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Clatsop County, OR Probate Information
Quick facts
| Category | Current rules |
|---|---|
| Court | The Clatsop County Circuit Court, Oregon's general-jurisdiction trial court for this county and a state court funded and administered by the Oregon Judicial Department. Clatsop 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 18th Judicial District and has three elected judges, sitting in Courtrooms 100, 200 and 300 |
| Filing office | The court's Office of the Trial Court Administrator, at the public service window on the first floor of the courthouse (SLR 9.081). The court lists probate among its division contacts, with its own phone route and mailbox, and its local rules refer to a probate clerk (SLR 9.045(1)). Do not confuse the court with the Clatsop County Clerk, Records and Elections Division at 820 Exchange Street, which handles recording, elections, marriage licenses and passports and publishes nothing about probate |
| Courthouse address | Clatsop County Courthouse, 749 Commercial Street, Astoria, OR 97103. SLR 1.173 gives the same street address and states that all physical appearances required by the local rules happen there unless the court says otherwise. The court describes the building as a 1908 courthouse listed on the National Register of Historic Places |
| Mailing address | Clatsop County Circuit Court, PO Box 835, Astoria, OR 97103. Mail goes to the box, not to 749 Commercial Street, and SLR 1.173 confirms both lines. Written objections in a protective proceeding go to the same box (SLR 9.081) |
| Phone | 503-325-8555, press 4 then option 2 during business hours, which is the route the court publishes for probate, guardianship and conservatorship (verified July 2026). The same main number reaches violations at option 2, criminal at option 3, civil at option 4, docketing at option 5, family law at option 6, juvenile at option 7 and the jury coordinator at option 8, and option 0 gets immediate assistance if you cannot join a remote hearing |
| Fax and email | Fax 503-325-8677, published by the court as its fax line. The probate mailbox is [email protected], which the court publishes for probate, guardianship and conservatorship and which SLR 9.081 also names for written objections. Use it for questions, not for filings: the court states plainly that pleadings cannot be filed by email. The court asks that you put the case number in the subject line, send attachments as PDFs, and not send links to files on servers or in the cloud, because the Oregon Judicial Department will not open them |
| Hours | The customer service windows are open 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, and the phones are open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday (verified July 2026). The counter closes an hour before the phones do, so plan a counter filing around 4:00 p.m. The court also publishes that it is closed on state holidays and from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on the first Wednesday of every month for a team meeting. If the windows are closed on a day the court is open, a drop box on the main floor of the courthouse takes filings and payments until 5:00 p.m. (SLR 1.161). 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 either |
| 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 503-325-8555, press 4 then option 2 |
| Local forms | Yes, and none of them opens a decedent's estate. The court's forms page states that it contains many forms specific to Clatsop County Circuit Court and warns that where two versions of a form exist you should select the Clatsop version. Four forms are scoped to Clatsop in the probate category of the Oregon Judicial Department forms library, and all four are protective-proceeding forms: a Guardian Report for an adult, a Guardian Report for a minor, and two versions of an Objection to Petition for Appointment of Guardian or Conservator. The form an estate filer is most likely to need sits in the remote hearing group: the Clatsop County Request to Change Mode of Appearance. 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)); the court states the same in its own words, that attorneys must use File and Serve. A self-represented filer may register and e-file but is not required to, and may file at the counter, in the drop box or by mail instead. Pleadings cannot be filed by email. 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 any non-documentary exhibit. Clatsop's local rules contain no Chapter 2 and therefore 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 Clatsop 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. Locally, the court says public documents in most court cases newer than 2009 can be viewed for free on the computer in the courthouse lobby, and that anything older, or any copy you want to keep, takes a records request. A paid OJCIN OnLine subscription is the remote route to documents. Decedents' estate cases are public; adoption and juvenile cases are confidential |
