Dekalb County Probate Judge

What Dekalb County Probate Judge does

The DeKalb County Probate Judge's Office is a county government office in Fort Payne, Alabama, providing statutorily mandated administrative and judicial services to approximately 71,000 residents of DeKalb County. Under the authority of Alabama state law, the office records legal documents (deeds, mortgages, UCC filings, and powers of attorney), commissions notaries, records marriage certificates, adjudicates probate matters (wills, estates, guardianships, adoptions, name changes), and delivers a consolidated suite of citizen services including driver's license renewals, boat/vessel registration, hunting and fishing licenses, and business license renewals. Judge Ronnie Osborn leads the office, which operates from a main Fort Payne location and a Rainsville annex, with a staff of approximately 9 employees.

The office operates on a transaction-fee revenue model, collecting a published schedule of fixed fees for each service (e.g., $74 marriage certificate filing, $13.50 first-page document recording, $36.25 driver's license renewal, $100 probate of will). All fees are statutorily set, with payments accepted in cash, check, and credit/debit (subject to processing fees). Limited digital infrastructure supports an online probate record search portal and poll worker training videos; services are otherwise delivered in person during business hours without appointment. The office is a political subdivision of DeKalb County and is publicly owned by its citizens, with no parent company or commercial ownership structure.

Name

Dekalb County Probate Judge

Legal name

Probate Judge of DeKalb County

Website

https://dekalbprobatejudge.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The DeKalb County Probate Judge's Office is a county government office in Fort Payne, Alabama, led by Judge Ronnie Osborn, providing statutorily mandated services to approximately 71,000 residents, including probate court filings, document recording, marriage certificate recording, notary commissioning, driver's license services, and boat/vessel registration.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

County Government Services

NAICS

Courts (92211)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Court Services & Operations (Clerks, Records, Jury, Interpreters) (BPAIAFAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Family & Private Client (Trusts & Estates) Law (BPAHAAAK)

Keywords

• Probate court services
• Document recording
• Notary commission services
• Marriage certificate recording
• Vehicle and vessel registration

Headquarters

HQ city

Fort Payne

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Filing and Recording Fees: Government fee collection for official document processing including marriage certificates ($74.00 filing), document recording (first page $13.50 + $5.50 per additional page), deed and mortgage taxes, notary commissions ($60.00), and probate court filings. Revenue is used to fund county government operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

The DeKalb County Probate Judge's Office is a county government office that provides essential government administrative services to DeKalb County, Alabama residents. Its core offerings include probate court services (wills, estates, guardianships, adoptions, name changes), document recording (deeds, mortgages, liens, powers of attorney, UCC filings), marriage certificate recording under Alabama law, notary public commissioning, driver's license and ID services, boat/vessel registration, hunting and fishing licenses, and business license processing.

Product overview

Dekalb County Probate Judge's office provides government administrative services to county residents. The office offers a unified set of public services including probate court functions (wills, estates, guardianship, adoption), document recording (deeds, mortgages, UCC filings), vehicle and vessel registration (driver's licenses, boat registration), notary public commissioning, marriage certificate recording, and business licensing. Services are provided through two physical locations: the main office in Fort Payne and the Rainsville Annex.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Probate Court Services Handles probate of wills, estate administration (with and without a will), guardianship/conservatorship, adoptions, legitimations, condemnations/right-of-way, summary distribution for small estates, name changes, and estate claims for DeKalb County residents.
• Notary Public Commission Services Appoints and commissions notary publics for DeKalb County residents, including application processing, training oversight, bond verification, and issuance of four-year notary public commissions authorized under Alabama law.
• Marriage Certificate Recording Records standardized Alabama Marriage Certificate forms ($74.00 filing fee) and issues certified copies ($3.00 per copy) of marriage records for DeKalb County, per Ala. Act 2019-340.
• Vehicle and Vessel Registration Provides driver's license and non-driver ID renewals/duplicates, CDL services (Class A and Class B renewals), and boat/vessel registration and titling for DeKalb County residents.
• Document Recording Records legal documents including deeds, mortgages, liens, powers of attorney, subdivision plats, and UCC filings (UCC-1, UCC-3 continuation/assignment/amendment/termination) for DeKalb County.
• Business License Services Processes and issues business licenses and renewals for businesses operating within DeKalb County, Alabama.
• Hunting and Fishing License Services Issues hunting and fishing licenses for Alabama residents at the DeKalb County Probate Office locations.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Others

• Granicus: Government experience and digital services company that helps local governments modernize citizen-facing portals and records access. Comparable as a technology enabler for the kind of limited digital infrastructure described in this office's profile.
• Tyler Technologies: Major provider of software and technology services to U.S. county and municipal governments, including courts, recording, and licensing systems. Relevant as a vendor/ecosystem participant whose products could digitize operations like those of the DeKalb County Probate Office.

Broad incumbents

• LexisNexis: Legal and public-records information provider serving attorneys and courts. Comparable as an ecosystem participant that aggregates and distributes the kind of probate and recorded-document data this office produces.
• Thomson Reuters: Provider of legal information, court records, and compliance tools serving probate and estate-planning attorneys. Adjacent comparator given that the office handles estate, guardianship, and adoption filings that feed the legal data ecosystem.
• CSC (Corporation Service Company): Large incumbent that processes UCC filings, corporate document recordings, and statutory agent services across many U.S. jurisdictions. Overlaps with the office's document recording and UCC filing service line as a private-sector substitute or complementary channel.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights4 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/dekalbprobatejudge
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dekalb-county-probate-judge

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Dekalb County Probate Judge