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Illinois Notice to Heirs and Legatees: Cook County Form Index, Envelopes and Proof of Mailing

The Cook County probate notices a paralegal mails, by form number: who gets each one, what is stapled behind it, the clock printed on the form, the CCP 1000 proof of mailing, the counter checklist for the heirs packet, and creditor notices in one batch from a laptop.

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"Send the heir notices" means, in Cook County, mailing a packet to each heir and legatee named in the petition within 14 days of the order and filing a proof of mailing. This page is the form index for that job, plus the proof form (CCP 1000) and the record to keep. The heirs packet is a post office counter job; the creditor notices can go out in one batch from a laptop.

The forms are the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County's 12/01/2024 revisions, checked October 13, 2026. This page shows structure, not legal advice; your attorney decides who is on the list, what each notice says and when it goes. {{double_braces}} marks a merge field you fill per letter; [square brackets] mark wording you write once per estate. Lines are broken to fit a phone screen; join each paragraph after you paste.

1. The mailed notices Cook County's proof form indexes#

CCP 1000, Proof of Mailing and Publication, carries a footnote: "The more frequently used forms are listed on the second page." That page heads them Mailed Notices. The table is those six plus CCP 1021, the will-denied twin of CCP 1020. Most forms carry a Note naming the Probate Act section and the clock; the section column follows CCP 1000's index, and the quoted cells are the forms' printed lines.

Cook County mailed probate notices, by Clerk form number (12/01/2024 revisions)

Form
Who gets it
What is stapled behind it
The clock printed on the form
CCP 1020, Notice to Heirs and Legatees, Will Admitted (§6-10)
Each heir and legatee named in the petition
Copies of the petition to probate the will and the order admitting it. The form says: "The attached ORDER must show the date of entry."
"not more than 14 days after the entry of the ORDER admitting the Will to probate"
CCP 1021, Notice to Heirs and Legatees, Will Denied (§6-10)
Each heir and legatee named in the petition
Copies of the petition and the order denying admission; the order must show the date of entry
"not more than 14 days after the entry of the ORDER denying admission of the Will to probate"
CCP 1003 A-B, Notice of rights during independent administration (§28-2)
Every heir or legatee who gets the §6-10 or §9-5 notice
Copies of the petition for independent administration and the order granting it; page 2 is the blank petition to terminate
No clock of its own. The form says it "be included with the NOTICE mailed to each heir or legatee under §6-10 or §9-5"
CCP 1004, Notice of hearing on a petition for letters of administration (§9-5 and 6-2)
Each person named in the petition whose address is stated and who is entitled to administer, or to nominate, equally with or ahead of the petitioner
A copy of the petition. The notice itself carries the judge, room, date and time
"not less than 30 days before the hearing on the PETITION to issue letters"
CCP 1007, Notice of termination of independent administration (§28-4(a)(2))
"all interested persons whose names and post office addresses are known to the representative"
Nothing listed on the form. The Note says the representative "must file proof of mailing with the Clerk of the Court"
None printed
CCP 1008, Notice regarding final report in independent administration (§28-11(e))
"each person who is entitled to, and has not waived, notice"
A copy of the final report "showing the date of its filing"
"not more than 14 days after the filing of the FINAL REPORT"
CCP 1009, Notice to surviving family members of potential rights to awards (§§15-1, 15-2)
The surviving spouse and children the notice describes
The reply form the notice says is "on the following page"; the Clerk's PDF is one page, so get the reply form from your attorney
None printed for mailing; the reply windows are printed in the notice text

Source: Quoted lines are from the forms' printed text; section numbers follow CCP 1000's index. Checked October 13, 2026. Published notices (A) to (E) on CCP 1000 page 2 go to the newspaper, not the mail; the publisher's certificate is the proof.

Where the official guidance lives:

2. What goes in each envelope#

The heirs packet is the one you will send most. One envelope per person, addressed as the petition lists them.

