Providence, Warwick, Cranston, and Newport Probate Courts: Hours, Fees, and How to File

If you found this page after searching for the probate court in your city, you already understand the core frustration: Rhode Island does not have county probate courts. There is no "Providence County Probate Court." There is no regional hub. Each of the state's 39 cities and towns operates its own independent probate court, with its own address, its own clerk, its own hearing schedule, and its own fee structure.

The four cities covered here — Providence, Warwick, Cranston, and Newport — collectively handle a large share of Rhode Island probate activity. Here is the practical information you need for each one: where to go, what it costs, how they handle filings, and what makes each court different from the others.

Providence Probate Court

Location: Providence City Hall, 25 Dorrance Street, Providence, RI 02903

The Providence Probate Court operates under an elected probate judge who serves a six-year term. The judge is not an appointed municipal employee — they are elected by Providence residents — and the court operates according to the city's internal docketing system.

Filing fees: Providence has one of the more transparent fee structures among Rhode Island municipal courts. For formal probate, expect the following:

• Base filing fee: approximately $30
• State surcharge: $4
• Legal advertising (creditor notice publication): approximately $120
• Total initial outlay: approximately $154

This is for matters where notice cannot be waived. If all interested heirs sign waivers of notice — a significant cost-saving step — the advertising fee can be avoided and the matter proceeds as a "waiver matter," moving considerably faster through the docket.

Small estate filings (PC-1.9 or PC-1.10, for estates under $15,000 with no real property) carry a flat fee of approximately $39, with no advertising required.

Practical notes for Providence:

• Confirm the current hearing schedule directly with the clerk's office before showing up. Probate sessions are scheduled at specific intervals, and walk-in assistance for pending matters is not guaranteed on any given day.
• Non-waiver matters require advance scheduling around the publication window. The six-month creditor period begins from the date of first publication, so advertising timing has downstream effects on when the estate can close.
• Certified copies of the Certificate of Appointment cost $5 each. Order several — banks, brokerage accounts, and the DMV each require their own copy.

Warwick Probate Court

Location: Warwick City Hall, 3275 Post Road, Warwick, RI 02886

Warwick is Rhode Island's second-largest city and sees a substantial volume of estate filings. The Warwick Probate Court operates under municipal administration with a probate judge appointed through local government.

Filing fees:

• Advertising for creditor notice: $40 per insertion (Warwick publishes in a local legal notice vehicle)
• Probate inventory fee: 1% of the personal property value of the estate, minimum $30, maximum $1,500
• Small estate filing fee: approximately $39

Practical notes for Warwick:

• Warwick's advertising fee structure bills by insertion rather than as a flat combined charge, which is different from Providence's bundled approach. Confirm how many insertions are required for your matter — this affects your total advertising cost.
• If you can get written waivers of notice from all interested heirs before filing, the advertising requirement can be waived, which both reduces cost and accelerates the hearing date.
• The clerk's office handles scheduling for probate sessions and can provide the current calendar. Hearing days are not daily — contact the office before appearing.

Key procedural difference: Warwick is representative of mid-sized Rhode Island municipalities that bill advertising per insertion. This contrasts with cities like Newport, which charges a combined flat fee. The per-insertion model means any re-publication or error that requires a correction could increase costs.

Cranston Probate Court

Location: Cranston City Hall, 869 Park Avenue, Cranston, RI 02910

Cranston has implemented one of the more notable procedural changes among Rhode Island municipal probate courts in recent years. For estates filed after July 1, 2024, Cranston utilizes the Curia Systems Public Probate Portal — a cloud-based system that allows public access to estate filings and, in some cases, supports electronic filing or online tracking of estate status.

This is a meaningful operational difference from the majority of Rhode Island's 39 municipal courts, which still rely entirely on paper filings with wet signatures and in-person document delivery to the clerk's office.

