Louisiana Will Registry: How to Search for a Registered Will

A parent has died. You have searched the house, checked the safety deposit box, and called the attorney whose business card was in the files. No will. Now you are three weeks into settling what appears to be an intestate estate — distributions will follow the state's intestate succession rules rather than your parent's wishes.

Then someone mentions the Louisiana Will Registry.

Louisiana maintains a centralized registry through the Secretary of State's Office specifically designed for this situation. If your loved one registered the location of their will during their lifetime, that information can be retrieved after death for $10. This guide explains exactly what the registry stores, what it does not store, and how to conduct a search.

What the Louisiana Will Registry Is (and Is Not)

The Louisiana Will Registry was established by the Louisiana Legislature under La. R.S. 9:2446-7. It is administered by the Louisiana Secretary of State's Office.

What the registry stores: The location of a will — not the will itself. A testator or their attorney can register information about where the executed will is kept: the address of a safe, the name and address of the attorney holding the original, or the location of a safety deposit box. The registry is essentially a forwarding address for the will.

What the registry does not store: The actual text or contents of the will. The Secretary of State's Office does not retain a copy of the document. The confidential registration holds the testator's identifying information and the physical place of deposit or safekeeping.

This distinction matters. Even after a successful registry search, you still need to physically locate and retrieve the original will from whatever location was registered. The registry tells you where to look; it does not provide the document.

Confidentiality During the Testator's Lifetime

The information registered in the Louisiana Will Registry is kept strictly confidential while the testator is alive. No one can search the registry for a living person's registration. This prevents family members from discovering whether they are named in a will — or whether a new will has been executed after an earlier one — during the testator's lifetime.

This confidentiality is a feature, not a limitation. It protects the testator's right to make and change testamentary decisions without interference or pressure from potential heirs.

How to Search the Registry After Death

Once the testator has died, an interested party may access the registry by presenting the following to the Louisiana Secretary of State's Office:

• A certified death certificate issued by the Louisiana Department of Health (or an equivalent official death record)
• An affidavit of death and heirship or other satisfactory evidence of the testator's death and the requestor's relationship to the estate
• The $10.00 retrieval fee

"Interested parties" who may conduct a search include successors, heirs, legatees, creditors, and succession representatives or their attorneys. If you have been asked to administer an estate or are an heir seeking to determine whether a will exists, you qualify.

Upon locating a registration, the Secretary of State's Office provides the requestor with the registered information: the testator's identifying details and the recorded physical location of the will or the attorney who holds it.

How to Register a Will (Planning Ahead)

If you are conducting estate planning and want your executor and heirs to be able to locate your will after your death, registering it with the Louisiana Secretary of State is straightforward.

The registration can be submitted by:

• The testator directly
• The testator's attorney on their behalf

The registration form identifies the testator, confirms that a valid will has been executed, and records the location where the original will is held. The $10 registration fee applies.

Registration does not validate the will. A will registered with the Secretary of State is not automatically enforceable simply because it is registered. The will must still meet all substantive requirements under Louisiana law — it must be either a notarial will (signed before a notary and two witnesses) or a valid olographic will (entirely handwritten and signed by the testator). Registration simply makes the will findable.

The Living Will Declaration Registry: A Separate Program

The Louisiana Secretary of State also administers a separate registry for Living Will Declarations under La. R.S. 40:1151.2 (formerly La. R.S. 40:1299.58). This registry serves a completely different purpose and operates on different terms.

A Living Will Declaration is a written, formal directive that instructs healthcare providers to withhold or withdraw life-sustaining procedures if the declarant experiences a terminal and irreversible condition or a profound comatose state with no reasonable chance of recovery.

Cost: $20.00 to register a Living Will Declaration

What the registry stores: The original, a multiple original, or a certified copy of the Living Will Declaration

Physical confirmation: Upon successful registration, the declarant receives:

• A laminated wallet identification card confirming that a declaration is on file
• An engraved "Do Not Resuscitate" (DNR) bracelet

These physical items serve as immediate, recognizable notice to emergency medical personnel and healthcare providers. Emergency responders are trained to check for DNR bracelets and wallet cards, making the bracelet particularly important in emergencies where there is no time to contact the registry.

Physician access: The state provides copies of registered declarations to attending physicians or healthcare facilities upon request. This eliminates the burden of the patient's family having to locate and present the document during a medical crisis.

Why This Matters for Louisiana Successions

Locating a will — or confirming that no will exists — is the single most consequential step in opening a Louisiana succession. It determines:

• Which legal framework applies: Testate (will exists) vs. intestate (no will) successions follow entirely different legal rules. Testate estates follow the decedent's expressed wishes, subject to forced heirship restrictions. Intestate estates follow Louisiana's rigid statutory succession order, which may produce distributions the decedent never intended.

• Which procedural path is available: Certain procedural shortcuts — like the Small Succession Affidavit for modest estates — may be affected by whether a will exists. As of 2024, the Small Succession Affidavit can be used for testate estates in specific circumstances, but with additional requirements.

• Whether authentication is required: An olographic (handwritten) will must be judicially authenticated before its terms can be executed — even if the estate would otherwise qualify for the Small Succession Affidavit. Knowing a will exists, and what type it is, shapes the entire succession timeline.

Families that skip the will registry search and proceed with intestate succession, only to discover a registered will months later, may need to reopen or amend the succession — wasting time, court fees, and legal costs.

Checklist: Will Registry Steps for Succession Representatives

When opening a Louisiana succession, address the will registry search in the first week:

• [ ] Search the decedent's home, files, and safety deposit box for the original will
• [ ] Call any attorneys who provided estate planning services to the decedent
• [ ] Submit a registry inquiry to the Louisiana Secretary of State's Office with:
  • Certified death certificate ($7.00 per copy from LDH Vital Records)
  • Affidavit of death and heirship (or equivalent)
  • $10.00 retrieval fee
• [ ] If a registration is found, retrieve the will from the registered location
• [ ] Determine whether the will is notarial (self-proving) or olographic (requires authentication)
• [ ] If no registration is found, document the negative result and proceed with intestate succession planning

The Louisiana Probate Process Guide walks through the complete document-gathering phase — including will registry search, death certificate procurement, and asset identification — with step-by-step checklists for both testate and intestate successions.

Key Facts at a Glance

Both registries are administered by the Louisiana Secretary of State's Office in Baton Rouge. Contact information and current forms are available through the Secretary of State's website.

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