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Asotin County, WA Probate Information
Quick facts
| Category | Current rules |
|---|---|
| Court | The Superior Court in Asotin County. There is no separate probate court in Washington; the superior court is the general trial court and handles probate as a case type under RCW Title 11, and the county's own Superior Court page lists probates and guardianships among its functions. One superior court judge serves Asotin, Columbia, and Garfield counties jointly (RCW 2.08.064), and the three counties share one set of joint local court rules, cited on this page as LCR and LGR. Some matters are heard by a court commissioner, including at the daily ex parte opening of court |
| Filing office | The Asotin County Clerk, the Clerk of the Superior Court. This is the office that takes the petition, lodges the will, issues letters, and keeps the county's estate records. The county's own page describes the clerk as an elected official who is ex officio Clerk of the Superior Court under Article IV, Section 26 of the Washington Constitution. A shared judge changes nothing about where you file: filing stays with the Asotin County Clerk |
| Courthouse | Asotin County Courthouse, 135 2nd Street, second floor, Asotin, WA 99402. The courts.wa.gov directory prints the same address as 135 2nd St, County Courthouse |
| Mailing address | PO Box 159, Asotin, WA 99402-0159. The Superior Court and the County Clerk share this one box, and probate filings and clerk correspondence go to the County Clerk there. Watch the address: Asotin County's general mail goes to PO Box 250, the Juvenile Court uses PO Box 700, and the county's district court uses PO Box 429, so address probate mail to the Asotin County Clerk at PO Box 159 |
| Phone | (509) 243-2081, the Asotin County Clerk's line. The Superior Court's own line is (509) 243-2082, and the Court Administrator, who handles special settings for matters expected to run longer than ten minutes, is at (509) 243-2082 Ext 1230. For filing questions, call the Clerk |
| Fax | (509) 243-4978, the County Clerk's fax, and here it is more than a contact number: the Clerk's Office accepts fax filings under GR 17 and RCW 36.18.016(19), but only after you call (509) 243-2081 to confirm the page count and pre-pay. The courts.wa.gov directory lists a different fax, (509) 243-2072, for the Superior Court itself |
| [email protected], the office mailbox the county publishes as the contact for the County Clerk. Ask the clerk before emailing anything you intend as a filing or a formal request | |
| Office hours | Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., closed for the noon hour, per the County Clerk's own page. Court files can be viewed at the Clerk's Office during those hours, and restricted or sealed files need identification or a court order. The Superior Court office itself posts different hours, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., so use the clerk's hours for anything you are filing. This is a one-counter office with a small staff, so call (509) 243-2081 to confirm before making a trip |
| Filing fee | $290 to open a probate, set by statute and the same in every county: a $200 filing fee plus a $40 surcharge and a $50 surcharge (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)); fee waivers are available for filers who cannot afford the fee (GR 34). Asotin's own Clerk's fee schedule, effective June 11, 2026, prints the Estate (Probate) line with exactly those three components and the $290 total. Confirm the current schedule with the Asotin County Clerk |
| Local forms | None for probate itself. Asotin County publishes no local probate forms, and Washington publishes no statewide probate form set either (verified July 2026 on the courts.wa.gov Court Forms index, which has no probate category). One form is mandatory: under LCR 1(b) of the joint local rules, effective September 1, 2025, the parties shall use the statewide form coversheets posted on courts.wa.gov in all cases filed with the Superior Court Clerk's Office, and the rule names a specific Probate Cases cover sheet (06/2025). The clerk forms Asotin does publish that can touch a probate filing are the fax filing cover sheet, the document request form, and the Odyssey Portal registration papers. WashingtonLawHelp publishes the plain-language self-help packets |
| E-filing | None. Asotin County does not accept e-filings, per LCR 5(e)(1) of the Asotin, Garfield, and Columbia counties joint local rules; the rules' electronic filing provision covers Columbia County only (LCR 5.1). A probate petition is filed on paper at the clerk's counter, by mail to PO Box 159, or by fax under GR 17. Fax filing is not e-filing: GR 17 is the statewide fax rule, the Clerk's Office files the pages that arrive by fax for a per-page fee, and it is the one way to file here without a trip or a stamp. Call (509) 243-2081 first to confirm the page count and pre-pay by card, comply with the GR 14 margins, use the county's fax filing cover sheet with a separate sheet for each case, then fax to (509) 243-4978. The fee is $5 for the first page and $1 for each additional page, not counting the cover sheet, plus the processor's card service fee, and any copies emailed back are $0.50 per page |
