How Long Does Probate Take in Orange County, Florida?

Probate in Florida runs through the Probate Division of the Circuit Court in the county where the decedent was domiciled at death. For Orlando residents, that is the Orange County Probate Division, which handles one of the highest volumes of probate filings in the state. That volume — and the court's current scheduling demands — affects every estate's timeline regardless of how quickly the parties are ready to move.

Summary administration is the simplified track, available for estates with non-exempt assets at or below $75,000 (rising to $150,000 on July 1, 2026 under CS/SB 1500), or for any estate where the decedent has been dead for more than two years.

In Orange County, a properly prepared and uncontested summary administration petition typically receives a ruling in two to four weeks of filing. End to end — from the initial client meeting to the Order of Summary Administration — the process usually takes four to eight weeks if the petition is complete and all documents are in order. Corrections or missing documents can reset that clock.

For formal administration, the court scheduling environment matters. Orange County's Probate Division is active and the judges are experienced in probate matters, but hearing dates for uncontested matters are not always immediate. The practical minimum for a formal administration in Orange County is approximately six months — driven by the mandatory three-month creditor claims period under Fla. Stat. § 733.702 and the minimum time needed to prepare and serve the required notices, file the inventory, resolve creditor claims, and prepare the final accounting.

For a straightforward estate — one personal representative, a cooperative family, no real estate sale, no tax return required, no disputes — the nine-month mark is a realistic target. Many uncontested estates close between nine and twelve months.

Central Florida's real estate environment means that many Orange County estates involve residential or investment property. Real property requires appraisal at date of death, and sale of estate property often requires court authorization under Fla. Prob. R. 5.370. A real estate sale that is contested or that requires a partition action (when co-owners disagree) can add six to twelve months.

Orange County also sees a significant volume of contested estates — will contests, disputed personal representatives, beneficiary objections to accountings. Contested matters go on the evidentiary hearing calendar, which in Orange County may be scheduled months out. A contested formal administration in Orange County that proceeds to an evidentiary hearing typically runs eighteen to thirty-six months from petition to final order.

The timeline estimates above assume competent preparation of all filings, prompt responses to court requirements, and a personal representative who is accessible and cooperating with counsel. Delays are almost always attributable to incomplete or incorrect petitions at filing, institutional slowness in responding to Letters of Administration, creditor disputes, or family conflicts.

If you are a personal representative in an open estate and are uncertain whether your case is proceeding normally for Orange County, call us. We regularly review in-progress estates for families who are not sure if their current counsel is on schedule — or who do not currently have counsel at all.