  • The notice: CCP 1020 if the will was admitted, CCP 1021 if it was denied, with the case number, calendar and estate name filled in and the attorney block completed.
  • The petition: a copy of the petition to probate the will (or for letters). Its heir-and-legatee list is your mailing list.
  • The order: a copy of the order admitting or denying the will. Both notices say the attached order "must show the date of entry," so use the file-stamped copy, not the draft.
  • CCP 1003 A-B, if the estate is in independent administration: both pages (the notice and the blank petition to terminate), plus copies of the petition for independent administration and the order granting it, which the form says are attached.
  • An optional cover letter on the firm's letterhead, written once with no merge fields (template below). The notice says who the recipient is; the letter says who you are.

Who is on the list. The names and addresses stated in the petition. Your attorney marks anyone excused, for example anyone who signed CCP 0303, Waiver of Notice (opens in new tab), which waives, among other things, "notice of the entry of an ORDER admitting the Will to probate" and "notice of rights in independent administration." Print the final list before you stuff envelopes; it becomes CCP 1000 page 2.

For the other notices, the table's third column is the envelope.

[Date]

Estate of [decedent's full name], deceased
Circuit Court of Cook County, Probate Division
Case No. [case number]

To each heir and legatee named in the petition:

This firm represents [representative's name], whom the
court appointed [independent] [executor/administrator]
of this estate on [date of order]. We don't represent
you.

Enclosed with this letter are:
- Notice to Heirs and Legatees
- a copy of the petition
- a copy of the court's order, showing its date
[- Notice to Heirs and Legatees Regarding Rights During
  Independent Administration, with a form petition]

The notice describes rights you have and the time limits
for using them. You may want to talk with your own lawyer
about them.

For questions about the estate, or to give us a new
address, contact [name] at [phone] or [email].

Sincerely,

[Attorney's name]
[Firm name, address, phone]

3. How to send them#

Two different jobs, two different ways.

The heirs packet: mail it at the counter. The forms say "mailed" and name no mail class; your attorney picks one. The reason to go to the post office is the proof form. CCP 1000 is signed under penalties of perjury and states the date the notices "were mailed" (section 4), so the office that mails the packets should be the office that records the date. Postmarkr sends USPS First-Class letters only. It doesn't send Certified Mail, doesn't issue a Certificate of Mailing (PS Form 3817), and can't give you a USPS-confirmed mailing date, so it isn't the tool for this packet.

Counter checklist:

  1. Assemble one packet per name on the final list: notice, petition, order with its date of entry, CCP 1003 A-B if independent administration, cover letter on top.
  2. Address each envelope exactly as the petition states the address. Put the firm's return address on every envelope so an undeliverable packet comes back to you.
  3. Mail by day 14 from the order date, earlier if you can.
  4. If the attorney wants a USPS-dated record, ask for a Certificate of Mailing at the counter. For three or more pieces, list them on one firm mailing sheet, PS Form 3665, at $0.75 a piece; for one or two, PS Form 3817 at $2.45 each. Both are issued only at the time of mailing, and USPS keeps no copy, so the stamped sheet in your file is the only one.
  5. Write the mailing date on your copy of the list the moment you leave the counter. That date goes in CCP 1000 paragraph 1.
  6. Keep a copy of each packet as mailed; CCP 1000 says those copies "are in the possession of the attorney."
  7. Complete CCP 1000 page 2 from the list and file the form.

Creditor notices: one batch from a laptop. The claims notice to each known creditor (section 5) carries the date your attorney gives you for that creditor. Your attorney also decides whether any creditor's notice needs a USPS-dated record; Postmarkr's record doesn't show a USPS-confirmed mailing date. Save the creditor notice below as a letter template in Postmarkr and upload a CSV with the address columns plus one column per field: {{date}}, {{account_ref}}, {{salutation_name}} and {{claims_date}}. Approve one proof, then pay for the batch. Each batch takes up to 100 recipients and $1,000, so split a longer list into several batches. Every field needs a value in every row, up to 512 characters. One row works for a single creditor. A one-page black-and-white letter is $2.05 all in: printing, the address page we add, the envelope, USPS First-Class postage and the processing fee. Printed the next business day following payment.

