Blaine County Probate Statistics

Use this county view to check filing-fee patterns, e-filing access, and timing signals before you rely on a probate cost estimate or start preparing a petition.

Published: January 15, 2026Updated: September 27, 2026Data quality: Medium

What This County Snapshot Covers

This page is meant to answer the fast operational questions first: what the county charges to open common probate proceedings, whether e-filing is available, how long creditor claims may run, and where to verify the court record.

Fee Rows Captured

E-Filing Available

4 mo

Creditor Claim Period

Medium

Data Quality

Official Sources to Verify

County Fee Schedule

Check the live filing-fee source before relying on a county average or cached amount.

Court Forms or Filing Portal

Review the county or court forms page tied to this probate workflow.

Case Search

Use the county case-search tool when you need live docket or estate-case status information. Search results may not include every probate record.

The Montana Judicial Branch publishes a statewide public access portal for district court records, searched court by court with no account or fee (the login page asks only for the court). The Judicial Branch calls it a courtesy, not a required statutory service: under its Rules for Access to the Trial Court Public Record Portal it is an index of case number, case type, party names and register of actions, "not the court record"; sealed and confidential case types are excluded, data refreshes every 24 hours, and the full file is available only at the courthouse. CAUTION: the Judicial Branch's District Court page lists 53 of 56 district courts as converted to FullCourt Enterprise and Blaine County is NOT on that list, although the portal's court selector does offer 'Blaine District Court'. Treat a search here as unreliable and ask the clerk of district court directly.

Open case search County source page

District Court Website

Go straight to the District Court website for clerk notices and local instructions.

Filing Fee Schedule

Petition for Probate	$100
Base 25 1 201 1 M	$70
Additional 25 1 202 1 A	$20
Technology Surcharge 3 1 317 1 B	$10
Ancillary Administration	$85
Certification (per document)	$2
Copy Per Page First 10	$1
Copy Per Page After 10	$0.5
Small Estate Affidavit	$0

Filing Options

in person

by mail

Filing Deadlines

Creditor Claim Period4 months

District Court Information

Blaine County District Court

400 Ohio St., Chinook, MT 59523

Phone: (406) 357-3230

District Court Website →

Frequently Asked Questions

Are the Blaine County probate fees on this page the full cost of the case?

Not necessarily. Filing fees are only one part of probate cost. Publication charges, certified copies, appraisal expenses, attorney fees, and other estate-administration costs may still apply.

What does e-filing status mean for Blaine County probate cases?

E-filing status tells you whether the county accepts online filing and, when available in the dataset, whether attorneys are required to use it. "Not verified" means the county dataset does not record filing methods either way. In every case, check the current clerk instructions before filing.

Why might a fee or deadline be missing?

Some counties publish fees in fragmented schedules, update procedures without a clean machine-readable source, or handle certain deadlines in local instructions rather than a simple statewide field. Use the county reference page and District Court website to verify anything missing.

Information current as of September 27, 2026

Settled Estate is not a law firm, and this content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Probate laws and procedures in Montana can change. Consult with a qualified attorney for advice specific to your situation. Full disclaimer.