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Baker County, OR Probate Information
Quick facts
| Category | Current rules |
|---|---|
| Court | The Baker County Circuit Court, Oregon's general-jurisdiction trial court for this county and a state court funded and administered by the Oregon Judicial Department. Baker is not one of the six counties where probate sits in a county court, so probate jurisdiction here is in the circuit court (ORS 111.075), governed by Title 12 of the Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS chapters 111 to 118). The court is the whole of the 8th Judicial District and has one elected judge, who serves as Presiding Judge |
| Filing office | The court's Office of the Trial Court Administrator, on the second floor of the Baker County Courthouse. Baker publishes no separate probate department, unlike the metro courts, but its own Telephone Directory lists a probate extension. Do not confuse the court with the Baker County Clerk in Suite 150, who handles recording, elections, marriage licenses and passports and publishes nothing about probate, or with the Baker County Justice Court in Suite 170, whose civil jurisdiction is capped at $10,000 and which has no probate jurisdiction |
| Courthouse address | Baker County Courthouse, 1995 3rd Street, Suite 220, Baker City, OR 97814. The court states that it is located on the second floor, and SLR 9.081(1) gives the same street, suite and city as the counter for an oral objection in a protective proceeding. The county writes the same street as 1995 Third Street |
| Mailing address | Baker County Circuit Court, 1995 3rd Street, Suite 220, Baker City, OR 97814. The mailing address is the street address; this court publishes no post office box, so nothing needs to be addressed differently for mail |
| Phone | 541-523-6303, extension 72439 for probate. The court's Telephone Directory publishes department extensions behind the main number and lists Probate at extension 72439 (verified July 2026); the same extension serves Civil, which is normal in a court this size. The directory tells callers they may follow the telephone tree or enter the extension directly. Other extensions include criminal at 71645, docketing and scheduling at 71055 and the Trial Court Administrator at 71044 |
| Fax and email | None published. The court publishes no fax number and no department email address on its own website, and it has no Contacts page (the usual Oregon Judicial Department contacts address for this county returns a page not found). Call 541-523-6303 extension 72439 rather than assuming a filing can be faxed or emailed |
| Hours | 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, which the court publishes as its courthouse hours (verified July 2026). Baker publishes no separate filing-counter cutoff, no lunch closure and no restricted phone-service window, and it has no local rule stating courthouse hours, so treat the posted hours as the counter hours and call ahead before a long drive. Oregon courts are closed on legal holidays. An electronic filing is timely if submitted by 11:59:59 p.m. in the court's time zone (UTCR 21.080(2)), which is later than the counter |
| Filing fee | The filing fee to open a probate is set by statute and is the same in every Oregon county, tiered by the value of the estate: $278 if the estate is worth less than $50,000, $591 from $50,000 to just under $1,000,000, $882 from $1,000,000 to just under $10,000,000, and $1,176 at $10,000,000 or more (ORS 21.170(1); Oregon Judicial Department Circuit Court Fee Schedule effective January 1, 2026). A simple estate affidavit is $124 (ORS 21.145(4)). The caption must state the value of the estate (ORS 21.105). Fee waivers and deferrals are available. Confirm the current schedule with the court at 541-523-6303 extension 72439 |
| Local forms | Yes, a small set, and one of them is a probate accounting form. The court's Self Help forms page states that it contains many forms specific to Baker County Circuit Court and warns that where two versions of a form exist you should select the Baker version. Three forms are scoped to Baker in the probate category of the Oregon Judicial Department forms library: an Accounting form captioned for the County of Baker that a conservator or a personal representative uses, a Guardian's Report, and an Objection to Petition for Appointment of Guardian or Conservator, which is also Appendix B to the local rules. A general-category Motion for Remote Appearance form is also Baker-specific. There is no local or statewide petition to open a probate |
| E-filing | Available and used, mandatory for attorneys. An active licensee of the Oregon State Bar must file through the statewide electronic filing system, OJD eFile, which is Odyssey File and Serve, unless the document must be filed conventionally or the filer holds a waiver (UTCR 21.140(1)). A self-represented filer may register and e-file but is not required to, and may file at the counter or by mail instead. Two things still go in on paper: an original will, because a document required by law to be filed in original form must be filed conventionally (UTCR 21.070(3)(h)), and non-documentary exhibits for a remote hearing (SLR 3.51(2)). Baker's local rules contain no SLR 2.501, so this district adds nothing to the statewide conventional-filing list |
| Case search | Through the free Oregon Judicial Department Records and Calendar Search, which covers Oregon's circuit courts and therefore covers Baker County. It is an index and register of actions, not a document library: the Oregon Judicial Department states that results provide basic case information, party information, event entries and dispositions, that the display is not the official ORS 7.020 register record, and that documents are not available through the service. For documents, the court publishes one OJCIN computer kiosk on the second floor of the courthouse, open to the public, where statewide circuit court case information and most filed documents can be reviewed for most cases; a paid OJCIN OnLine subscription is the remote equivalent. Decedents' estate cases are public |
| Remote appearance | By motion and order, on Webex. SLR 3.51(1) provides that counsel, parties or witnesses may be permitted to appear by remote means by filing a motion and order with the court, that remote appearance shall be by WebEx access as provided by the court, and that WebEx shall be used only in good reception areas and not while in a moving vehicle. The court publishes a Baker County Motion for Remote Appearance form and asks that questions about a remote hearing go to 541-523-6303. Nothing published makes probate hearings remote by default |
| Website | https://www.courts.oregon.gov/courts/baker/Pages/default.aspx (the court's home page, with its address, hours and main number), https://www.courts.oregon.gov/courts/baker/go/Pages/telephone.aspx (the Telephone Directory with the probate extension), https://www.courts.oregon.gov/courts/baker/help/Pages/forms.aspx (the Baker County forms, including the probate group), and https://www.courts.oregon.gov/courts/baker/records/Pages/default.aspx (court records and copy requests) |
Before you begin — know the assets and liabilities
Before you file anything in Baker City, know exactly what the estate holds. Which Oregon route fits depends on whether there is a will, on who is entitled to be appointed, and on the value and type of the assets, because a full probate that ends in letters testamentary or letters of administration and a simple estate affidavit under ORS 114.505 to 114.560 are different filings with different fees, different waiting periods and different consequences. Those routes and their dollar caps are statewide and are explained on the Oregon state page. Two Baker specifics make the homework worth doing first: this is a one-judge court with no probate department to walk a filer through a correction, and the court's own records counter works first come, first served, so a return trip costs a day rather than an hour.