Filing fees:

• Base filing fee structure follows the state statutory framework: 1% of personal property, minimum $30, maximum $1,500
• Advertising fees: confirm with the clerk's office, as Cranston's fee schedule reflects its own municipal structure
• Small estate filings: approximately $34–$39

Practical notes for Cranston:

• Because Cranston has adopted the Curia Systems portal, verify directly with the clerk whether your filing must be submitted through the portal or whether paper filing is still accepted. The transition to digital systems in municipal probate courts is ongoing and the rules can differ by matter type.
• If the estate was filed before July 1, 2024, it was likely handled entirely on paper. Estates opened after that date may be visible through the public portal, which can be useful if you are tracking the status of an estate someone else filed.
• The clerk's office is the definitive source for current hearing schedules and whether specific form types can be submitted electronically.

Newport Probate Court

Location: Newport City Hall, 43 Broadway, Newport, RI 02840

Newport is a smaller city by population but handles a disproportionate share of complex estate matters due to its concentration of high-value coastal real estate and vacation properties. Many Newport probate filings involve out-of-state families managing estates for decedents who owned summer homes or investment properties along the coast.

Filing fees:

• Newport charges approximately $88 as a combined filing and advertising fee for standard probate petitions — a flat combined charge rather than itemized components
• Small estate petitions (PC-1.9 / PC-1.10): approximately $39

Practical notes for Newport:

• The $88 combined fee covers both the base petition and the publication requirement, making Newport's initial cost structure more predictable than cities that bill advertising separately.
• Out-of-state executors filing in Newport must satisfy an additional statutory requirement: under RIGL § 33-18-9, a non-resident executor must appoint a Rhode Island resident agent to accept service of legal process. This designation is filed using Form PC-3.5 and must be included with the initial petition — it cannot be added later without amending the filing.
• Newport's proximity to coastline means many estates involve ancillary probate situations: an executor with primary responsibility in Massachusetts or Connecticut who also needs to open a Newport proceeding to clear title on a Rhode Island property. If that describes your situation, you are filing Form PC-1.3 (Ancillary Petition) rather than the standard PC-1.1 or PC-1.5.

What All Four Courts Have in Common

Regardless of whether you are filing in Providence, Warwick, Cranston, or Newport, several things are consistent across all Rhode Island municipal probate courts:

The forms are the same everywhere. Rhode Island uses mandatory statewide PC-series forms issued by the Secretary of State. Form PC-1.5 is the Petition for Probate of Will in every one of the 39 courts. Form PC-7.3 is the Affidavit of Complete Administration in all of them. The forms themselves do not change by municipality.

The statutory framework is the same. Rhode Island General Laws Title 33 governs all 39 courts. The 90-day inventory deadline (RIGL § 33-9-1), the six-month creditor window (RIGL § 33-11-5), and the bond requirements (RIGL § 33-17-1) apply in Warwick the same way they apply in Newport.

The real estate tax lien applies everywhere. Rhode Island law imposes an automatic statutory lien on all real property the moment a person dies — regardless of estate size, regardless of municipality. To transfer or sell real estate from any Rhode Island estate, the executor must file Form RI-706 with the Division of Taxation and obtain a recorded Form T-77 (Discharge of Estate Tax Lien) at the specific municipal land evidence office where the property is located. This step is required even when no estate tax is owed.

What varies by municipality:

• Hearing schedules and session days
• Legal advertising fees (from around $40 per insertion to $150+ flat)
• Whether the court accepts electronic or paper filings
• Specific local procedural rules (some municipalities have additional requirements not codified in state law)
• Whether waiver of notice is routinely granted without a hearing

The only way to confirm the current fee totals and filing requirements for your specific court is to call the clerk's office directly before filing. Submitting a petition with an incorrect fee amount will result in rejection and delay.

If you are managing an estate in any of Rhode Island's cities and need a step-by-step guide through the full process — from initial petition through final distribution — the Rhode Island Probate Process Guide covers the complete statutory sequence with checklists, form-by-form instructions, and a creditor notice timeline mapped to your specific start date.

Key Facts at a Glance

Deadlines that apply to all four courts:

See more Rhode Island guides →