| Case search | Asotin County is one of the counties covered by Odyssey Portal, the current public case search for Washington superior courts (https://odysseyportal.courts.wa.gov/odyportal); the statewide index at https://dw.courts.wa.gov/ names Asotin on its own list of Odyssey counties, and warns that its own dockets and case status may be inaccurate. Remote electronic access to Asotin County Superior Court records through the portal runs on the county's own Odyssey Portal registration, which the clerk lists as covering criminal, civil, domestic, probate and guardianship, and juvenile offender cases: a signed Master Registration Form and Subscription Agreement go to the Clerk's Office with an annual subscription fee of $120 per user, paid annually by December 1, and an attorney's registration covers the attorney and one legal assistant. If you only need one estate file, calling the Clerk at (509) 243-2081 or using the county's document request form is simpler than subscribing |
| Hearing dates | The judge does not sit in Asotin every day. Under LCR 77(f) of the joint local rules, the court is in session on all judicial days from 8:30 a.m. to noon and from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., and LCR 77(f)(1) points to Asotin County's own court calendar page as the place the regular docket days for each county are posted. That page posts Monday and Tuesday docket dates for the year, roughly two of each a month, with the civil calendars on Tuesdays at 9 a.m. for represented parties and 10 a.m. for self-represented parties, and it warns that dates may change. Docket matters are limited to those typically needing no more than ten minutes, and anything longer must be specially set through the Court Administrator at (509) 243-2082 Ext 1230 (LCR 7(7), LCR 7(8), LCR 77(f)(1)). Ex parte matters, emergency orders, and writs are considered at the opening of court each day, and a non-emergency matter is left with the Clerk for the judge or court commissioner to consider when available (LCR 77(f)(4)). No court reporter is provided for any calendar; all matters are digitally audio recorded (LCR 77(f)) |
| Remote appearance | Available, but arranged in advance and governed by a written rule. Under LCR 7(5), arguments on motions may be conducted in person or via Zoom, and arrangements may also be made for telephonic appearance, with all arrangements made directly with the Clerk's office by noon at least two business days ahead. LGR 2, adopted effective September 1, 2025, adds the ground rules: remote access is for parties with pending matters on the docket, attorneys and their staff, and other listed participants or others as approved; you must identify yourself by first and last name as it appears on the case; you need audio and video good enough to be seen and understood; courtroom dress and decorum rules apply; court staff do not provide technical support; and appearing by any method other than the court's established platform needs court approval seven calendar days in advance, granted only for emergencies and extreme hardship |
| Website | https://www.co.asotin.wa.us/170/County-Clerk (the Asotin County Clerk, with hours, contacts, the fee schedule, fax filing, document requests, and the court calendar), https://www.co.asotin.wa.us/282/Superior-Court (the county's Superior Court page, with the local court rules and courtroom conduct rules), and https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/orgs/262.html (the courts.wa.gov directory entry for Asotin County) |
Before you begin — know the assets and liabilities
Before you file anything with the Asotin County Clerk, know exactly what is in the estate. Which Washington 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 with letters testamentary or letters of administration, an unsupervised administration under nonintervention powers (RCW 11.68.011), and a small estate affidavit that opens no court case (RCW 11.62.010) are different routes with different filings. Those routes and their thresholds are statewide and are explained on the Washington state page. Identify the estate first so you, and if needed your attorney, file the right papers once: a one-counter office keeps short hours, closes for the noon hour, and issues no refunds on fees already paid.
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. How each asset is titled decides which route you need: the small estate affidavit reaches personal property only, while a house in Clarkston, wheat ground on the Anatone benches, or any other real property generally requires a probate in the superior court so that a personal representative has authority to sign a deed. Accounts across the river in Lewiston, Idaho are common here and are worth inventorying carefully, because out-of-state property can change what the estate needs. Knowing the debts matters too, because nonintervention powers are granted only if the court finds the estate solvent (RCW 11.68.011). Sunset's asset discovery work, searching more than 2,300 financial institutions, exists for this step.