| Remote appearance | Video is the presumed mode for non-evidentiary probate proceedings here. SLR 1.175(1), new in the local rules effective February 1, 2026, lists the hearings that will generally be scheduled for video remote proceeding via Webex, and item (d) is non-evidentiary civil proceedings, including probate; SLR 1.175(2) provides that all other matters will generally be scheduled for in person proceedings. SLR 1.175(3) states that non-evidentiary proceedings include status hearings, uncontested hearings, and contested hearings where sworn testimony is not anticipated. Telephone may be substituted for video where a participant cannot appear by video and the judge approves (SLR 1.175(4)). To change the mode after a hearing notice has issued, file the court's Request to Change Mode of Appearance in writing at least 48 hours before the hearing, with the other parties' positions (SLR 1.175(6)). Check your hearing notice, which states how you are to attend |
| Website | https://www.courts.oregon.gov/courts/clatsop/Pages/default.aspx (the court's home page, with its address, hours and judges), https://www.courts.oregon.gov/courts/clatsop/go/Pages/contact-us.aspx (the Contact Us page with the probate phone route and the probate mailbox), https://www.courts.oregon.gov/courts/clatsop/help/Pages/forms.aspx (the Clatsop County forms), and https://www.courts.oregon.gov/courts/clatsop/records/Pages/default.aspx (court records and copy requests) |
Before you begin — know the assets and liabilities
Before you file anything in Astoria, 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 Clatsop specifics make the homework worth doing first: the customer service windows close at 4:00 p.m., an hour before the phones, so a late correction costs a day rather than an hour, and the court cannot take a pleading by email, so a document that has to be redone has to be redone on paper or through the electronic filing system.
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)). Clatsop adds a second reason to be thorough: every accounting you file later must include the opening and closing depository statements for each account for the accounting period (SLR 9.185), so an account you did not know about becomes a problem twice. Sunset's asset discovery work, searching more than 2,300 financial institutions, exists for this step, so the petition you file at 749 Commercial Street states the estate accurately the first time.
Which court handles jurisdiction
The Clatsop County Circuit Court, in the Clatsop County Courthouse at 749 Commercial Street in Astoria, is the only probate filing location for the county. There is no branch courthouse and no second counter. The public service window is on the first floor (SLR 9.081), and mail goes to PO Box 835, Astoria, OR 97103, not to the street address. The court serves all of Clatsop County, the northwest corner of Oregon where the Columbia River meets the Pacific, including Astoria, Warrenton, Seaside, Cannon Beach, Gearhart and the unincorporated communities between them. Astoria sits at the far north end of the county, so a filer from the south coast end should weigh the drive against filing electronically, by mail or in the courthouse drop box.
Clatsop County Circuit Court is the entire 18th Judicial District and has three elected judges (ORS 3.012 groups Oregon's circuit courts into 27 judicial districts). That matters mainly by contrast: several Oregon courts share a website and staff with a second county, so a search can easily land a filer on another county's page. Clatsop has its own page, its own rules and its own division phone routes. 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 Clatsop 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 county offices matter to an estate and neither one takes a probate filing. The Clatsop County Clerk, Records and Elections Division is at 820 Exchange Street, Suite 220, Astoria, at 503-325-8511, open 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday; it calls itself the official record keeper for Clatsop County and records deeds, mortgages, military discharges, marriage licenses and plat maps. That is where a deed gets recorded when estate real property is sold or transferred, and it is in a different building from the courthouse. The Clatsop County Law Library is a single computer, available by appointment only, in the Clatsop County Building at 800 Exchange Street, Suite 410, at 503-325-1000 extension 1314; the court notes only that the law library is overseen by Clatsop County. Probate filings go to the Circuit Court at 749 Commercial Street.
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 Clatsop County, file in Astoria. 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 Clatsop County means the Clatsop 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 Clatsop 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 forms page carries the Clatsop County forms and warns that where two versions of a form exist you should select the Clatsop version. In the probate group that means four protective-proceeding forms, not estate forms: a Guardian Report for an adult, a Guardian Report for a minor, and two versions of 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 the court's own forms page surfaces the simple estate group. Note one Clatsop rule before you draft an accounting: SLR 9.161 requires accountings in estate and conservatorship cases to be submitted in the format specified in UTCR 9.160, so the statewide accounting format is mandatory here rather than merely accepted.