Identify every bank and credit union account, retirement plan, brokerage holding, life insurance policy, vehicle and parcel of real property, along with every debt, before you file. In Oregon that is a filing requirement rather than good practice: the petition must state the extent and nature of the estate's assets so the court can set the bond (ORS 113.035), and the caption must state the value of the estate because the filing fee is tiered by that value (ORS 21.105(1); ORS 21.170(1)). If an amended pleading raises the value, the court collects the difference (ORS 21.105(2)). Sunset's asset discovery work, searching more than 2,300 financial institutions, exists for this step, so the petition you file in Suite 220 states the estate accurately the first time.
Which court handles jurisdiction
The Baker County Circuit Court, in Suite 220 on the second floor of the Baker County Courthouse at 1995 3rd Street in Baker City, is the only probate filing location for the county. There is no branch courthouse and no second counter. The court serves all of Baker County, including the cities the county lists as its own, Baker City, Greenhorn, Haines, Halfway, Huntington, Richland, Sumpter and Unity, along with the ranch country and national forest land between them. This is a large county with a small population and long drives, so plan the filing around the mail, the electronic filing system and the phone, and treat the trip to Baker City as the one for originals and for any hearing.
Baker County Circuit Court is the entire 8th Judicial District and has one elected judge, who is the Presiding Judge (ORS 3.012 groups Oregon's circuit courts into 27 judicial districts). That matters mainly by contrast: several neighboring courts share a website and staff with a second county, so a search can easily land a Baker filer on another county's page. Baker has its own page, its own rules and its own extension list. Probate here sits in the circuit court, not a county court: ORS 111.075 vests probate jurisdiction in the county courts of Gilliam, Grant, Harney, Malheur, Sherman and Wheeler Counties and in the circuit court for each other county, and Baker is one of the others. The practical consequence is that everything statewide applies here, including OJD eFile and the Oregon Judicial Department's online case search, neither of which reaches those six county courts.
Two other courts sit in the same building and neither handles an estate. The Baker County Justice Court, District #1, is in Suite 170 and covers traffic, boating, wildlife and other violations, residential eviction cases and small claims and civil claims where the money or damages claimed does not exceed $10,000, per the county's own description; it has no probate jurisdiction. The Baker County Clerk is in Suite 150 at 1995 Third Street and handles recording, elections, marriage licenses, passports and property tax appeals. The Clerk matters to an estate for one thing: recording the deed when Oregon real property is sold or transferred, because the Clerk is the county's recording officer. Probate filings go to the Circuit Court in Suite 220.
Venue is broad. Oregon law allows a probate to be filed in the county where the decedent was domiciled or had a place of abode at the time of death, in any county where the decedent's property was located at death or is located when the proceeding starts, in the county where the decedent died, or in the county where a personal injury or wrongful death claim could be brought (ORS 113.015(1)); filing in another county is not a jurisdictional defect (ORS 113.015(2)). In practice you file in the county where the decedent lived, because that is where the notice to interested persons is published (ORS 113.155(1)). So if the person who died lived in Baker County, file in Baker City. If proceedings are started in more than one county, all but the first are stayed until venue is settled, and the court may transfer the matter for the best interest of the estate (ORS 113.025).
The jurisdiction process
- Gather the documents. Collect the original signed will if there is one, with the affidavit of an attesting witness or other evidence of the decedent's signature, a certified copy of the death certificate, the proposed personal representative's address and qualifications, the names and addresses of the heirs and devisees with the ages of any minors, and a list of assets and debts with values. Oregon's statutory term for the person who settles an estate is personal representative; executor and administrator are informal usages for the will-named and the court-appointed version of the same role.
- Decide what you are asking the court for. A probate proceeding is commenced by filing a petition (ORS 111.205(1)), and the court then appoints a qualified and suitable personal representative in the order of preference set by ORS 113.085(1), starting with the person named in the will and then the surviving spouse or the spouse's nominee where the spouse is a distributee. Where the estate is small enough, the alternative is a simple estate affidavit filed with the clerk of the probate court in a county where there is venue (ORS 114.515(1)), which in Baker County means the Baker County Circuit Court. The caps, the waiting period and the two-year review window for that route are statewide and are covered on the Oregon state page.
- Draft the petition, because no form exists. Oregon prescribes no pleading forms for probate: no particular pleadings or forms of pleadings are required in the exercise of the jurisdiction of probate courts (ORS 111.205(2)), and there is no statewide or Baker County petition, inventory or letters form. Every petition, inventory, report and accounting must be in writing and carry a declaration under penalty of perjury in the form required by ORCP 1 E. The petition must state the decedent's name, age, domicile, address and date and place of death, whether the decedent died testate or intestate, the facts relied on to establish venue, the proposed personal representative's address and qualifications, the heirs and devisees, a statement that reasonable efforts have been made to identify and locate all heirs, whether the original will accompanies the petition, and a statement of the extent and nature of the assets so the court can set the bond (ORS 113.035). Put the value of the estate in the caption (ORS 21.105(1)).
