To find the lawyer who wrote a will, start with the document itself: estate planning attorneys typically print wills on firm letterhead, and the firm’s name, address, and phone number often appear in a header or footer, or in the attestation clause near the signature. When that information is missing or out of date, a combination of the deceased’s personal records, the notary’s commission records, the executor’s knowledge, probate filings, and state bar directories will usually lead you to the right person.
The search matters because the drafting attorney may hold the only original of the will, have notes about the testator’s intentions, and be a necessary witness if the will is ever contested.
Look at the Will First
Pull the document out and read the first page, the last page, and the signature block. Firm letterhead is the most common giveaway. The attestation clause near the witness signatures sometimes names the supervising attorney directly. Even if the firm has since moved, changed names, or dissolved, the original firm name gives you a concrete starting point.
If nothing on the face of the will identifies a lawyer, check the self-proving affidavit attached to it. This sworn statement, signed by the witnesses and notarized, sometimes identifies the law office where the signing took place.
Work Through the Deceased’s Records
If the will itself doesn’t name the attorney, go through the deceased’s files looking for anything that ties a law firm to estate planning work: invoices, retainer agreements, correspondence on firm letterhead, or canceled checks written to an attorney.
Bank and credit card statements help too. Payments to law offices usually post under a legal services merchant category, so scanning statements from around the time the will was likely prepared can narrow the field fast.
Don’t stop at paper. Check the deceased’s email for messages from attorneys, and look through cloud storage like Google Drive, Dropbox, or iCloud for scanned estate planning documents. Other estate-related paperwork is worth pulling out as well. A power of attorney, living will, or trust agreement prepared around the same time as the will was probably drafted by the same lawyer, and those documents may identify the attorney more clearly than the will does.
Financial advisors and accountants who worked with the deceased sometimes keep copies of estate planning correspondence, and even when they don’t, they often remember which firm handled the work. A single phone call to those professionals can save hours.
Trace the Notary on the Will
Most wills carry a notary stamp on the self-proving affidavit. That notary was frequently a staff member at the law firm where the will was signed, so identifying the notary’s employer at the time of notarization usually identifies the drafting firm.
Many states maintain searchable notary commission records through the secretary of state, and some of those databases include the notary’s business name or employer. Contact the secretary of state in the state where the will was signed and ask how to search their notary records.
Ask the Executor and Family
The executor named in the will is often the single best source. Executors manage the estate, file the will with the probate court, and distribute assets, and they frequently work directly with the drafting attorney throughout probate.1Internal Revenue Service. Responsibilities of an Estate Administrator Many testators tell their executor which attorney prepared the will and where the original is kept, exactly so that information is available when needed.
If the named executor hasn’t yet been formally appointed by the court, they may still have this information from conversations with the deceased. Close family members are worth asking too. People often mention visits to an attorney or discuss estate planning with trusted relatives.
Search Probate Court Records
Once a will is filed for probate, it generally becomes a public record. The probate court file typically includes the will itself and a petition that names the attorney representing the estate. Even if the attorney on the probate petition isn’t the one who drafted the will, they can usually tell you who did.
Contact the probate court in the county where the deceased lived or where the estate was opened. Many courts now offer online case search tools that let you look up estate files by the decedent’s name, and some state systems include the attorney’s name in the searchable database. Fees and procedures for obtaining copies vary by jurisdiction.
If the will hasn’t been probated, check whether the relevant state maintains a will registry or deposit program. A handful of states allow testators to register the location of their will or deposit the original with a court for safekeeping, and those registries sometimes record the drafting attorney.
Use State Bar Directories
Once you have an attorney’s name, state bar directories are the most reliable way to find current contact information. Every state has a bar association or licensing authority that maintains a directory of attorneys admitted to practice there. Most state bar websites offer free online searches that return the attorney’s current status, office address, and phone number.
The state’s licensing database is not the same as a voluntary bar association’s membership directory. The licensing authority tracks every attorney admitted in the state; the voluntary association only lists members. If one search comes up empty, try the other. For attorneys who may have moved to another state, the American Bar Association maintains a directory that can help you identify the correct state or local bar to contact.2American Bar Association. Lawyer Referral Directory
If you don’t have a name at all but know roughly when and where the will was prepared, a local bar referral service may be able to point you to estate planning attorneys who practiced in that area during the relevant period.
When the Attorney Has Retired, Died, or the Firm Has Closed
Old wills create a particular challenge because the drafting attorney may no longer be practicing. Many searches stall here, but the trail rarely goes fully cold.
When an attorney retires or sells a practice, professional ethics rules require them to protect client property, including original wills in their possession.3American Bar Association. Rule 1.15 Safekeeping Property In practice, original documents are typically transferred to the attorney who takes over the practice, returned to the client, or filed with the local court for safekeeping. If the retiring attorney sold to another firm, that successor should have inherited the client files.
When an attorney dies, the state bar typically appoints a custodian attorney to manage client files and get original documents to the right people. Contact the state bar’s ethics or practice management office and ask whether a custodian was appointed. They can usually point you to whoever took responsibility for the files.
If the entire firm dissolved, search the state bar directory for the individual attorney’s name rather than the firm name. Lawyers who practiced at a dissolved firm often continue practicing elsewhere, and the bar directory will show their current registration. Former colleagues, local attorneys who worked in the same area, and courthouse staff who remember the firm can sometimes help trace where files ended up.
Check Safe Deposit Boxes
Some people store their original will in a bank safe deposit box, sometimes alongside a letter or business card from the drafting attorney. Most states allow limited access to a deceased person’s safe deposit box specifically to search for a will and burial instructions, even before formal estate administration begins. Access usually requires a bank employee to be present and involves paperwork documenting what was removed.
Contact the bank where the deceased held accounts and ask about their procedure. You’ll generally need a death certificate and identification showing your relationship to the deceased or your authority as executor.
Why Finding the Attorney Matters
The drafting attorney often holds the only original of the will. If neither the attorney nor the original can be located, courts in most states apply a presumption of revocation: if the original was last known to be in the testator’s possession and cannot be found after death, the court presumes it was intentionally destroyed. That presumption effectively treats the person as having died without a will, and their assets pass under the state’s default inheritance rules rather than according to their wishes.
The presumption shifts when the original was last in someone else’s custody. If the will was stored at the drafting attorney’s office and those files were lost or destroyed, the burden typically falls on anyone challenging the will to prove it was revoked, and courts are more willing to admit a photocopy for probate.
Once you find the attorney, expect a conversation about attorney-client privilege before they share information. The Supreme Court has held that the privilege survives a client’s death, so the attorney cannot freely disclose everything the testator told them.4Legal Information Institute. Swidler and Berlin v United States, 524 US 399 (1998) Most jurisdictions recognize a testamentary exception that lets the attorney disclose what the testator said about their estate plan when that information is needed to carry out or interpret the will, and the executor generally has authority to waive the privilege for matters related to estate administration. A written request from the executor citing that role usually resolves any reluctance to share the file.