- File with the Clatsop 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)); the court states the same, that attorneys must use File and Serve. A self-represented filer may register and e-file but may also file at the customer service window at 749 Commercial Street, Astoria, open 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, or by mail to Clatsop County Circuit Court, PO Box 835, Astoria, OR 97103. If the windows are closed on a day the court is open, the drop box on the main floor takes filings and payments until 5:00 p.m. (SLR 1.161). Pleadings cannot be filed by email, and the Oregon Judicial Department's Guide and File interactive service does not cover probate. 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 503-325-8555, press 4 then option 2 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 Clatsop 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 describes that as a document sworn to be a true copy by the court clerk and the Presiding Judge, and says most records requests are completed within 5 business days.
- Register for the court's fiduciary education class within 30 days, and finish it within 90. Under SLR 9.076, a non-professional fiduciary, including any personal representative appointed under ORS chapter 113 on or after the rule's effective date, must register for the educational program no later than 30 days from appointment and successfully complete an education class with a curriculum prescribed by the Presiding Judge of Clatsop County within 90 days of appointment. A certificate of completion must be filed with the court stating the date and time the class was taken and the provider. 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 Clatsop County nor the court publishes a designated newspaper, so confirm the paper and the schedule with the court at 503-325-8555, press 4 then option 2 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)). Two Clatsop rules attach here: the accounting must be in the format specified in UTCR 9.160 (SLR 9.161), and it must include the opening and closing depository statements for each account for the accounting period (SLR 9.185). 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)). 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 Clatsop County Clerk, Records and Elections Division at 820 Exchange Street, the county's recording officer.
Executor duties
A personal representative appointed in Clatsop County carries the statewide duties and three local ones 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 with two deadlines, a mandatory accounting format, and a depository-statement requirement that the statewide format does not contain.
| Local duty | What Clatsop County requires |
|---|---|
| Register for fiduciary education within 30 days and complete it within 90 | SLR 9.076 applies to court-appointed non-professional fiduciaries, including any personal representative appointed under ORS chapter 113 on or after the effective date of the rule, any guardian or conservator appointed under ORS chapter 125, any trustee appointed under ORS chapter 130, and any non-professional fiduciary cited for a deficiency in the handling of fiduciary duties through the show cause process. Those fiduciaries must register for the educational program no later than 30 days from appointment and successfully complete an education class with a curriculum prescribed by the Presiding Judge of Clatsop County within 90 days of appointment. The rule first appears in the local rules effective February 1, 2023. 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 notice and instructions at the time of appointment to the attorney for the fiduciary, who must pass them on, and directly to the fiduciary where the fiduciary is not represented. On successful completion the fiduciary must ensure a certificate of completion is filed with the court stating the date and time the class was taken and the provider. A fiduciary may request a waiver for good cause by motion supported by affidavit, filed within 15 days of receipt of notice, and the court may require a fiduciary to retake the class (SLR 9.076) |
| Consequences and cost | Fees for the court-required class are a cost of administration of the protective proceeding, estate or trust, and may be waived or deferred in the court's discretion 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 (SLR 9.076) |
| Accountings on the statewide format, made mandatory here | SLR 9.161 provides that accountings in estate and conservatorship cases shall be submitted in the format specified in UTCR 9.160. That is the local election UTCR 9.160 contemplates, so in Clatsop County the statewide accounting format is required rather than merely accepted, and it applies to a decedent's estate by the rule's own words. 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)) |
| Depository statements with every accounting | SLR 9.185: all accountings shall include the opening and closing depository statements for each account for the accounting period. This is a local addition to the statewide format, so gather and keep the statements for every estate account from the start rather than reconstructing them at accounting time |
Forms and documents
Probate forms in Clatsop County
Clatsop County publishes local forms, and none of them opens or closes a decedent's estate. The court's forms page states that it contains many forms specific to Clatsop 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 Clatsop version. Its probate group holds four forms, all of them for protective proceedings rather than estates: a Guardian Report for an adult, a Guardian Report for a minor, and two versions of an Objection to Petition for Appointment of Guardian or Conservator. The form an estate filer is most likely to need sits in the remote hearing group instead: the Clatsop County Request to Change Mode of Appearance, captioned for the County of Clatsop and not limited by case type, which is what SLR 1.175(6) contemplates when you want a hearing held in person that the rules presume will be on Webex, or the reverse. It asks for the hearing type and date, which parties or witnesses should appear remotely or in person, the reason, and whether the other parties object.