- Collect the forms that do exist. The court's Self Help forms page carries the Baker County forms and states that where two versions of a form exist you should select the Baker version. In the probate group that means the court's own Accounting form, captioned for the County of Baker and set up for either a conservator or a personal representative, a Guardian's Report, and an Objection to Petition for Appointment of Guardian or Conservator. The Oregon Judicial Department publishes the statewide Simple Estate Affidavit packet with instructions and a Claim Against Estate form, and an accounting filed substantially in the statewide format must be accepted in every judicial district (UTCR 9.160). Baker has adopted no SLR 9.161, so neither format is mandatory here.
- File with the Baker County Circuit Court, electronically or on paper. An active Oregon State Bar licensee must use OJD eFile, the statewide system run as Odyssey File and Serve, unless the document must be filed conventionally or the filer holds a waiver (UTCR 21.140(1)); a self-represented filer may register and e-file but may also file at the counter in Suite 220, 1995 3rd Street, Baker City, or by mail to the same address, open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. The original will is the exception either way: a document required by law to be filed in original form must be filed conventionally (UTCR 21.070(3)(h)), and if you e-file the rest, e-file an image of the will and then deliver the original within seven business days with a filing comment saying so, in which case it counts as filed on the date the image went in (UTCR 21.070(3)(h)(i)). An electronic filing is timely to 11:59:59 p.m. in the court's time zone (UTCR 21.080(2)). Call 541-523-6303 extension 72439 before mailing an original will.
- Pay the filing fee. Opening a probate costs $278 if the estate is worth less than $50,000, $591 from $50,000 to just under $1,000,000, $882 from $1,000,000 to just under $10,000,000, and $1,176 at $10,000,000 or more (ORS 21.170(1); Oregon Judicial Department Circuit Court Fee Schedule effective January 1, 2026). A simple estate affidavit is $124, with no fee for an amended affidavit (ORS 21.145(4); ORS 114.515(5)). Fees are payable in advance and are not refundable (ORS 21.100), and the statutory filing fee is the only charge collectible for the filing, which is why Baker County adds no local surcharge. Fee waivers and deferrals are available through the Oregon Judicial Department's fee deferral and waiver packet.
- Take the appointment and collect the letters. The court issues letters testamentary where there is a will or letters of administration where there is not, once any bond the court requires is filed with the clerk of the court (ORS 113.105; ORS 113.125). Bond is not required where the will waives it, where the personal representative is the sole heir or devisee, or where the petition states that no assets are known, though the court may still require one for good cause. A certified copy of the letters is what banks, transfer agents and title companies rely on, so order enough for the institutions the estate deals with: a certified copy of letters is $5 plus 25 cents per page in paper form and $0 if delivered electronically (ORS 21.258; Chief Justice Order 23-016; fee schedule effective January 1, 2026). If an out-of-state institution or a foreign registry wants an exemplified copy, the court's records page says that is a three-way certificate sworn by the court clerk and the Presiding Judge and that it takes two to three additional days to process, so ask for it early.
- Complete the court's fiduciary education class if it applies to you. Under SLR 9.086, effective February 1, 2026, a non-professional fiduciary, including any personal representative appointed under ORS chapter 113 on or after January 1, 2025, must register for and successfully complete an education class with a curriculum prescribed by the Presiding Judge of Baker County within 60 days of appointment, and a Certificate of Completion must be filed with the court. Professional fiduciaries as defined in ORS 125.240(5) and attorneys appointed as fiduciaries are exempt. The court sends the notice and instructions at appointment, to the attorney of record where there is one and otherwise to the fiduciary directly.
- Give the required information and notices. Upon appointment the personal representative must deliver or mail the statutory information to the devisees, heirs and the other persons named in the petition, file proof of that delivery or mailing within 30 days after appointment, and mail the same information with a copy of the death record to the Department of Human Services and the Oregon Health Authority (ORS 113.145). The notice to interested persons is published once, not once a week for three weeks, in a newspaper published in the county where the estate proceeding is pending, or in a newspaper the court designates if none is published there (ORS 113.155(1)), and it must require all persons having claims to present them within four months after the date of publication. Neither Baker County nor the court publishes a designated newspaper, so confirm the paper and the schedule with the court at 541-523-6303 extension 72439 and with the newspaper before you rely on a date, because publication starts the four-month claim period.
- Search for creditors, then handle claims. During the three months following appointment the personal representative must make reasonably diligent efforts to investigate the decedent's financial records and affairs to identify claimants, must mail or deliver a notice to each known claimant not later than 30 days after that period stating that claims not presented within 45 days of the notice may be barred, and must file proof of compliance not later than 60 days after the period (ORS 115.003). Claims are presented to the personal representative, not filed with the court, and filing a claim with the court does not count as presentation (ORS 115.005(1)(a)). A claim is barred if not presented before the later of four months after publication or 45 days after a notice to a known claimant (ORS 115.005(2)), with narrow exceptions.
- File the inventory within 90 days. The personal representative must file an inventory of all estate property that has come into their possession or knowledge within 90 days after the date of appointment unless the court grants longer, showing estimated fair market values as of the date of death (ORS 113.165). If no property has come in, an inventory saying so must still be filed, and property found later goes into a supplemental inventory within 30 days or into the next accounting (ORS 113.175).
- Account, then close. Unless the court orders otherwise, an account is filed annually within 60 days after the anniversary of appointment, and again when the estate is ready for final settlement and distribution (ORS 116.083(1)); a statement in lieu of an annual or a final account is possible where the distributees consent in writing and, for the final account, where creditors other than those owed administrative expenses have been paid in full (ORS 116.083(3) and (5)). Oregon charges to file an accounting, on the same value bands as the filing fee: $35, $298, $591 and $1,176 (ORS 21.170(2)). Baker County publishes its own Accounting form for this step. On filing the final account and the petition for a judgment of distribution, mail the account, the petition and notice of the time for objections to each distributee and each unpaid creditor at least 20 days beforehand (ORS 116.093(1)); if no objections are filed, the court enters a general judgment of final distribution (ORS 116.113). Where Oregon real property passes, record the deed with the Baker County Clerk in Suite 150, the county's recording officer.
