Probate records are 'Confirmations' in Scotland.

Prior to 1824, wills, testaments & inventories of residents of Dunino may be found in either the St Andrews Commissariot (CC20) or the Edinburgh Commissariot (CC8) records. From 1824, commissary business has been conducted by the Sheriff Court of Fife at Cupar (SC20).

Indexes and finding aids are given on the main Fife page.

Local sources worth searching for deeds include St Andrews Commissary Court and Cupar Sheriff Court.

Good online background information about this subject can be found at the Scottish Archive Network (SCAN) Knowledge Base, in the National Records of Scotland online guides, and on the Scotland's People website.

Prior to 1824, most Fife testaments will be found in either the St Andrews Commissariot (CC20) or the Edinburgh Commissariot (CC8) records. There are also some in the Stirling Commissariot (CC21) and the Dunkeld Commissariot (CC7). These records are held at the National Records of Scotland. Printed indexes to these records up to 1800 were published by the Scottish Record Society and can be read online at the Open Library. Indexes to the all the testaments are now available on the Scotland's People website. This site has a searchable index to Scottish Wills and Testaments from 1513 - 1925, comprising over 878,000 names of 'defuncts'. The indexes may be searched free, and copies of the documents may be viewed and purchased. The Scotland's People website has indexes to the St Andrews Commissary Court, 1549-1823 (ref. CC20/4/1-31, some from CC20/6/1-97 and CC20/7/1-16); Dunkeld Commissary Court, 1687-1823 (ref. CC7/6/1-8); Stirling Commissary Court, 1607-1823 (ref. CC21/5/1-13 and some from CC21/6/1-105); and the Edinburgh Commissary Court, 1514-1829 (ref. CC8/8/1-152 and CC8/11/1-6).

From 1824 - 1960, commissary court business was conducted by the Sheriff Court of Fife at Cupar (SC20), and also by the Edinburgh Sheriff Court (SC70). These records are also held at the National Records of Scotland. On the Scotland's People website are entries from the Registers of inventories and settlements (wills) up to 1875, and, from 1876 - 1925, entries in the printed Calendar of Confirmations. Ancestry has the Calendar of Confirmations from 1876 - 1936. There are no online indexes for wills, testaments or confirmations after 1936. The Scotland's People website has indexes to Cupar Sheriff Court Inventories, 1824-1925 (ref. SC20/50/1-114); Edinburgh Sheriff Court Inventories, 1808-1925 (ref. SC70/1/1-741) and Edinburgh Sheriff Court Wills, 1855-1925 (ref. SC70/4/1-595).

For deaths which occurred after 13 October 1960, commissary business has been conducted at Cupar (SC20), Dunfermline (SC21) and Kirkcaldy (SC23) Sheriff Courts.

The Scotland's People website also has records of Non-Scottish Courts, 1858-1900 (ref. SC70/6/1-83) which includes testaments relating to Scots who died in England and other foreign countries.

The wills of some Scottish soldiers and airmen, 1857-1964, are held by the National Records of Scotland.

Scots who owned goods or investments in England were supposed to have their wills proved in England as well as Scotland. Wills proved before 1858 at the Prerogative Court of Canterbury are held at The National Archives, Kew. There are also has a few Scots listed in the Death Duty registers.
From 1858, the annual National Probate Calendars need to be consulted - wills and other probate materials for England and Wales for the period from 1858-1996, 1996 to present, and soldiers wills can be searched at the probate search service. There are also copies of the calendars for 1858-1966 at Ancestry.co.uk, and for 1858-1959 at findmypast.co.uk.

Many wills can be found in the collections of Deeds deposited in various courts. Some of these have been indexed and some have indexes online.
The Records pages of the Fife Family History Society's website have indexes to the following:

• St Andrews Commissariot Deeds 1700-1809 (originals at the National Records of Scotland)
• Sheriff Court of Fife (Cupar) Deeds 1715-1809 (originals at the National Records of Scotland)
• Auchtermuchty Burgh Register of Deeds 1757-1874 (originals at the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library)
• Burntisland Burgh Register of Deeds 1731-1874 (originals at the National Records of Scotland)
• Crail Burgh Register of Deeds 1682-1841 (originals at the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library)
• Culross Burgh Register of Deeds 1713-1801 (originals at the National Records of Scotland)
• Cupar Burgh Register of Deeds 1716-1862 (originals at the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library)
• Dunfermline Burgh Register of Deeds 1700-1884 (originals at the National Records of Scotland)
• Dysart Burgh Register of Deeds 1690-1829 (originals at the National Records of Scotland)
• Falkland Burgh Register of Deeds 1783-1798 (originals at the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library)
• Inverkeithing Burgh Register of Deeds 1716-1884 (originals at the National Records of Scotland)
• Kinghorn Burgh Register of Deeds 1682-1854 (originals at the Fife Council Archive Centre)
• Kirkcaldy Burgh Register of Deeds 1673-1871 (originals at the National Records of Scotland)
• Pittenweem Burgh Register of Deeds 1721-1881 (originals at the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library)
• St Andrews Burgh Register of Deeds 1692-1891 (originals at the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library)

Fife Family History Society have published printed indexes of:

• Cupar Sheriff Court Register of Inventories, 1824-1892 (published as Wills 1824-1892 Registered with the Sheriff Court of Fife at Cupar) (originals at the National Records of Scotland)
• Cupar Sheriff Court Register of Deeds, 1809-1900 (originals at the National Records of Scotland)

For residents in the parishes of Abernethy, Arngask, Culross and Tulliallan, and also for those in the north-west of Fife in general, a search in the Perth Register of Deeds may be useful. They are held by Perth & Kinross Council Archive, Perth. An index to the Perth Register of Deeds, 1566-1811, is online at Ancestry.co.uk.

Services of Heirs: see Land & Property above.

• A searchable index to Scottish Wills & Testaments from 1500-1901, comprising over 500,000 names, is now available online at ScotlandsPeople.
• Most records of wills and inventories are held in The National Archives of Scotland in Edinburgh. Many published indexes can be consulted in local libraries in Scotland, and also through LDS Family History Centres around the world.

• Post-1858 wills: copies can be ordered from the Probate Service or from UKDocuments for a  fee.
• Pre-1858 Wills: administrations and other probate records will be found in the Record Office holding the documents of the ecclesiastical (church) court where the will was proved.
• For English and Welsh records see TNA Leaflet: Will and Probate Records. Scottish testamentary records are held at the National Archives of Scotland in Edinburgh.
• Copies of wills proved in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury can be obtained for a fee from the National Archives via their Wills 1384-1858 page.
• Official search facility for finding the will of a soldier who died while serving in the British armed forces between 1850 and 1986.
• Tom's Wills - the index to UK wills 1931-1949.