Which court handles jurisdiction
The Asotin County Clerk, the Clerk of the Superior Court, is the single probate filing office for all of Asotin County, at one counter on the second floor of the Asotin County Courthouse at 135 2nd Street in Asotin. There is no second location and no branch counter, and the courthouse is in the county seat rather than in the county's population center: the city of Asotin had 1,204 residents at the 2020 census, while Clarkston, the largest city, had 7,161 and the surrounding Clarkston Heights, Vineland, West Clarkston, and Highland communities together held most of the county's 22,285 people. The office serves the whole county, from Clarkston and the Lewiston-Clarkston valley at the mouth of the Clearwater to Asotin, Anatone, and the farm and range country running up toward the Blue Mountains and along the Grande Ronde. Estates from every part of the county are filed here, in person at the counter, by mail to PO Box 159, Asotin, WA 99402-0159, or by fax under GR 17 after you call the Clerk to pre-pay.
One superior court judge serves Asotin, Columbia, and Garfield counties jointly (RCW 2.08.064), and the three counties share one set of joint local court rules, published as the Local Court Rules for Asotin, Garfield, and Columbia Counties Superior Court and posted by the county itself on its Superior Court page. That is an administrative fact about the bench, not about the counter: you do not file in Dayton or Pomeroy. An Asotin County estate is filed with the Asotin County Clerk, keeps an Asotin County case number, and stays in the Asotin County records. What the shared judge changes is scheduling. The court is in session on all judicial days from 8:30 a.m. to noon and from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., and the joint rules point to Asotin County's own court calendar page as the place the regular docket days for each of the three counties are posted (LCR 77(f), LCR 77(f)(1)). Asotin posts Monday and Tuesday docket dates for the year, roughly two of each a month, with the civil calendars on Tuesdays at 9 a.m. for represented parties and 10 a.m. for self-represented parties, and notes that dates may change. A matter expected to take more than ten minutes is specially set through the Court Administrator at (509) 243-2082 Ext 1230, and ex parte matters, emergency orders, and writs are considered at the opening of court each day, with non-emergency matters left with the Clerk for the judge or court commissioner to consider when available (LCR 7(7), LCR 77(f)(4)). Ask the Asotin County Clerk which docket your probate matter belongs on.
Washington law lets the petitioner file a probate in the superior court of any county in the state (RCW 11.96A.050(4)), but in practice you file in the county where the decedent lived: an interested party can move venue there within four months of the notice of appointment, and if the probate is filed outside the county of residence the creditor notice must still be published in the county of residence (RCW 11.40.020(2)). So if the person who died lived in Asotin County, file with the Asotin County Clerk. The clerk's fee schedule even carries a separate $20 line for filing a notice of probate to creditors where the probate was filed in a county other than the one where the decedent resided (RCW 36.18.050, RCW 11.40.020(2)), so the cross-county situation is a real one here. One narrow exception is not optional: a petitioner who seeks appointment under RCW 11.28.120(3), the route for a person not otherwise entitled that opens only after 90 days, must file where the decedent resided, or, for a nonresident, in a county where estate property is. Once letters have been granted, the rest of the probate stays in that county (RCW 11.96A.050(5)).
The jurisdiction process
- Gather the documents. Collect the original signed will if there is one, a certified copy of the death certificate, the proposed personal representative's contact information and identification, the names, ages, and addresses of the heirs, legatees, and devisees, and a list of the assets and debts with values. Washington's term for the person who settles the estate is personal representative: a will-named personal representative is often called an executor and a court-appointed one an administrator, but the statutory term is the same for both.
- Decide what you are asking the court for. With a will, the petition asks the court to admit the will to probate and issue letters testamentary, and the court may hear the proofs and enter an order establishing the will (RCW 11.20.020). With no will, the application asks for letters of administration in the priority order set by RCW 11.28.120(1), and since June 11, 2026 the application must also set out the details of the applicant's reasonable search for the heirs (RCW 11.28.110, as amended by 2026 c 204). Most Washington personal representatives also ask for nonintervention powers, which let a solvent estate be administered and closed without further court supervision (RCW 11.68.011). These statewide routes are covered on the Washington state page.
- Prepare the papers. Washington has no statewide probate form set, so the petition, the order, the oath, and the notices are drafted documents rather than fill-in forms, and Asotin County publishes no local probate forms of its own. One form is mandatory: under LCR 1(b) of the Asotin, Garfield, and Columbia counties joint local rules, effective September 1, 2025, the parties shall use the statewide form coversheets posted on the courts.wa.gov forms pages in all cases filed with the Superior Court Clerk's Office, and the rule names a specific Probate Cases cover sheet (06/2025). WashingtonLawHelp publishes the plain-language packets a self-represented filer can work from, including the small estate affidavit kit.