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, and an accounting packet. 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.
The one format decision Clatsop has made for you is the accounting. SLR 9.161 requires accountings in estate and conservatorship cases to be submitted in the format specified in UTCR 9.160, so use the statewide accounting packet rather than a format of your own, and add the opening and closing depository statements for each account for the period (SLR 9.185). Two tools that do 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 Clatsop County or anywhere else in Oregon, and email is not a filing channel, because the court states that pleadings cannot be filed by email. If you e-file, remember the original will still goes in on paper (UTCR 21.070(3)(h)). Call 503-325-8555, press 4 then option 2 to ask what the court wants on intake before you file.
| Resource | What it provides |
|---|---|
| Clatsop County Circuit Court forms (courts.oregon.gov) | The court's own forms page, with the probate group holding the Guardian Reports and the Objection to Petition for Appointment of Guardian or Conservator, a Probate and Simple Estate group carrying the statewide affidavit materials, and the remote hearing group with the Request to Change Mode of Appearance. The page renders its lists through a script, so allow it to load |
| Clatsop County request to change mode of appearance (courts.oregon.gov) | The local form for asking that a hearing be held remotely or in person, or that particular parties or witnesses appear one way. Once a hearing notice has issued, SLR 1.175(6) requires the request in writing at least 48 hours before the hearing, with the other parties' positions |
| Clatsop County Circuit Court supplementary local rules (courts.oregon.gov) | The local rules effective February 1, 2026, including SLR 1.175 on mode of appearance, SLR 1.161 on the drop box, SLR 1.173 on the street and mailing addresses, SLR 9.076 on fiduciary education, SLR 9.081 on oral objections, SLR 9.161 on the form of accountings, SLR 9.185 on depository statements and SLR 6.102 on exhibits for remote hearings |
| 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. In Clatsop County this format is mandatory, not optional, because SLR 9.161 requires accountings in estate and conservatorship cases to be submitted in the UTCR 9.160 format |
| 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. Clatsop also takes requests by phone and in person |
| 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
Clatsop County-specific considerations
Probate hearings here start from a presumption of video, a default the court did not state before 2026. SLR 1.175, MODE OF APPEARANCE, is new in the supplementary local rules effective February 1, 2026; the previous edition had no such rule. SLR 1.175(1) lists the hearings that will generally be scheduled for video remote proceeding via Webex, and item (d) is non-evidentiary civil proceedings, including probate. SLR 1.175(2) provides that all other matters will generally be scheduled for in person proceedings, and SLR 1.175(3) states that non-evidentiary proceedings include status hearings, uncontested hearings, and contested hearings where sworn testimony is not anticipated. So an uncontested probate matter is presumptively a Webex hearing and a contested one with testimony is presumptively in person. Telephone may be substituted for video where a participant cannot appear by video and the judge hearing the matter approves (SLR 1.175(4)); the court may change the mode in a specific matter at any time (SLR 1.175(5)); and a party who wants a different mode may ask for one, filing the court's Request to Change Mode of Appearance in writing at least 48 hours before the hearing, including the other parties' positions, once a hearing notice has issued (SLR 1.175(6)), with a proceeding presumed remote able to be held in person on a judge's approval (SLR 1.175(6)). Always check the hearing notice, which the court says identifies how the parties are to attend.
Accountings are on a mandatory format, with a local addition. Most Oregon districts leave the statewide accounting format optional: an accounting filed substantially in the statewide format must be accepted in every judicial district, and UTCR 9.160 lets a district make it mandatory by adopting an SLR 9.161. Clatsop has adopted one. SLR 9.161 provides that accountings in estate and conservatorship cases shall be submitted in the format specified in UTCR 9.160, and the words estate and conservatorship mean the rule reaches a decedent's estate, not only protective proceedings. SLR 9.185 then adds a requirement the statewide format does not contain: all accountings shall include the opening and closing depository statements for each account for the accounting period. Keep statements for every account from the day of death onward, because you will be filing them.
