How to Search Brevard County Probate Records
Most Brevard County probate records can be found through BECA, the Brevard Electronic Court Application. BECA covers civil probate files in the CP category and guardianship files in the GA category. The case index and the docket entries are open to the general public. Images of certain probate and guardianship filings are held back from the open view because of state privacy rules. The Clerk offers a paid Official Records View subscription that grants access to those restricted images under F.S. 28.2221(5)(a).
The Clerk's probate page explains the three probate types and points to the will-filing rule. The Clerk's Official Records View page handles the subscriber route for restricted CP and GA images.
- Open BECA from the Clerk site and accept the access disclaimer.
- Pick General Public Court Records Search and select the probate or guardianship case type.
- Search by decedent name, case number, or date range and review the docket.
- If a filing is marked restricted, open the Clerk's Official Records View page and start a subscription.
- For a certified order or letters, file a copy request through the Clerk's public records portal.
The screenshot below is from the Clerk's probate page and is the best one-stop reference for a Brevard estate filer.
The page lays out the three probate routes and points filers to the Law Library and the Florida Bar referral line.
The Probate Division of the Brevard Circuit Court
Florida does not have a stand-alone probate court. Probate is a division of the circuit court, and in Brevard the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit handles every estate, guardianship, and trust matter at the circuit-court level. The probate division shares judges, courtroom space, and clerks with the rest of the circuit. The Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller, Rachel M. Sadoff, is the record custodian.
Probate division work covers more than wills. It includes formal estate administration, summary administration, disposition of personal property without administration, adult and minor guardianship, trust matters, and baker act mental health filings. Probate filings move through the Moore Justice Center in Viera, the Titusville Courthouse, and the Melbourne branch.
Disposition of Personal Property Without Administration
The smallest probate route in Brevard is Disposition of Personal Property without Administration. It is used when a person paid the funeral or last-illness costs and is asking the court to be reimbursed from the decedent's small assets.
The petitioner must have paid funeral expenses or medical bills from the last 60 days of the decedent's final illness. The assets in the estate cannot exceed the total out-of-pocket funeral and medical costs. If real property is part of the estate, this short route is not allowed and the case must move to summary or formal administration. Forms are listed on the Clerk's Probate Forms page.
This route is the fastest of the three. No personal representative is named. No letters are issued. The court order simply directs the limited assets to the petitioner who paid the bills.
Brevard County Summary Administration
Summary Administration is the middle route. The Clerk's probate page says it is open when the assets in the estate are less than $75,000 or when the decedent died at least two years before the case is filed. Homestead property is treated as having a value of $0 for the asset count when the home was the decedent's homestead.
Forms for Summary Administration are kept at the Law Library at the Viera Courthouse, phone (321) 617-7295. An attorney is not required for this route. The case still needs a petition, supporting affidavits, proposed orders, stamped envelopes, and the filing fee. The order, when signed, transfers title to the heirs or named beneficiaries without naming a personal representative.
Brevard County Formal Administration
Formal Administration is the full route. It is required when assets are over $75,000 or when a personal representative must be named. Most contested estates and most estates with mixed real and personal property end up here. Homestead value is again treated as $0 for the asset count.
An attorney is required to represent the personal representative in a Florida Formal Administration. Pro se filing of a formal case is not allowed under the Florida probate rules. The Clerk page lists the Florida Bar Lawyer Referral Service at (800) 342-8011 for families who do not have an attorney.
Formal Administration tends to take longer because of the personal representative's duties: inventory, notice to creditors, payment of claims, accounting, and final distribution. Each step generates filings that show up on the BECA docket.
Brevard County Probate Routes Compared
The three Brevard County probate routes look similar from a distance, but the rules behind them are not. A short comparison helps a family pick the right path before any forms are filed. The table below uses the rules the Clerk publishes on the probate page.
| Item | Disposition w/o Administration | Summary Administration | Formal Administration |
|---|---|---|---|
| When to use | Reimburse funeral or last-illness costs from small assets | Small estate or decedent died 2+ years ago | Larger estate or personal representative required |
| Asset threshold | Assets cannot exceed funeral and medical costs | Under $75,000 (homestead counts as $0) | Over $75,000 or PR needed |
| Attorney required | No | No | Yes |
| Typical timeline | Weeks once forms are clean | A few months | Many months to a year or more |
A family that is not sure which route fits should call the Florida Bar Lawyer Referral line or visit the Law Library at the Viera Courthouse for forms and reading material.
Wills and Florida Statute 732.901
Florida law has a specific rule on what to do with a will after the person who made it dies. The Clerk's probate page directs filers to F.S. 732.901, the Production of Wills statute. The custodian of the original will must deposit it with the clerk of the court that has jurisdiction within ten days after learning of the death of the testator. The Clerk in Brevard accepts the original will at any full-service counter.