Executor duties
A personal representative appointed in Baker County carries the statewide duties, and since February 1, 2026 one local duty on top of them. The statewide obligations are the notices and proof of mailing within 30 days of appointment (ORS 113.145), publication of the notice to interested persons once (ORS 113.155(1)), the creditor search and known-claimant notices (ORS 115.003), the inventory within 90 days (ORS 113.165) and the annual and final accountings (ORS 116.083). What is local is a court-required education class and the court's own accounting form.
| Local duty | What Baker County requires |
|---|---|
| Fiduciary education class within 60 days of appointment | SLR 9.086, new in the supplementary local rules effective February 1, 2026, applies to non-professional fiduciaries including any personal representative appointed under ORS chapter 113 on or after January 1, 2025, any guardian or conservator appointed under ORS chapter 125 or ORS chapter 419B on or after that date, and any non-professional fiduciary cited for a deficiency in handling fiduciary duties through the show cause process. Those fiduciaries must register for and successfully complete an education class with a curriculum prescribed by the Presiding Judge of Baker County within 60 days of appointment. A professional fiduciary as defined in ORS 125.240(5) and an attorney appointed as a fiduciary are exempt |
| Notice, certificate and waiver mechanics | The court sends the notice and instructions at the time of appointment, to the attorney of record where the fiduciary is represented, and directly to the fiduciary where the fiduciary appears without an attorney. On completing the class the fiduciary must complete the online course assessment and file a Certificate of Completion with the court. A fiduciary may ask to be excused for good cause by motion supported by affidavit, filed within 15 days of receipt of the notice, and the court may require a fiduciary to retake the class |
| Consequences and cost | The fee for the court-required class is a cost of administration of the proceeding, and the court may waive or defer it in keeping with its fee waiver and deferral policy. Failure to comply on time may result in removal of the non-professional fiduciary by the court, or other appropriate sanctions (SLR 9.086) |
| Accountings on the court's own form | Baker County publishes an Accounting form captioned for the County of Baker that a conservator or a personal representative uses, covering bonding, changes in the bond and the accounting period. It is optional: the court has adopted no SLR 9.161 making a format mandatory, and an accounting filed substantially in the statewide format must be accepted in every judicial district (UTCR 9.160). Remember that Oregon charges a fee for each annual or final accounting, tiered by the value of the estate at $35, $298, $591 and $1,176 (ORS 21.170(2)) |
Forms and documents
Probate forms in Baker County
Baker County publishes local forms, and none of them opens an estate. The court's Self Help forms page states that it contains many forms specific to Baker County Circuit Court, points to the statewide Forms Center for everything else, and warns that if there are two versions of any form you should select the Baker version. Its probate group holds three forms: the court's Accounting form, captioned for the County of Baker and set up for either a conservator or a personal representative; a Guardian's Report; and an Objection to Petition for Appointment of Guardian or Conservator, which is also Appendix B to the local rules and which SLR 9.081(2) says the court clerk will provide to an objecting party. A fourth form worth knowing about sits in the general group: the Baker County Motion for Remote Appearance, which is what SLR 3.51(1) requires for a remote hearing.
There is no statewide Oregon petition to open a probate, and that is by design rather than an oversight. No particular pleadings or forms of pleadings are required in the exercise of the jurisdiction of probate courts (ORS 111.205(2)), so the petition, the order, the notices, the inventory and the accountings are drafted documents rather than fill-in forms, each carrying a declaration under penalty of perjury in the form required by ORCP 1 E. What the Oregon Judicial Department does publish statewide, free, is the Simple Estate Affidavit packet with instructions, a Claim Against Estate form covering presentation of a claim to a personal representative, to a simple estate affiant, to a conservator or to a trustee, an accounting packet, a generic probate motion and order, and an acknowledgment of restriction of assets. The Forms Center states its own rule: any statewide form will be accepted in all circuit courts, statewide forms are not available for all circumstances, and additional forms may be available through local courts.
One tool that does not help here: the Oregon Judicial Department's Guide and File interactive forms service does not cover probate or simple estates, so there is no guided interview for an estate in Baker County or anywhere else in Oregon. If you e-file, remember the original will still goes in on paper (UTCR 21.070(3)(h)). Call 541-523-6303 extension 72439 to ask what the court wants on intake before you file.
| Resource | What it provides |
|---|---|
| Baker County Circuit Court forms (courts.oregon.gov) | The court's own forms page, with the probate group holding the Accounting form, the Guardian's Report and the Objection to Petition for Appointment of Guardian or Conservator, plus the Baker County Motion for Remote Appearance in the general group. The page renders its lists through a script, so allow it to load |
| Baker County Circuit Court supplementary local rules (courts.oregon.gov) | The local rules effective February 1, 2026, including SLR 9.086 on fiduciary education, SLR 3.51 on remote appearances and exhibits, SLR 9.081 on oral objections, and Appendix B, the objection form |
| Oregon Judicial Department estate forms (courts.oregon.gov) | The statewide Simple Estate Affidavit packet with instructions and the Claim Against Estate form. There is no statewide petition to open a probate |
| Oregon Judicial Department probate accounting forms (courts.oregon.gov) | The statewide accounting packet, the format that must be accepted in every judicial district under UTCR 9.160. Baker has adopted no SLR 9.161, so neither this nor the county's own form is mandatory |
| Statewide records request form (courts.oregon.gov) | The form the court asks you to use to obtain access to a court file, copies from a file, or audio of a proceeding, including certified and exemplified copies |
| Oregon Judicial Department fee deferral and waiver (courts.oregon.gov) | The packet for asking that a filing fee be deferred or waived, for a filer who cannot afford the amount set by ORS 21.170(1) |
Local nuance
Baker County-specific considerations
A one-judge court that still publishes real local rules. Baker County Circuit Court is the whole of the 8th Judicial District with one elected judge, and it has no probate department, no probate docket and no probate page on the Oregon Judicial Department site; the usual Oregon Judicial Department probate and contacts addresses for this county both return a page not found. What it does publish is a 34-page supplementary local rule set effective February 1, 2026, a Telephone Directory with a probate extension, a local forms page, and a small group of Baker County forms in the statewide forms library. Read the local rules before you assume a statewide answer: SLR 1.171 states that forms required by the rules are on the court's own website, and Chapter 9 of the rules covers probate and adoption proceedings.