The counter and the phones keep different hours, and there is a drop box for the gap. The court publishes customer service windows open 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and phones open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and adds that it is closed on state holidays and from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on the first Wednesday of every month for a team meeting. SLR 1.161 covers the gap: if all customer service windows are closed on a day the court is open for business, a drop box on the main floor of the courthouse is available until 5:00 p.m. for filings and payments, and the court's own page places it near the elevator. That matters for a paper filing on a deadline, though an electronic filing has until 11:59:59 p.m. (UTCR 21.080(2)).
Email reaches a probate mailbox but never a filing. The court publishes [email protected] for probate, guardianship and conservatorship, and SLR 9.081 names the same address for written objections in a protective proceeding. But the court states plainly that pleadings cannot be filed by email, that attorneys must use File and Serve, and that self-represented filers may use the Oregon Judicial Department's interactive forms only for certain case types, which do not include probate. When you do email, the court asks for the case number in the subject line, PDF attachments rather than links to cloud storage, and enough detail in the subject line to route a message that is not about a case. If a probate matter is set for a remote hearing, note the exhibit rules: exhibits must be a unified single PDF with an index at the beginning identifying each exhibit, each exhibit electronically linked to the index, and an electronic bookmark for each exhibit (SLR 6.102, also new in the 2026 edition), attorneys submit them through File and Serve, self-represented parties email them to the division address with a copy to the other party, and the court asks that all exhibits be filed at least 24 hours before the hearing.
Records are close at hand in Astoria and thin at a distance, with a 2009 line. The court says public documents in most court cases newer than 2009 can be viewed on the computer in the courthouse lobby for free, and that you must submit a records request form if you want your own copies or if you want documents from cases older than 2009. Requests can be made online, by phone or in person, and the court says most are completed within 5 business days; it provides paper copies or emailed PDFs, audio of hearings in MP3 or FTR format, certification (a document sworn to be a true copy by the court clerk) and exemplification (sworn by the court clerk and the Presiding Judge). All fees must be paid in full before copies are made, and under a fee note dated June 20, 2023 the court says requests under $5.00 are provided at no cost. 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.
Recent updates
| Change | What it means in Clatsop County |
|---|---|
| Clatsop County Circuit Court supplementary local rules, effective February 1, 2026, add SLR 1.175 on mode of appearance | This is new: the previous edition had no mode-of-appearance rule. SLR 1.175(1) lists the hearings that will generally be scheduled for video remote proceeding via Webex, and item (d) is non-evidentiary civil proceedings, including probate. SLR 1.175(2) provides that all other matters will generally be scheduled for in person proceedings, and SLR 1.175(3) states that non-evidentiary proceedings include status hearings, uncontested hearings, and contested hearings where sworn testimony is not anticipated. Telephone may be substituted for video where a participant cannot appear by video and the judge approves (SLR 1.175(4)), the court may change the mode at any time (SLR 1.175(5)), and a party wanting a different mode once a hearing notice has issued must file a written request at least 48 hours before the hearing including the other parties' positions, with a presumptively remote proceeding able to be held in person on a judge's approval (SLR 1.175(6)). For an estate, that means an uncontested matter is presumptively a Webex hearing |
| The same 2026 edition adds SLR 6.102 on exhibits for other remote hearings | Also new. Exhibits for a remote hearing must be submitted as a unified single PDF, accompanied by an index at the beginning of the submission that identifies each exhibit with each exhibit electronically linked to the index, and must include an electronic bookmark for each exhibit. Because SLR 1.175 now presumes video for non-evidentiary probate proceedings, this is the exhibit rule an estate filer is most likely to meet. The court adds on its technology page that attorneys submit exhibits through File and Serve, self-represented parties email them to the division address with a copy to the other party at the same time, and all exhibits should be filed at least 24 hours before the hearing |
Page last reviewed: July 2026.