Florida courts will not admit a copy of a will when the original can still be found. A lost-will proceeding is harder and slower than a normal filing.
Statute references:
- F.S. 732.901 requires the custodian of an original will to deposit it with the clerk within ten days of the testator's death.
- F.S. 28.2221(5)(a) grants subscriber access to restricted probate and guardianship images.
The screenshot below shows the official F.S. 732.901 page on the Florida Senate site.
The page sets the ten-day rule and is the citation a Brevard probate filer will see in many orders.
Filing Probate in Brevard County
The Clerk's probate page is direct about what a probate packet must include. Filers should prepare the petition, the proposed orders, at least one self-addressed stamped envelope, the filing fee, and any supporting documents the rule calls for. Without the proposed orders and the envelopes, the case will sit and the order will not move.
The Clerk does not schedule hearings. Hearing dates are set by the presiding judge through judicial assistant contact. The Clerk cannot give legal or procedural advice under F.S. 28.215.
- Pick the probate route based on assets, homestead status, and time since death.
- Pull the matching forms from the Clerk's probate forms page or the Law Library.
- Prepare the petition, proposed orders, supporting affidavits, and stamped envelopes.
- File the packet with the Clerk and pay the fee from the Schedule of Fees and Charges.
- Watch the BECA docket for entries; contact the judge's office for hearing dates.
Note: Walk-in probate filings can be made at any Clerk full-service counter, including Titusville, Viera, and Melbourne.
Probate Fees in Brevard County
Brevard County probate fees are set by state statute and listed in the Clerk's Schedule of Fees and Charges, which the probate page links. Filing fees for probate cases are set by F.S. 28.241 and are higher than the simple civil filing fee because of statutory add-ons. Copy fees and certification fees follow the same rules the Clerk uses for every other case file.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Copy from public records (per page) | $1.00 |
| Certification of a document | $2.00 |
| Official Records View subscription | $50 per calendar year |
| Partial payment fee (F.S. 28.24) | $5.00 per month |
| Probate filing fee | See Clerk Schedule of Fees and Charges |
| Extensive clerical or I.T. service | Cost estimate before work starts |
The Official Records View subscription is what gives a researcher access to restricted CP and GA images. For a family that needs to look at one or two filings, a single copy request through the Clerk's public records portal can be cheaper than a full year of access.
Restricted Probate and Guardianship Records
Not every page of a Brevard County probate file is public. Florida court rules limit remote access to certain case images even when the docket text is open. The Clerk's Official Records View page spells out which categories are restricted from open view. CP stands for civil probate. GA stands for guardianship. CJ stands for juvenile restitution. Each of those case categories has restricted images that a subscriber can open under F.S. 28.2221(5)(a).
A researcher who needs full image access, a title company verifying probate orders, or an attorney working on a case all use the same route: pay the annual fee, set up a subscriber account, and view the restricted images through the Official Records View tool.
The screenshot below is from the Clerk's subscription page and is the entry point for restricted CP and GA access.
The page lists the subscription terms and the statute citation that supports the subscriber view.
The full text of F.S. 28.2221 on the Florida Senate site is shown below.
The statute is the legal basis for the Clerk's restricted-image subscription.
Brevard County Probate Terms Defined
The words used in a Brevard County probate petition can be hard to follow without a short glossary.
- Testator
- The person who made the will.
- Executor
- The person named in a will to carry out its terms; Florida uses "personal representative" in most filings.
- Intestate
- Dying without a valid will.
- Personal representative
- The Florida term for the court-appointed person who runs the estate.
- Guardianship
- A court order giving one person legal authority to make decisions for a minor or an incapacitated adult.
- Conservatorship
- A property-focused court order; Florida uses guardianship of the property as the closest equivalent.
- Homestead
- The decedent's primary residence; treated as $0 value for the probate asset count when the rules apply.
- Beneficiary
- A person or entity named in a will, trust, or statute to receive estate property.
Self-Help and Legal Aid for Brevard County Probate
Brevard County probate filings do not always need an attorney, but help is available when one is needed. The Law Library at the Viera Courthouse is the first stop for forms. The Eighteenth Judicial Circuit self-help page lists probate among the case types where pro se filing is allowed for routes the rule supports.
Clerk Administration
400 South Street, 2nd Floor
Titusville, FL 32780
(321) 637-5413
Mon-Thu 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Fri 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Law Library, Viera Courthouse
Moore Justice Center
2825 Judge Fran Jamieson Way
Viera, FL 32940
(321) 617-7295
Forms for Summary Administration
The Florida Bar Lawyer Referral Service at (800) 342-8011 is the route the Clerk gives for an attorney referral on a Formal Administration. Brevard County Legal Aid, set up in 1970 by the local bar association, also handles some probate matters that fall within its guardianship and bankruptcy-eligible areas. The Brevard County Legal Aid intake line is (321) 631-2500.