Remote appearance is a motion, not a default, and the court publishes the form. SLR 3.51(1), numbered 3.051 in the rules' table of contents, provides that counsel, parties or witnesses may be permitted to appear by remote means by filing a motion and order with the court, that remote appearance shall be by WebEx access as provided by the court, and that WebEx shall be used only in good reception areas and not while in a moving vehicle. The Baker County Motion for Remote Appearance form asks for the hearing or trial date and the reason, and offers distance from the court facility and financial hardship as grounds. If a hearing does go remote, SLR 3.51(2) sets local exhibit deadlines that catch filers out: proposed documentary exhibits must be filed electronically, designated as UTCR 21.070(6) requires, by 12:00 p.m. one court day before the hearing or trial, non-documentary exhibits must be filed conventionally by the same deadline, and every exhibit must be provided to the other parties by 5:00 p.m. two court days before. Nothing published makes a probate hearing remote by default, so ask the court at 541-523-6303.
Records are close at hand in Baker City and thin at a distance. The court provides one OJCIN computer kiosk on the second floor of the courthouse, open to the public, where statewide circuit court case information and most filed documents can be reviewed for most cases, and it says newer cases can be reviewed at the public kiosk in the court lobby while older files that have not been digitized have to be retrieved on request. From outside the courthouse the free Oregon Judicial Department Records and Calendar Search gives the case index and register of actions but no documents, and the remote route to documents is a paid OJCIN OnLine subscription. Copies are requested on the Statewide Records Request Form; the court handles requests first come, first served, calculates the cost after the request is made, adds postage for mailing, and requires all fees to be paid in full before copies are made. An exemplified copy, the three-way certificate other states and countries often require, takes two to three additional days.
The building holds three courts and a county office, and only one of them takes a probate. Probate goes to the Circuit Court in Suite 220 on the second floor. The Baker County Justice Court, District #1, is in Suite 170 and handles violations, residential evictions and small claims and civil claims not exceeding $10,000, with no probate jurisdiction. The Baker County Clerk is in Suite 150, at (541) 523-8207, and handles recording, elections, marriage licenses, passports and property tax appeals; the Clerk is where a deed gets recorded, not where a probate is opened, which is the reverse of the arrangement in the six Oregon counties whose county clerks do take probate filings. The Baker County Courthouse Law Library is a computer kiosk on the third floor in the hallway of the District Attorney's Office and is overseen by the Baker County District Attorney, so treat it as a research terminal rather than court help.
Recent updates
| Change | What it means in Baker County |
|---|---|
| Baker County Circuit Court supplementary local rules, effective February 1, 2026, add SLR 9.086 on non-professional fiduciary education | This is new. The previous edition's probate chapter contained only SLR 9.081 on oral objections and SLR 9.085 on guardians' reports, and said nothing about fiduciary education. The new rule reaches any personal representative appointed under ORS chapter 113 on or after January 1, 2025, along with guardians and conservators appointed under ORS chapter 125 or ORS chapter 419B on or after that date, and requires registration for and successful completion of a class with a curriculum prescribed by the Presiding Judge of Baker County within 60 days of appointment, with a Certificate of Completion filed with the court. The class fee is a cost of administration and may be waived or deferred; failure to comply may result in removal or other sanctions. Professional fiduciaries as defined in ORS 125.240(5) and attorneys appointed as fiduciaries are exempt |
| SLR 7.025 on court scheduling was rewritten in the same 2026 edition | The rule now requires all pre-trial motions and memoranda, excluding motions in limine, to be submitted to the court and the opposing party not less than 21 days before trial, with an estimate of the hearing time, and provides that motions in limine are raised at the trial readiness hearing and heard the day of trial. The previous edition included motions in limine in the 21-day rule and said pre-trial motions would not be heard on the day of trial. This matters only if a probate matter is set for trial, which is unusual, but it is the deadline that governs when it happens |
Page last reviewed: July 2026.
