Tioga County Probate Records Overview
Probate in Tioga County is not handled by a standalone "Probate Court." Pennsylvania uses Orphans' Court terminology, and the local office is the Register & Recorder / Register of Wills / Clerk of Orphans' Court. Keriane Chaborek is the elected official listed for the office. The office is at 118 Main Street, Wellsboro, PA 16901, with phone number 570-724-9260 and posted hours of 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
The Register of Wills side oversees the probate of wills and appoints personal representatives for decedents who resided in Tioga County. It issues Letters Testamentary when there is a will and Letters of Administration when there is no will. Certificates of Appointment are issued only after an estate is probated and are available to the executor or attorney. The office also acts as an agent for Pennsylvania by collecting inheritance tax.
The county's Register & Recorder page describes the local estate process, Orphans' Court duties, and public online access to records.
That county page is the key local source because it places wills, estates, marriage licenses, guardianship matters, small estates, and adoption limits under one office.
Tioga County Probate Terms
Tioga County Orphans' Court records use Pennsylvania probate terms that are easy to confuse. These definitions keep the search terms tied to the office's actual duties and to the records a requester may see in an estate file.
- Testator
- The person who made a will before death.
- Executor
- The person named in a will to handle the estate after probate.
- Intestate
- A death without a will, which may lead to Letters of Administration instead of Letters Testamentary.
- Guardianship
- An Orphans' Court matter involving court authority for a person who needs a guardian. Tioga County says guardianship records are not public.
- Conservatorship
- A related protective arrangement used in some states for property or financial decisions. In Tioga County research, guardianship is the local Orphans' Court term documented.
- Letters Testamentary
- Authority issued after probate when a valid will names an executor.
Open a Tioga County Estate
Tioga County has a specific estate-opening workflow. The Register of Wills page says an appointment is required and that the oath of the personal representative is completed remotely by Zoom. The office also gives a local document intake path: probate start documents are emailed to Keriane Chaborek through the county contact link before the process moves forward.
- Schedule an appointment with the Register of Wills / Clerk of Orphans' Court office.
- Email the Probate Petition, a copy of the death certificate, the will if one exists, and a copy of the petitioner's ID.
- Wait for the office to review the submitted estate-opening documents and appointment path.
- Complete the personal representative oath remotely by Zoom when directed by the office.
- After probate, request Letters Testamentary, Letters of Administration, or Certificates of Appointment as applicable.
Note: Certificates of Appointment are issued only after probate and are available to the executor or attorney.
Search Tioga County Probate Records
Tioga County links public online access for Recorder of Deeds, Register of Wills, and Clerk of Orphans' Court records through Landex. Landex is the online starting point for available public records, while older estate files, certified copies, and hard-to-match names may require the office counter or phone support. A strong Tioga County probate records search uses the decedent name, date of death, estate number if known, and the record type sought.
The public access path has limits. The county says all documents are public records in the Register of Wills context, but it also says all Orphans' Court records are public except adoption and guardianship records. That distinction matters because an estate file may be public while a guardianship or adoption matter handled by the same office is closed or restricted.
The Pennsylvania courts public records policies provide the statewide court-record access framework that sits behind local file review.
Use the statewide policy for access boundaries, then use the Tioga County office for the actual local estate or Orphans' Court file.
Tioga County Orphans' Court Office
The same courthouse office is the local contact for Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans' Court matters. Marriage licenses, guardianships, small estates, family settlement agreements, annual accounts, first and final accounts, adoptions, and other Orphans' Court matters route through this office. Estate probate and personal representative appointments route through the Register of Wills side.
Register & Recorder / Register of Wills / Clerk of Orphans' Court
Official: Keriane Chaborek
118 Main Street
Wellsboro, PA 16901
570-724-9260
9:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday
Tioga County Probate Fees
Tioga County links separate 2025 fee bills for the Clerk of Orphans' Court and Register of Wills. The estate-opening cost depends on estate value and filing type, and some first filings add a Judicial Computer System fee. The Orphans' Court schedule also covers accounts, guardianship filings, small estates, marriage licenses, certified copies, and family settlement agreements.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Letters of Administration or Testamentary, estate not over $1,000 | $25.00 plus JCS fee if first filing |
| Letters, over $10,000 and not over $20,000 | $50.00 plus JCS fee if first filing |
| Each additional $100,000 or fraction | $50.00 |
| Certificate of Appointment, short form | $5.00 |
| Probate will only, first page | $15.00 |
| Inventory county or state | $10.00 |
| Certified or exemplified copy, first page | $25.00 |
| Certified or exemplified copy, each added page | $3.00 |
| Petition and appointment of guardian | $30.00 plus JCS fee if first filing |
| Small estates petition | $40.00 plus JCS fee if first filing |
What Tioga County Probate Records Show
Tioga County probate records may show the petition to open an estate, the will, death certificate copy, petitioner identification copy in the office intake file, oath material, Letters Testamentary, Letters of Administration, Certificates of Appointment, inheritance-tax filings, inventories, debts and deductions, releases, claims against the estate, family settlement agreements, and accountings. Not every estate has every item. A small estate may be far simpler than a contested estate with account objections or claims.
The Pennsylvania Auditor General audit notice confirms the local office identity as Recorder of Deeds, Register of Wills, and Clerk of Orphans' Court.
The audit notice helps distinguish this office from the Prothonotary and criminal Clerk of Courts functions at the same courthouse.
Restricted Tioga County Orphans' Records
Tioga County says adoption records are sealed by the court and closed to the public. The county also says guardianship records are not public. Those records should not be searched like ordinary estate files, and online public access should not be expected to show sealed adoption or guardianship material. When a record is restricted, the office or court can explain whether any party, attorney, or court-order access path exists.
For non-case administrative records, a formal public-records request may be a fallback, but court case records and Orphans' Court files are governed by court policy and the proper record custodian. For marriage records held by the same Clerk of Orphans' Court office, use the local marriage-license process rather than the estate workflow.