initiate probate proceedings all the way out there or can I choose a location closer to where I live?
A: Estate is settled wherever the deceased was a resident at the time of his death. If he was living out there,that's where it gets done. If you are saying by "proceedings" a claim against someone else, you want to talk to a member of CAOC who handles that type of wrongful death claim (i.e. car, hospital carelessness, etc)
A:
If your father lived in California, then yes, the probate has to be done in California. Specifically, it has to be done in the county where your father lived. Depending on the complexity of your dad's estate, you might be able to do this remotely. In other words, hire a probate lawyer in the county where the case is and you can fly out to California as needed.
Also, California law requires that an attorney doing a probate administration is paid from the deceased person's estate. There is a table of percentages that CA law specifies. In other words, you do not need to have $5K or $10K to hire a probate lawyer in California. If, however, your father had a very small estate (i.e. he left very few assets), then you might not be able to find a lawyer willing to take the case since the fee they would collect is very small.
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