Scenarios
| Situation | Likely path in Clatsop County | Where Sunset helps |
|---|---|---|
| Surviving spouse, co-owned home | If the home in Astoria, Warrenton, Seaside, Gearhart, Cannon Beach 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 Clatsop 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 here who is not a professional fiduciary also has to register for the court's education class within 30 days and finish it within 90 (SLR 9.076), and any accounting has to use the UTCR 9.160 format with depository statements attached (SLR 9.161; SLR 9.185). | 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 at 749 Commercial Street 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 Clatsop 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 Clatsop County Circuit Court, PO Box 835, Astoria, OR 97103, 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. Copies come by records request, which the court says is usually completed within 5 business days, and can be emailed as PDFs. If a hearing is ever set, an uncontested probate matter is presumptively on Webex under SLR 1.175(1)(d), which is an out-of-state filer's best local news. | 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 Astoria 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 Clatsop 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, registering within 30 days and completing it within 90 (SLR 9.076), and every accounting must use the UTCR 9.160 format and carry the opening and closing depository statements for each account (SLR 9.161; SLR 9.185). The deed on the sale is recorded with the Clatsop County Clerk, Records and Elections Division at 820 Exchange Street, 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 |
|---|---|
| Clatsop County Circuit Court (courts.oregon.gov), 503-325-8555 | The court itself: the Clatsop County Courthouse at 749 Commercial Street, Astoria, the mailing address at PO Box 835, customer service windows open 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and phones open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, the state holiday closures and the first Wednesday 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. team meeting closure, and the 18th Judicial District's three elected judges. Court staff can explain procedure but cannot give legal advice |
| Clatsop County Circuit Court contact us (courts.oregon.gov) | The division phone routes and mailboxes, including probate at 503-325-8555, press 4 then option 2 and [email protected], the court's fax at 503-325-8677, and the court's own statement that pleadings cannot be filed by email, with its instructions on subject lines and PDF attachments |
| Clatsop County Circuit Court forms (courts.oregon.gov) | The Clatsop County forms, including the probate group, the simple estate group and the Request to Change Mode of Appearance, with the court's warning to select the Clatsop version where two versions of a form exist |
| Clatsop County Circuit Court records (courts.oregon.gov) | How to see and copy a court file: the free lobby computer for public documents in most cases newer than 2009, the records request form for copies and for older cases, requests online, by phone or in person, most completed within 5 business days, paper or emailed PDF copies, audio in MP3 or FTR format, and the difference between certification and exemplification |
| Clatsop County Circuit Court other court resources (courts.oregon.gov) | The courthouse drop box near the elevator for filings and payments when the windows are closed, the court's kiosks for attending remote hearings, paying and searching records, OJD ePay, and the note that the law library is overseen by Clatsop County |
| Clatsop County Circuit Court supplementary local rules (courts.oregon.gov) | The local rules effective February 1, 2026: SLR 1.175 on mode of appearance, which presumes video for non-evidentiary probate proceedings, SLR 1.161 on the drop box, SLR 9.076 on fiduciary education, SLR 9.161 on the mandatory accounting format, SLR 9.185 on depository statements and SLR 6.102 on remote hearing exhibits |
| Clatsop County Circuit Court local remote hearings (courts.oregon.gov) | How a Webex hearing works here, the litigant, witness, attorney and public access guides, most of them also in Spanish, the court's statement that it does not live stream hearings but can provide access information to observers, and its instruction to call 503-325-8555 with questions |
| Clatsop County Circuit Court technology (courts.oregon.gov) | The court's guidance on appearing by video, the note that all hearings are set in Pacific Time, the exhibit requirements for remote hearings, and the two public Wi-Fi networks in the courthouse |
| 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 Clatsop 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 small local bar |
| Oregon Law Center, Hillsboro regional office (oregonlawcenter.org), (503) 640-4115 or 1-877-296-4076 | The legal aid program that serves Clatsop County, at 230 NE 2nd Avenue, Suite F, Hillsboro. It states that most of its cases are family law, housing and public benefits, and that it holds contracts to serve seniors in a wider range of problems in all its counties, so ask whether it can take an estate matter |
| Oregon Law Help (oregonlawhelp.org) | Oregon's legal aid information site. It publishes no probate topic, so use it to confirm which legal aid program covers Clatsop County and how to apply |
