South Dakota · probate and estate law
Probate in South Dakota: do you need a lawyer, and what it costs
South Dakota law decides whether an estate needs probate and what a lawyer may charge. Every fact links to its statute, with the date we read it. Not legal advice.
We do not endorse or recommend any attorney
Firms are listed by name with what they publish and what the bar roster says about them; you contact them yourself. A firm can never pay to move up a list.
Do I need a lawyer?
- Small-estate limit
- Estates under $100,000 can use a simpler process instead of full probate. In South Dakota this usually starts with a signed affidavit.
- Formal probate
- Required above $100,000. Independent administration: no. Uniform Probate Code: yes.
- Typical duration
- About 9 months.
- Source
- SDCL §29A-3-1201 (collection by affidavit ≤ $100,000) statute → · checked Sep 20, 2026
Settling an estate in South Dakota
What an executor deals with after the funeral: the will, the court, creditors, tax and closing the estate. Each fact links to the statute it comes from and shows the date we last read it.
- Filing the original will
In South Dakota, whoever holds the original will must, when asked by an interested person after the death, promptly deliver it to the court or to someone who can start probate. The law sets no fixed number of days, and a person who wilfully holds it back can owe damages.
- Which court handles probate
In South Dakota, probate is handled by the circuit court in the county where the person who died lived. If they lived out of state, it can be opened in any South Dakota county where they owned property.
- Creditors' deadline to make claims
In South Dakota, the executor or administrator (called the personal representative) may publish a notice to creditors once a week for three weeks, and must mail notice to creditors they know of or can reasonably find. Creditors have four months from the first publication to present claims, or for mailed notices, four months from the appointment or 60 days from mailing, whichever is later. All claims are barred three years after the death.
- Estate inventory
In South Dakota, the executor or administrator must prepare an inventory of what the person who died owned, with values as of the date of death, within six months after appointment or nine months after the death, whichever is later. Copies go to interested people who ask, and filing it with the court is optional.
- The order estate debts are paid
In South Dakota, if the estate can't pay every bill, claims are paid in a set order: the costs of running the estate first, then reasonable funeral costs, then debts and taxes the federal government puts first, then state-preferred debts and taxes, and finally everything else.
- State estate and inheritance tax
South Dakota has no estate tax and no inheritance tax. Both laws have been repealed, so only the federal estate tax can apply, and only to very large estates.
- Closing an estate
In South Dakota, most estates are closed by the executor or administrator filing a sworn closing statement with the court, no earlier than four months after appointment, saying creditors are dealt with, the estate is fully settled, and the heirs and beneficiaries got a copy and an accounting (which they can waive in writing). The role ends one year later if nothing is pending. A court order of complete settlement is the formal alternative.
What a probate lawyer may charge in South Dakota
Some states set the fee by statute, as a percentage of the estate. Others say "reasonable compensation", and you agree it with the firm.
No statutory fee schedule is recorded for South Dakota yet. Either the state leaves fees to "reasonable compensation", or we have not read the statute.
1 metro with named firms
A metro is listed once three firms there have an attorney active on the South Dakota bar.
| Metro | Firms | Open |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | See firms |
Sorted by how many firms. Placement is never for sale.
Showing 1 to 1 of 1 metros in South Dakota
Every South Dakota firm with a credentialed attorney, by city →
The estate letter · South Dakota
Settling an estate in South Dakota, one month at a time
Twelve months of steps with South Dakota's own numbers and deadlines. Read the checklist now, or sign up there for one email a month.
Get the estate letter- Month 1The first things to gather
- Month 2Work out what the estate is
- Month 3Get the authority to act
- 9 more months
Compare more
Estate checklist for South Dakota
What the executor does, month by month, with South Dakota's numbers and deadlines.
Funeral and cremation law in South Dakota
2 checked facts: who decides, waiting periods, permits.
Before probate
Look a lawyer up yourself
Every attorney we name is checked against the South Dakota bar roster. You can too: statebarofsouthdakota.com →