How to Obtain a Court Order to Open a Safe Deposit Box
Banks, post offices and other institutions offer safety deposit boxes, in which individuals place their valuables to insure their safekeeping. People often place important papers in their safe deposit boxes, along with money, precious metals and precious stones. People reason that the safe deposit box will protect the items from theft or damage. Many individuals believe that safe deposit boxes provide the best form of security for their valuables. Relatives must sometimes open the safe deposit boxes. They must first acquire a court order to do so.
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Instructions
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Approach the Probate Court located in the same county as the safe deposit box (or, if no probate court functions in the same county as the safe deposit box, ask the county clerk which nearby county's probate court has jurisdiction over the relevant county where the safe deposit box sits). Submit an application to open the safe deposit box. Each Probate Court will have different requirements, but in general, a Probate Court will need an application requesting that the relevant bank or other institution open the safe deposit box, a certificate or receipt demonstrating that the safe deposit box belongs to the identified individual, a copy of a death certificate (if applicable) or will, and relevant fees. The petitioner should attach any other relevant documentation to the application --for instance, if the petitioners want to open a safe deposit box for an incapacitated holder, they should submit medical documents supporting the claim that the legal owner of the safe deposit box cannot function independently. Submit copies and hold on to the original documents.
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Request a hearing date with the probate court.
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Appear before the probate judge on the appointed day. Bring copies of all documentation that supports the plea to open the safe deposit box. Explain to the judge the reason that the petitioner requests a court order to open the safe deposit box. The judge may grant the petitioner's order to open the safe deposit box and receive its contents. The judge may order that the holding institution open the safe deposit box in the presence of a representative of the court for the purpose of removing specific material (for instance, a will), but no other items.
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Request that the clerk of the court examine any documents removed to decide how to proceed with removal of other items from the safe deposit box if the court order only extends to removing specific documents from a safe deposit box.
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- Photo Credit Young freckled woman sitting at the table with document image by Vasiliy Koval from Fotolia.com