Scenarios
| Situation | Likely path in Baker County | Where Sunset helps |
|---|---|---|
| Surviving spouse, co-owned home | If the home in Baker City, Haines, Halfway or elsewhere in the county was held with a right of survivorship, or passes by a beneficiary or transfer on death designation, it goes to the survivor without a probate and the court is not involved in the house itself. If assets stood in the decedent's sole name and there is a will, the spouse petitions the Baker County Circuit Court to admit the will and issue letters testamentary; with no will, a surviving spouse who is a distributee, or the spouse's nominee, has preference for appointment after any personal representative named in a will (ORS 113.085(1)). Bond often falls away where the personal representative is the sole heir or devisee (ORS 113.105). A spouse appointed on or after January 1, 2025 who is not a professional fiduciary also has to complete the court's education class within 60 days (SLR 9.086). | Asset discovery to confirm how the home and the accounts are titled and what actually has to reach the court. Packet generation for the petition and the notices, ready to file in Suite 220 or through OJD eFile. A vetted attorney referral if title or a claim turns out to be contested. |
| Out-of-state adult child, small estate | Where the estate is small enough for the simple estate affidavit route under ORS 114.505 to 114.560, the affidavit is filed with the clerk of the probate court in a county where there is venue (ORS 114.515(1)), which here is the Baker County Circuit Court, for a $124 fee (ORS 21.145(4)). No personal representative is appointed and no letters issue on that route. A filer living out of state can register for OJD eFile and file from home, or mail the papers to 1995 3rd Street, Suite 220, Baker City, OR 97814, and can look the case up afterwards in the free Oregon Judicial Department records search, which shows the register of actions but not the documents. If an out-of-state bank wants an exemplified copy of a document, allow the two to three extra days the court's records page describes. | Asset discovery to establish the estate's value from out of state and confirm which route it qualifies for. Packet generation for the affidavit or the petition, assembled so it can be e-filed or mailed to Baker City and accepted the first time. |
| Parent settling a predeceased child's estate, home must be sold | Because real property has to be sold, this normally means a full probate: with no will the parent petitions the Baker County Circuit Court for appointment as personal representative in the preference order of ORS 113.085(1), receiving letters of administration; with a will the parent probates it and receives letters testamentary. The inventory follows within 90 days (ORS 113.165), the notice to interested persons is published once in a newspaper published in the county (ORS 113.155(1)), and claims are presented to the personal representative rather than filed with the court (ORS 115.005). The parent will also owe the court's fiduciary education class within 60 days of appointment (SLR 9.086) and can use the court's own Accounting form. The deed on the sale is recorded with the Baker County Clerk in Suite 150, and the estate closes with a final account and a general judgment of final distribution (ORS 116.083; ORS 116.113). | Asset discovery for the child's accounts, insurance, real property and debts. Packet generation for the petition, the inventory and the notices. Attorney referral where the sale, a mortgage payoff or a dispute among heirs makes counsel worthwhile. |
Self-help resources
| Resource | What it offers |
|---|---|
| Baker County Circuit Court (courts.oregon.gov), 541-523-6303 | The court itself: the Baker County Courthouse at 1995 3rd Street, Baker City, the mailing address at Suite 220, courthouse hours of 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and the statement that the court is on the second floor. Court staff can explain procedure but cannot give legal advice |
| Baker County Circuit Court telephone directory (courts.oregon.gov) | The department extensions behind 541-523-6303, including probate at extension 72439, docketing and scheduling at 71055 and the Trial Court Administrator at 71044. The court says you may follow the telephone tree or enter the extension directly |
| Baker County Circuit Court forms (courts.oregon.gov) | The Baker County forms, including the probate group and the Motion for Remote Appearance, with the court's warning to select the Baker version where two versions of a form exist |
| Baker County Circuit Court records (courts.oregon.gov) | How to see and copy a court file: the Statewide Records Request Form, first come first served handling, costs calculated after the request and payable in full before copies are made, the public kiosk in the court lobby for newer cases, retrieval for older undigitized files, and the difference between copies, certified copies and exemplified copies |
| Baker County Circuit Court other court resources (courts.oregon.gov) | The one public OJCIN computer kiosk on the second floor, where statewide circuit court case information and most filed documents can be reviewed for most cases, and the Baker County Courthouse Law Library computer kiosk on the third floor in the hallway of the District Attorney's Office, overseen by the District Attorney |
| Baker County Circuit Court supplementary local rules (courts.oregon.gov) | The local rules effective February 1, 2026: SLR 9.086 on the non-professional fiduciary education program, SLR 3.51 on remote appearances and exhibit deadlines, SLR 9.081 on oral objections at 1995 3rd Street, Suite 220, and SLR 1.171 on the court website and local forms |
| Baker County Circuit Court local remote hearings (courts.oregon.gov) | How a Webex hearing works, the Oregon Judicial Department litigant, witness and public access guides, and the court's instruction to call 541-523-6303 with questions about a remote hearing |
| Oregon Judicial Department estate forms (courts.oregon.gov) | The free statewide Simple Estate Affidavit packet with instructions and the Claim Against Estate form. Oregon publishes no statewide petition to open a probate |
| Oregon Judicial Department court fees (courts.oregon.gov) | The current fee schedule, effective January 1, 2026, with the ORS 21.170(1) probate tiers. The schedule itself is at https://www.courts.oregon.gov/Documents/2026_CircuitFeeSchedule_public_eff-2026-01-01.pdf |
| OJD eFile (courts.oregon.gov) | The statewide electronic filing system, run as Odyssey File and Serve. Mandatory for active Oregon State Bar licensees (UTCR 21.140(1)) and open to self-represented filers who register |
| Oregon Judicial Department records and calendar search (courts.oregon.gov) | The free statewide case index and register of actions for Oregon's circuit courts, which includes Baker County. Documents are not available through it; the paid subscription alternative is https://www.courts.oregon.gov/services/online/Pages/ojcin.aspx |
| Oregon State Bar, what is probate (osbar.org) | Plain-language explanation of Oregon probate from the state bar. Not a government agency, but a reputable non-government source |
| Oregon State Bar lawyer referral service (osbar.org), 503-684-3763 or 800-452-7636 in Oregon | Referrals to Oregon probate attorneys and the Bar's Modest Means Program, useful in a county with a very small local bar |
| Oregon Law Center, Ontario regional office (oregonlawcenter.org), (541) 889-3121 or 1-888-250-9877 | The legal aid program whose county menu lists Baker County, at 35 SE 5th Avenue, Unit #1, Ontario. Its published practice areas are administrative law, employment law, family law, farmworker law, housing law and civil rights, and estates are not among them, so ask whether it can take an estate matter |
| Oregon Law Help (oregonlawhelp.org) | Oregon's legal aid information site, which the court itself links as an online legal resource. It publishes no probate topic, so use it to confirm which legal aid program covers Baker County and how to apply |
| Baker County Clerk (bakercountyor.gov), (541) 523-8207 | Not the probate office. The Clerk, in Suite 150 at 1995 Third Street, handles recording, elections, marriage licenses, passports and property tax appeals, and is where a deed is recorded when estate real property changes hands, along with the Clerks Index of recorded documents |
When to hire an attorney
Many Baker County estates are uncontested, and a family that knows what the estate holds can often open one and see it through with limited legal help. Three local facts push the other way. Oregon prescribes no petition form (ORS 111.205(2)), so a self-represented filer is drafting the petition, the order, the notices and the inventory from scratch. This is a one-judge court with no probate department, so there is no counter specialist to walk a correction through. And since February 1, 2026 a non-professional personal representative appointed on or after January 1, 2025 owes the court's own fiduciary education class within 60 days of appointment, on pain of removal or other sanctions (SLR 9.086), while an attorney appointed as fiduciary is exempt. Consider counsel when a will is contested or a dispute among heirs is likely, when the estate is insolvent or a creditor is pressing a claim inside the four-month window (ORS 115.005), when ranch ground, timber, water rights, mining claims, a business or out-of-state property has to be valued, sold or divided, when a conservatorship or guardianship has to run alongside the estate, or when a matter looks likely to be set for a contested hearing or trial. Court staff can explain procedure but cannot give legal advice. Sunset can connect families to a vetted Oregon probate attorney serving Baker County.