If your attorney expects a creditor to argue about the date it was mailed, send that one creditor's notice at the counter with the heirs packet and keep the Certificate of Mailing.

4. The proof of mailing: CCP 1000#

Searches for an "affidavit of mailing" for Illinois heir notices land on this form. Its title is Proof of Mailing and Publication, and it is one form for both jobs.

  • Who signs. The signature line reads "[signature of the representative or the attorney]." If the representative signs, a second line is an "Attorney Certification if signed by the representative (Sup. Ct. Rule 137)."
  • Paragraph 1, mailed notices. "On ___, the following required NOTICES* were mailed to each person whose name and address are stated on the second page." Fill the blank lines with the form numbers from the index, for example "CCP 1020, Notice to Heirs and Legatees, and CCP 1003 A-B." The footnote tells you to "Fill in the blank lines in paragraphs 1 and 2 with the appropriate notices under the Probate Act."
  • The copies line. "Copies of each NOTICE and the required documents, as mailed, are in the possession of the attorney." That is why step 6 of the counter checklist keeps a complete copy of every packet, not just the notice.
  • Paragraph 2, published notices. "The following required NOTICES* have been published," with "The publisher's certificate for each NOTICE is attached hereto or is on file with the clerk of the court." The newspaper supplies the certificate.
  • Page 2. The form index, then a Name, Address and City/State/Zip grid: one row per person mailed, copied from your final list, and the attorney block.

CCP 1000 is a different form from the certificate a court rule asks for when you serve papers by mail; for that one, see our guide to certificate of service by mail.

5. The claims notice to known creditors#

Known creditors get a mailed or delivered notice under Probate Act section 18-3, whose title is "Notice - Publication." The section's notice sentence lists what the notice states and how its date is set; your attorney gives you each creditor's date. Read it on ilga.gov: 755 ILCS 5/18-3 (opens in new tab).

There is no Clerk form for this notice; the published version goes to the newspaper as item (A) on CCP 1000, and the mailed version is a letter. The template below puts the per-creditor values in merge fields so one Bulk Send batch covers the whole creditor list, and a creditor found later gets its own row with its own {{claims_date}}.

{{date}}

NOTICE TO CREDITOR
Estate of [decedent's full name], deceased
Circuit Court of Cook County, Probate Division
Case No. [case number]
Your reference: {{account_ref}}

Dear {{salutation_name}}:

[Decedent's full name] died on [date of death]. Letters
of office were issued on [date] to [representative's
name], [address], as [independent] [executor/
administrator]. The representative's attorney of record
is [name, firm, address, phone].

Claims against the estate may be filed on or before
{{claims_date}} with [where your attorney says claims
are filed, with the address]. Any claim not filed on or
before {{claims_date}} is barred.

Sincerely,

[Attorney's name]
Attorney for the representative
[Firm name, phone, email]

At closing, the independent representative's Final Report, CCP 1011 (opens in new tab), states under penalties of perjury that "all known creditors have been given notice as required under §18-3." The creditor log in section 6 is what backs that line.

6. The record to keep#

For the heirs packet, keep what counter checklist steps 4 to 7 produce: the stamped PS Form 3665 or 3817 if you bought one, the dated final list, a copy of each packet as mailed, the file-stamped CCP 1000 and each publisher's certificate.

For the creditor batch: each letter has a status page in your Postmarkr dashboard with mail-stream status and USPS scan updates when available. We email you when it's sent to print, and you can download a PDF of exactly what was printed for the file. That record isn't a Certificate of Mailing and doesn't show a USPS-confirmed mailing date. Log each creditor's name, address, {{claims_date}} and the batch date in one place; the law firm mail log is a printable one-page version.

More on what each USPS option records: certified mail alternatives. More law-office mailing guides: the law firm mailing hub.

Sources#

All checked October 13, 2026. Cook County Clerk forms are the 12/01/2024 revisions.

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