Search Weymouth Probate Court Records

Weymouth probate court records are filed and kept at the Norfolk County Probate and Family Court in Canton. Weymouth is one of 28 towns served by this court. Residents who need to search for estate records, wills, guardianship filings, or conservatorship cases can use the MassCourts online portal or visit the Canton courthouse directly. The court handles all probate matters for Weymouth, from new filings to certified copy requests.

Where Weymouth Residents File Probate

Weymouth falls under Norfolk County for probate matters. The courthouse is in Canton, not Dedham. The Probate and Family Court moved to Canton as part of a Trial Court consolidation effort in the late 1990s, while the Superior Court and Registry of Deeds stayed in Dedham. So if you are looking for probate records for a Weymouth resident, Canton is the right place.

The Canton courthouse has free parking in front of and behind the building. Public transit options are limited. The Greenbush commuter rail line gets you to Canton Junction or Route 128, but both stops are about 1.5 miles from the courthouse. Driving is the more practical option for most Weymouth residents.

Inside, the Register's Office is on the first floor for filing and document pickup. The second floor has five courtrooms. The Probation Department is on the third floor.

How to Search Weymouth Probate Court Records

You can search Weymouth probate records online at MassCourts. Pick "Probate & Family Court" and select "Norfolk" as the division. The portal lets you search by party name or docket number. It shows case status, party names, filing dates, and docket entries. Cases from 2000 onward appear in the system. Documents filed after 2009 may have images you can view right from the search results.

Norfolk County docket numbers start with NO, followed by the year, case group code, and sequence. Knowing the docket number makes your search faster and more exact. For name searches, capitalize the first letter and use at least two characters for the last name.

The Norfolk County Virtual Registry is another way to get help from court staff without driving to Canton. It runs weekdays from 8:30 AM to 1:00 PM. You join by phone at 1 (646) 828-7666 with meeting ID 1617846497. Staff can look up cases, answer process questions, and point you in the right direction.

The MassCourts case access portal is the primary tool for searching Weymouth probate records from home.

Select Norfolk County under the Probate and Family Court department to find records for Weymouth and other Norfolk County towns.

Weymouth Probate Record Copies

To get a copy of a probate record from Weymouth, you have three options: go to the Canton courthouse, mail a request, or call the virtual registry. In person is fastest. Visit the Register's Office on the first floor and ask staff to pull the case file. You can get plain copies for $1.00 per page or certified copies starting at $20.00 depending on the document type.

Mail requests use the PFC 18 form. Fill it out with the case name, docket number, and the type of document you need. Send it with payment to the Norfolk Probate Court at 35 Shawmut Road, Canton, MA 02021. Checks go to "Commonwealth of Massachusetts." The court does not accept personal checks by mail. Use a money order, attorney's check, or cashier's check.

Certified copies of guardianship decrees cost $22.00 each. Conservatorship decrees are $21.00. Exemplified copies run $50 plus $1 per page after the first. For a full breakdown, check the filing fee schedule on mass.gov.

Note: Norfolk County probate records go back to 1793, so historical files may require a request to the Massachusetts Judicial Archives for anything that predates what the Canton courthouse holds.

Filing Probate in Weymouth

Weymouth residents file probate petitions at the Norfolk County Probate Court in Canton. Under M.G.L. c. 190B, § 3-102, you can file informally through the Register or formally through the court. Informal probate is the simpler path. It costs $375 plus a $15 surcharge. Formal probate adds a citation fee, bringing the total to $405.

Guardianship and conservatorship petitions also go through this court. Under M.G.L. c. 190B, § 5-201, the court appoints guardians for minors and incapacitated persons. Guardianship of a minor has no filing fee. An incapacitated person guardianship costs $255. Conservatorships are also $255. All forms are free at mass.gov.

Electronic filing through eFileMA is available for informal and formal probate petitions, voluntary administration, and some other case types. The first eFiling in a new case adds a $22 provider fee. Credit card payments have a 2.89% processing charge. eCheck payments cost $0.25 per transaction.

Historical Records in Norfolk County

Norfolk County was formed in 1793, and probate records go back to that year. Online databases carry a good amount of the early material. AmericanAncestors has Norfolk probate file papers, and FamilySearch has probate records and indexes. The collection covers over 30,793 cases with more than 796,527 pages. John Adams' will was probated in Norfolk County on August 1, 1826, which gives you a sense of how far back these records stretch.

For records that are not online, contact the Massachusetts court system or the Supreme Judicial Court Archives at (617) 557-1087. The archives hold older material not kept at local courthouses.

Norfolk County Probate Court Records

Weymouth is one of 28 communities in Norfolk County. The Probate and Family Court in Canton serves all of them, including Quincy, Brookline, Braintree, and many more towns south and west of Boston. For full details on the Norfolk County court, visit the county page.

View Norfolk County Probate Court Records

Nearby Cities

Other cities near Weymouth with probate court record pages:

Quincy • Brockton • Brookline • Boston