How Sunset helps
Find the accounts and assets. Sunset searches more than 2,300 financial institutions and public records to surface bank and credit union accounts, retirement plans, brokerage holdings, life insurance, Baker County real property and unclaimed property, so you know the estate's value before you file. That matters here twice over: the petition must state the extent and nature of the assets (ORS 113.035) and the caption must state the value of the estate, because the filing fee is tiered by it (ORS 21.105(1)).
Generate the probate packet. Sunset assembles the estate settlement paperwork for your route, whether a petition for appointment of a personal representative or a simple estate affidavit, ready to submit through OJD eFile or to file on paper at the counter in Suite 220 or by mail to Baker City.
Find a local probate attorney. When a matter is contested or otherwise calls for counsel, Sunset connects families to a vetted Oregon probate attorney serving Baker County.
Sunset is free for families. Revenue comes from bank partners that pay Sunset while estate funds sit in an FDIC-insured estate account ($3M coverage).
Frequently asked questions
Where do I file for probate in Baker County?
With the Baker County Circuit Court, in Suite 220 on the second floor of the Baker County Courthouse at 1995 3rd Street, Baker City, OR 97814. There is one filing location for the county and the mailing address is the same street address, so you can file at the counter, by mail, or electronically through OJD eFile. Probate here sits in the circuit court rather than a county court, because ORS 111.075 vests probate jurisdiction in the county courts of only six named counties and in the circuit court for every other county. Call 541-523-6303 extension 72439 with a filing question. File in Baker County if the person who died lived here, because that is where the notice to interested persons is published (ORS 113.155(1)), although Oregon's venue rule is broader and filing elsewhere is not a jurisdictional defect (ORS 113.015).
Can I e-file a probate case in Baker County?
Yes. OJD eFile, the statewide electronic filing system run as Odyssey File and Serve, covers Oregon's circuit courts, which includes Baker County. An active licensee of the Oregon State Bar must use it unless the document has to be filed conventionally or the filer holds a waiver (UTCR 21.140(1)). A self-represented filer may register and e-file but is not required to, and can file at the counter in Suite 220 or by mail instead. The original will is the exception: a document required by law to be filed in original form must be filed conventionally (UTCR 21.070(3)(h)), so e-file an image of it and deliver the original within seven business days with a filing comment saying so, and it counts as filed on the date the image went in (UTCR 21.070(3)(h)(i)). Baker's local rules contain no SLR 2.501, so nothing else is added to the conventional filing list here. An electronic filing is timely to 11:59:59 p.m. in the court's time zone (UTCR 21.080(2)).
How much does it cost to open a probate in Baker County?
The fee is statutory and the same in every Oregon county, tiered by the value of the estate: $278 if the estate is worth less than $50,000, $591 from $50,000 to just under $1,000,000, $882 from $1,000,000 to just under $10,000,000, and $1,176 at $10,000,000 or more (ORS 21.170(1); Oregon Judicial Department Circuit Court Fee Schedule effective January 1, 2026). A simple estate affidavit is $124, and there is no fee for an amended affidavit (ORS 21.145(4); ORS 114.515(5)). Oregon also charges for each annual or final accounting, at $35, $298, $591 and $1,176 on the same value bands (ORS 21.170(2)), and $281 for any other appearance in a probate proceeding (ORS 21.135(1) and (2)(g); ORS 21.170(4)). Fees are payable in advance and are not refundable (ORS 21.100), Baker County adds no local surcharge, and fee waivers and deferrals are available. Confirm the amount with the court at 541-523-6303 extension 72439.
Does Baker County have local probate forms?
Yes, three in the probate group, plus one general form worth knowing about, and none of them opens an estate. The court's forms page carries an Accounting form captioned for the County of Baker that a conservator or a personal representative uses, a Guardian's Report, and an Objection to Petition for Appointment of Guardian or Conservator, which is also Appendix B to the local rules. The general group holds the Baker County Motion for Remote Appearance. The court warns that where two versions of a form exist you should select the Baker version. What nobody publishes is a petition to open a probate: Oregon requires no particular pleadings or forms of pleadings in the exercise of the jurisdiction of probate courts (ORS 111.205(2)), so the petition, the order, the inventory and the notices are drafted documents. The Oregon Judicial Department does publish a free statewide Simple Estate Affidavit packet, a Claim Against Estate form and an accounting packet.