| Clatsop County Law Library (clatsopcounty.gov), 503-325-1000 extension 1314 | A single public computer, by appointment only, in the Clatsop County Building at 800 Exchange Street, Suite 410, Astoria, open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and closed from noon to 1 p.m. It provides BarBooks, NOLO, the State of Oregon Law Library, the Oregon Revised Statutes and the Oregon Administrative Rules, and the county notes the online resources can also be reached from home. It is a research terminal, not court help |
| Clatsop County Clerk, Records and Elections (clatsopcounty.gov), 503-325-8511 | Not the probate office. The Clerk, at 820 Exchange Street, Suite 220, Astoria, open 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, is the official record keeper for the county and records deeds, mortgages, military discharges, marriage licenses and plat maps. This is where a deed is recorded when estate real property changes hands |
When to hire an attorney
Many Clatsop 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. Several 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, and the court cannot accept a pleading by email or walk a filer through a correction after 4:00 p.m. Clatsop also front-loads obligations on the person appointed: a non-professional personal representative must register for the court's education class within 30 days of appointment and complete it within 90, on pain of removal (SLR 9.076), while an attorney appointed as fiduciary is exempt, and every accounting must be in the UTCR 9.160 format with the opening and closing depository statements for each account attached (SLR 9.161; SLR 9.185). 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 coastal real property, timber, a fishing vessel or permit, 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 draw sworn testimony, which under SLR 1.175 is what turns a presumptively remote hearing into an in person one. Court staff can explain procedure but cannot give legal advice. Sunset can connect families to a vetted Oregon probate attorney serving Clatsop 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, Clatsop County real property and unclaimed property, so you know the estate's value before you file. That matters here three times over: the petition must state the extent and nature of the assets (ORS 113.035), the caption must state the value of the estate because the filing fee is tiered by it (ORS 21.105(1)), and every accounting you file must carry the opening and closing depository statements for each account (SLR 9.185).
Generate the probate packet. Sunset assembles the paperwork for your estate settlement 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 customer service window at 749 Commercial Street, in the courthouse drop box, or by mail to PO Box 835 in Astoria.
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 Clatsop 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 Clatsop County?
With the Clatsop County Circuit Court, at the Clatsop County Courthouse, 749 Commercial Street, Astoria, OR 97103, where the public service window is on the first floor (SLR 9.081). Mail goes to a different line: Clatsop County Circuit Court, PO Box 835, Astoria, OR 97103 (SLR 1.173). There is one filing location for the county, so you can file at the counter, in the drop box, 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 503-325-8555, press 4 then option 2 with a filing question. File in Clatsop 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 Clatsop County, or email it?
You can e-file. You cannot email. OJD eFile, the statewide electronic filing system run as Odyssey File and Serve, covers Oregon's circuit courts, which includes Clatsop County, and the court states in its own words that attorneys must use File and Serve. 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 window, in the drop box or by mail instead. The court says plainly that pleadings cannot be filed by email, and the Oregon Judicial Department's Guide and File interactive service does not cover probate. The original will is the other 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)). Clatsop's local rules have no Chapter 2 and therefore no SLR 2.501, so nothing else is added to the conventional filing list here.
How much does it cost to open a probate in Clatsop 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), Clatsop County adds no local surcharge, and fee waivers and deferrals are available. Confirm the amount with the court at 503-325-8555, press 4 then option 2.
Does Clatsop County have local probate forms?
Yes, four in the probate group, and none of them touches a decedent's estate. They are a Guardian Report for an adult, a Guardian Report for a minor, and two versions of an Objection to Petition for Appointment of Guardian or Conservator, all protective-proceeding forms. The local form an estate filer is most likely to want is in the remote hearing group: the Clatsop County Request to Change Mode of Appearance. The court's forms page also carries a Probate and Simple Estate group, which surfaces the statewide affidavit materials rather than a local form, and it warns that where two versions of a form exist you should select the Clatsop 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. One format is fixed here: accountings must be in the UTCR 9.160 statewide format (SLR 9.161).
Will my Clatsop County probate hearing be on video or in person?