- File with the Asotin County Clerk. You have three ways in. Take the papers to the clerk's counter on the second floor of the Asotin County Courthouse, 135 2nd Street in Asotin, open Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.; or mail them to the Asotin County Clerk, PO Box 159, Asotin, WA 99402-0159; or fax them. Asotin County does not accept e-filings (LCR 5(e)(1) of the joint local rules; the rules' electronic filing provision covers Columbia County only, LCR 5.1), but the Clerk's Office does accept fax filings under GR 17 and RCW 36.18.016(19). To fax file, call (509) 243-2081 first to confirm how many pages you are sending and to pre-pay by card over the phone, make sure the documents meet the GR 14 margins (first page top margin 3 inches, side and bottom margins 1 inch, 1 inch on later pages), use the county's fax filing cover sheet with a separate sheet for each case, and fax to (509) 243-4978. Call before you mail or fax an original will, and ask then what the office wants on intake.
- Pay the filing fee. Opening a probate costs $290, set by statute and the same in every Washington county: a $200 filing fee plus a $40 surcharge and a $50 surcharge (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)), and the Asotin County Clerk's own fee schedule prints that line with those three components. A filer who cannot afford the fee can ask the court to waive it under GR 34. The clerk takes cash, cashier's check, law firm check, personal check, or money order made payable to the Asotin County Clerk, and credit or debit card with the applicable service fee; the schedule states that the office issues no refunds, so confirm the amount before you pay. An out-of-town filer can mail a check or money order with a self addressed stamped envelope. The small estate affidavit route under RCW 11.62.010 opens no court case, so it carries no court filing fee.
- Give the required notices. Within 20 days after appointment the personal representative or the estate's attorney must mail or personally serve written notice of the appointment and the pendency of the probate on each heir, legatee, and devisee, and on each known beneficiary or transferee of a nonprobate asset, and file proof of mailing with the Asotin County Clerk (RCW 11.28.237(1)). If you give notice to creditors, the notice is filed with the court and published once each week for three successive weeks in a legal newspaper in the county where the estate is administered (RCW 11.40.020(1)). The Asotin County Clerk publishes the designated legal newspaper for Asotin County matters under RCW 65.16.070 as the Lewiston Morning Tribune in Lewiston, Idaho, just across the Snake River from Clarkston; confirm the publication schedule and cost with the Clerk's Office and the newspaper before you count on a date, because first publication starts the four-month claim period (RCW 11.40.051).
- Get on a court date if your matter needs one. Many probate orders are presented ex parte rather than at a contested hearing: under the joint local rules, ex parte matters, emergency orders, and writs are considered at the opening of court each day before trial or the regular calendar, and a non-emergency matter can be left with the Clerk for the judge or court commissioner to consider when available (LCR 77(f)(4)). Note that the clerk's fee schedule charges $30 for each ex parte presentation of an order (RCW 36.18.016(12)), so ask the Clerk how the fee applies before you present a stack of them. Anything set for argument goes on a posted docket day: the court sits on judicial days from 8:30 a.m. to noon and from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., Asotin County posts its Monday and Tuesday docket dates with the civil calendars on Tuesdays, and a matter needing more than ten minutes is specially set through the Court Administrator at (509) 243-2082 Ext 1230 (LCR 77(f), LCR 7(7), LCR 7(8)). A written motion that is not heard ex parte, and the notice of hearing, must be served at least five days before the hearing, with responses filed and served by noon three court days before and any reply by noon the court day before (LCR 6(d)(1)). Because the court accepts no e-filings, bench copies of pleadings for a scheduled hearing may be emailed to the Court Administrator and are due no later than 9:00 a.m. two court days before the hearing (LCR 5(e)(1)). To appear remotely, motion argument may be in person or via Zoom and telephonic appearance can be arranged, with all arrangements made directly with the Clerk's office by noon at least two business days ahead (LCR 7(5)), subject to LGR 2.
- Receive the letters. On appointment the court issues letters testamentary where there is a will, or letters of administration where there is not, and the Asotin County Clerk issues certified copies. 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: the clerk's schedule charges $5 for a certificate of qualification and $5 for a certified copy of letters of administration, testamentary, or guardianship (RCW 36.18.016(9)), and $5 for the first page of a certified copy plus $1 for each additional page (RCW 36.18.016(4)). If you are out of town, the office will mail copies for the cost of postage plus a $2 handling fee.