Is there a new Baker County rule for personal representatives?
Yes. SLR 9.086, a non-professional fiduciary educational program, appears for the first time in the supplementary local rules effective February 1, 2026; the previous edition's probate chapter had no such rule. By its own terms it applies to any personal representative appointed under ORS chapter 113 on or after January 1, 2025, as well as guardians and conservators appointed under ORS chapter 125 or ORS chapter 419B on or after that date, and to any non-professional fiduciary cited for a deficiency through the show cause process. Those fiduciaries must register for and successfully complete an education class with a curriculum prescribed by the Presiding Judge of Baker County within 60 days of appointment, complete the online course assessment, and file a Certificate of Completion. The class fee is a cost of administration and may be waived or deferred. A good-cause waiver must be requested by motion supported by affidavit within 15 days of receiving the court's notice, and failure to comply may result in removal or other sanctions. Professional fiduciaries as defined in ORS 125.240(5) and attorneys appointed as fiduciaries are exempt.
Can I appear by phone or video in a Baker County probate matter?
Only if the court allows it, and you have to ask. SLR 3.51(1) provides that counsel, parties or witnesses may be permitted to appear by remote means by filing a motion and order with the court, that remote appearance shall be by WebEx access as provided by the court, and that WebEx shall be used only in good reception areas and not while in a moving vehicle. The court publishes a Baker County Motion for Remote Appearance form for that request. Nothing published makes probate hearings remote by default. If a hearing is remote, note the local exhibit deadlines: documentary exhibits must be e-filed by 12:00 p.m. one court day before the hearing, non-documentary exhibits filed conventionally by the same deadline, and all exhibits given to the other parties by 5:00 p.m. two court days before (SLR 3.51(2)). Questions about a remote hearing go to 541-523-6303.
How do I look up a Baker County probate case or get copies?
The free Oregon Judicial Department Records and Calendar Search covers Oregon's circuit courts, so a Baker County estate case appears there. It is an index and register of actions: the Oregon Judicial Department states that results provide basic case information, party information, event entries and dispositions, that the display is not the official ORS 7.020 register record, and that documents are not available through the service. For documents, the court provides one public OJCIN computer kiosk on the second floor of the courthouse, where statewide circuit court case information and most filed documents can be reviewed for most cases, and the remote equivalent is a paid OJCIN OnLine subscription. For copies, submit the Statewide Records Request Form; requests are handled first come, first served, staff calculate the cost after the request, postage is added for mailing, and fees must be paid in full before copies are made. An exemplified copy, which other states and countries often require, takes two to three additional days.
What are the Baker County Circuit Court's hours, and is there a filing cutoff?
The court publishes courthouse hours of 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday (verified July 2026), and closes on legal holidays. Unlike the metro Oregon courts it publishes no separate filing-counter cutoff, no lunch closure and no restricted phone-service window, and it has no local rule stating courthouse hours, so treat the posted hours as the counter hours and call 541-523-6303 extension 72439 before a long drive. If you e-file instead, the deadline is later: an electronic filing is timely if submitted by 11:59:59 p.m. in the court's time zone (UTCR 21.080(2)).
Is probate in Baker County handled by the county clerk or the county court?
Neither. Baker is a circuit-court county. ORS 111.075 vests probate jurisdiction in the county courts of Gilliam, Grant, Harney, Malheur, Sherman and Wheeler Counties and in the circuit court for each other county, so a Baker County estate belongs to the Baker County Circuit Court in Suite 220. The Baker County Clerk, in Suite 150 at (541) 523-8207, handles recording, elections, marriage licenses, passports and property tax appeals and publishes nothing about probate; the Clerk matters to an estate when a deed has to be recorded. The Baker County Justice Court in Suite 170 handles violations, residential evictions and small claims and civil claims not exceeding $10,000, and has no probate jurisdiction.
Where is the notice to interested persons published for a Baker County estate?
Once, in a newspaper published in the county where the estate proceeding is pending, or in a newspaper the court designates if none is published there (ORS 113.155(1)). Oregon publishes this notice a single time, not once a week for three weeks, and the notice must require all persons having claims to present them within four months after the date of publication. Neither Baker County nor the court publishes a designated newspaper, so confirm the paper, the schedule and the cost with the court at 541-523-6303 extension 72439 and with the newspaper before you rely on a date, because publication starts the four-month claim period (ORS 115.005). Publication is not required where the petition states that no assets are known (ORS 113.155(5)).
Do I have to travel to Baker City to settle an estate in Baker County?
Often not at all. A self-represented filer can register for OJD eFile and submit the petition and the later filings electronically, or mail them to the court at 1995 3rd Street, Suite 220, Baker City, OR 97814, and certified copies of the letters can be mailed back at $5 plus 25 cents per page in paper form or $0 delivered electronically (ORS 21.258; Chief Justice Order 23-016; fee schedule effective January 1, 2026). The two things that pull you to the courthouse are the original will, which must be filed conventionally (UTCR 21.070(3)(h)), and any hearing the court sets, since a remote appearance takes a motion and order under SLR 3.51 rather than being the default. The public OJCIN kiosk on the second floor is also the only free way to see filed documents, so a local agent or a records request is the alternative for an out-of-state filer.
Shaped by the families we've helped
Thank you to the thousands of families who have trusted Sunset to help settle their loved ones' estates. This page is shaped by the questions they actually asked and the obstacles they actually hit — and that hard-won experience is what keeps it accurate, current, and genuinely useful to the families who come next.