Presumptively on video, if it is a non-evidentiary hearing. SLR 1.175(1), new in the local rules effective February 1, 2026, lists the hearings that will generally be scheduled for video remote proceeding via Webex, and item (d) is non-evidentiary civil proceedings, including probate. SLR 1.175(2) provides that all other matters will generally be scheduled for in person proceedings, and SLR 1.175(3) states that non-evidentiary proceedings include status hearings, uncontested hearings, and contested hearings where sworn testimony is not anticipated. So an uncontested probate matter is presumptively remote and a hearing with testimony is presumptively in person. Telephone can be substituted for video where a participant cannot appear by video and the judge approves (SLR 1.175(4)). To change the mode after a hearing notice has issued, file the court's Request to Change Mode of Appearance in writing at least 48 hours before the hearing, with the other parties' positions (SLR 1.175(6)). Always check your hearing notice, which identifies how you are to attend, and call 503-325-8555 and select option 0 if you cannot connect.
What are the Clatsop County Circuit Court's hours, and is there a filing cutoff?
There are two sets of hours. The customer service windows are open 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, and the phones are open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday (verified July 2026). The court also publishes that it is closed on state holidays and from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on the first Wednesday of every month for a team meeting. If the windows are closed on a day the court is open for business, a drop box on the main floor of the courthouse takes filings and payments until 5:00 p.m. (SLR 1.161), and the court's own page says it is near the elevator. If you e-file instead, the deadline is later still: an electronic filing is timely if submitted by 11:59:59 p.m. in the court's time zone (UTCR 21.080(2)), and the court notes that all its hearings are set in Pacific Time.
Is there a Clatsop County rule I have to follow as personal representative?
Three. First, SLR 9.076 requires a court-appointed non-professional fiduciary, including any personal representative appointed under ORS chapter 113 on or after the rule's effective date, to register for the court's educational program no later than 30 days from appointment and successfully complete a class with a curriculum prescribed by the Presiding Judge of Clatsop County within 90 days of appointment, then ensure a certificate of completion is filed. 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 notice; the court may require you to retake the class; and failure to comply may result in removal. Professional fiduciaries as defined in ORS 125.240(5) and attorneys appointed as fiduciaries are exempt. Second, SLR 9.161 makes the UTCR 9.160 accounting format mandatory in estate and conservatorship cases. Third, SLR 9.185 requires every accounting to include the opening and closing depository statements for each account for the accounting period.
How do I look up a Clatsop County probate case or get copies?
The free Oregon Judicial Department Records and Calendar Search covers Oregon's circuit courts, so a Clatsop 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. Locally, the court says public documents in most court cases newer than 2009 can be viewed for free on the computer in the courthouse lobby, and that you must submit a records request form if you want your own copies or documents from cases older than 2009. Requests can be made online, by phone or in person, and most are completed within 5 business days; the court provides paper copies or emailed PDFs, hearing audio in MP3 or FTR format, certification by the court clerk and exemplification by the court clerk and the Presiding Judge. Fees must be paid in full before copies are made, and under a fee note dated June 20, 2023 requests under $5.00 are provided at no cost. The paid remote route to documents is an OJCIN OnLine subscription.
Is probate in Clatsop County handled by the county clerk or a county court?
Neither. Clatsop 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 Clatsop County estate belongs to the Clatsop County Circuit Court at 749 Commercial Street. The Clatsop County Clerk, Records and Elections Division, at 820 Exchange Street, Suite 220, Astoria, 503-325-8511, is the county's official record keeper and handles recording, elections, marriage licenses and passports; it publishes nothing about probate. The Clerk matters to an estate for one thing: recording the deed when Oregon real property is sold or transferred.
Where is the notice to interested persons published for a Clatsop 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 Clatsop County nor the court publishes a designated newspaper, so confirm the paper, the schedule and the cost with the court at 503-325-8555, press 4 then option 2 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 Astoria to settle an estate in Clatsop 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 Clatsop County Circuit Court, PO Box 835, Astoria, OR 97103, 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). Copies of other documents can be emailed as PDFs on a records request. And if a hearing is set, a non-evidentiary probate proceeding is presumptively held by video on Webex (SLR 1.175(1)(d)), with telephone available where video is not workable and the judge approves (SLR 1.175(4)). The two things that still pull you toward the courthouse are the original will, which must be filed conventionally (UTCR 21.070(3)(h)), and the free lobby computer, the on-site way to read filed documents in cases newer than 2009 without a records request, though the court also provides requests under $5.00 at no cost.
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.