St. Joseph County Probate Court in Three Rivers
The Probate Court does not share the Centreville courthouse. It operates from the Three Rivers Courts Building on W. Michigan Ave., alongside the Friend of the Court. Judge Kevin Kane presides over probate matters, and he also hears Family Division cases in the Circuit Court. That dual role keeps guardianship and juvenile questions in familiar hands.
The county's Probate Court page lists the address, the judge, the staff, and the case types it accepts.
One practical warning appears on that page. The office may close from noon to 1 PM, so visitors planning a midday trip should call first.
St. Joseph County Probate Court
Three Rivers Courts Building
920 W. Michigan Ave.
Three Rivers, MI
(269) 467-5538
Judge Kevin Kane: (269) 467-5537
What the St. Joseph County Probate Court Handles
Probate reaches further than wills. The court supervises property after a death, decisions for people who cannot make their own, and several narrow filings that belong nowhere else. Trust disputes and safe deposit box petitions both land here. So does the delayed registration of a foreign birth.
- Decedent estates and wills deposited for a decedent or for safekeeping.
- Guardianships, including limited guardianships and those for developmentally disabled adults.
- Conservatorships and protective orders over a person's finances.
- Trust litigation and the registration of trusts.
- Adoptions, safe delivery of a newborn, and delayed foreign birth registration.
- Mental health proceedings and applications to open a safe deposit box.
Court staff will help with process questions. They cannot give legal advice, and the county suggests hiring an attorney for estates, conservatorships, guardianships of children, protective orders, and adoptions.
Public and Confidential Probate Files
Access here splits by case type rather than by requester. The county's probate FAQ draws the line plainly, and it is the single most important thing to read before requesting anything. A file that is confidential stays closed even to close relatives without legal authority.
The court's probate FAQ page identifies which files fall on each side.
Wills occupy a middle place. Information about a will stays confidential while the person who wrote it is still living.
| Public Probate Files | Confidential Probate Files |
|---|---|
| Decedent estates | Adoption files |
| Guardianships | Mentally ill files |
| Conservatorships | Some developmentally disabled guardianship documents |
| Wills after the testator has died | Wills while the testator is living |
Note: A confidential probate file requires statutory authority, subject status, a court order, or an approved release process before anyone may view it.
Probate Terms Worth Knowing
Probate language trips up people handling a first estate. A few definitions remove most of the confusion, and the court uses these words on its own forms.
- Testator
- The person who made the will.
- Executor
- The person named in a will to carry it out; Michigan forms often say personal representative.
- Intestate
- Dying without a valid will, which lets state law decide who inherits.
- Guardianship
- A probate case appointing someone to make personal-care decisions for another person.
- Conservatorship
- A probate case appointing someone to manage another person's finances.
- Interested Person
- Anyone entitled to notice of an estate proceeding, such as an heir or a creditor.
A guardianship covers the person. A conservatorship covers the money. Many families need both, and each requires its own petition.
How to Search St. Joseph County Probate Records
No county-specific probate route was found in Michigan's statewide case search during research. That means an online probate lookup should not be assumed to work here. The statewide portal covers participating courts and case categories, and coverage varies court by court.
The dependable channel is the court itself. Calling the Probate Court at (269) 467-5538 confirms whether a file exists and whether it is public before anyone drives to Three Rivers. Requests for copies follow the court's own procedures rather than a public-records request, because court records in Michigan are not FOIA records.
- Identify the case type, since that decides whether the file is public.
- Call the Probate Court at (269) 467-5538 to confirm the file and its status.
- Use the statewide case search only if the court participates for that case type.
- Request copies through Probate Court procedures, not through a FOIA portal.
- For a confidential file, be ready to show legal authority or a court order.
Adoptees seeking birth-parent information have a defined path. The court provides a Release of Information pamphlet explaining how identifying and non-identifying information may be sought.
St. Joseph County Probate Filing Fees
County-specific probate fees were not published separately, so the Michigan Courts statewide probate fee schedule governs. Opening an estate and petitioning for a guardianship both carry the same headline fee. Smaller motions filed after a case is open cost far less.
| Probate Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Petition to commence an estate or appoint a personal representative | $150 |
| Petition or application after the estate is open | $20 |
| Trust proceeding initiation | $150, or $20 as part of an estate |
| Registration of trust | $25 |
| Full or limited guardianship petition | $150 |
| Conservator or protective order petition | $150 |
| Pending-case papers requesting relief | $20 |
| Safe deposit box petition | $10 |
| Will filed for safekeeping | $25 |
| Marriage ceremony | $10 |
Fee schedules move. Confirming the current amount with the court before mailing a petition avoids a rejected filing.
SCAO Probate Forms and Attorney Guidance
Michigan publishes standardized probate forms through its State Court Administrative Office. Using the approved form is not optional in most filings, and the court expects the current version.
Every form lives in the state's SCAO probate forms index.
Filing an estate means choosing between a formal and an informal process, then providing death, heir, asset, and nominated representative information. The court may appoint a personal representative, order notices to interested persons, and set deadlines for the inventory and for creditor handling. Guardianship and conservatorship cases add service of papers, hearings, and ongoing reporting. The county warns plainly that guardianship is not easy.
Adoption, Mental Health, and Family Matters
Two of the court's most sensitive dockets are closed to the public. Adoption files are confidential. Mental health files are confidential as well, and the court holds commitment hearings that never enter the public record.
Families seeking help for a relative should not start at the courthouse. The county directs that first call to the St. Joseph County Community Mental Health Agency at (269) 467-1000, located at 677A E. Main St. in Centreville.
Judge Kane's Family Division role connects probate work with the county's juvenile docket, described on the Family Court and Juvenile Division page.
Juvenile records carry their own statutory restrictions and are not open like an estate file. Marriage licenses and certified marriage copies come from a different office entirely, covered with the county marriage and divorce records.