- Administer and close. Inventory the assets, pay valid claims in the order set by law, handle the four-month creditor period (RCW 11.40.051), file any Washington estate tax return that is required (chapter 83.100 RCW), distribute what remains, and close the estate. A personal representative with nonintervention powers closes by declaration of completion rather than by a court accounting (RCW 11.68), while a supervised estate returns to the court for approval.
Forms and documents
Probate forms in Asotin County
Asotin County publishes no local probate forms, and Washington publishes no statewide probate form set either. That is worth stating plainly, because filers arrive expecting a packet. The courts.wa.gov Court Forms index has categories for family law, guardianships and conservatorships, criminal, behavioral health, juvenile, financial, protection orders, and access to the courts, among others, and no probate category (verified July 2026). Washington probate pleadings, the petition, the order admitting the will, the oath, the notice of appointment, and the declaration of completion, are drafted by the filer or the attorney.
One statewide form is mandatory. Under LCR 1(b) of the Asotin, Garfield, and Columbia counties joint local rules, effective September 1, 2025, the parties shall use the form coversheets posted on the courts.wa.gov forms pages in all cases filed with the Superior Court Clerk's Office, and the rule lists a specific Probate Cases cover sheet (06/2025), so the Case Information Cover Sheet is a required part of a new probate filing here. The GR 34 fee waiver forms are on the same courts.wa.gov pages if you cannot afford the $290 filing fee (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)), and WashingtonLawHelp publishes the practical self-help packets, including the small estate affidavit kit for the no-court-case route under RCW 11.62.010.
The clerk forms Asotin County itself publishes are administrative rather than substantive, and two of them can matter to a probate: the fax filing cover sheet, which the Clerk's Office requires with any faxed filing and requires separately for each case, and the document request form for copies of court records. The county also posts the Odyssey Portal registration papers and, on its Superior Court page, the joint local court rules and the courtroom conduct rules that govern hearings in Asotin County. Ask the Asotin County Clerk at (509) 243-2081 what the office wants on intake before you file, because a one-counter office can tell you in one call.
| Resource | What it provides |
|---|---|
| Asotin County Clerk (co.asotin.wa.us) | The filing office's own page: hours, the counter at 135 2nd Street, the PO Box 159 mailing address, and links to the fee schedule, fax filing, document requests, the court calendar, and the Odyssey Portal registration |
| Washington Courts court forms (courts.wa.gov) | The statewide case cover sheets that LCR 1(b) makes mandatory for every new case, including the Probate Cases cover sheet (06/2025), and the GR 34 fee waiver forms. There is no probate category here, which is the point: Washington has no statewide probate forms |
| Asotin County Clerk fax filing (co.asotin.wa.us) | The county's fax filing rules and cover sheet: GR 17 and RCW 36.18.016(19) authority, the GR 14 margin requirements, the call-first and pre-pay steps, the fax number, and the $5 first page plus $1 per additional page fee |
| Asotin, Columbia, and Garfield counties local court rules (co.asotin.wa.us) | The joint local rules the county publishes for the three-county bench, including LCR 1(b) cover sheets, LCR 5(e)(1) on e-filings, LCR 7 on motions and remote argument, LCR 77 on sessions and ex parte, and LGR 2 on remote access |
| WashingtonLawHelp (washingtonlawhelp.org) | Plain-language Washington probate self-help, including the guide to managing a small estate yourself and the small estate affidavit packet (RCW 11.62.010) |
| Washington Courts directory: Asotin County (courts.wa.gov) | The government listing that confirms the Asotin County Clerk's address, mailing box, phone, and fax, and the separate Superior Court lines |
Fees
The $290 that opens a probate is statutory and identical statewide, but Asotin County publishes its own Clerk's fee schedule, with an effective date of June 11, 2026, and several of its line items reach a probate. Two are easy to miss when you budget: presenting an order ex parte carries a $30 charge for each presentation, and fax filing carries its own per-page fee on top of whatever you are filing. The schedule states that the office issues no refunds and that overpayments are returned rather than processed, so confirm amounts with the Clerk at (509) 243-2081 before you pay. Payment may be made in cash, cashier's check, law firm check, personal check, or money order payable to the Asotin County Clerk, or by credit or debit card with the applicable service fee.
| Item | Asotin County charge |
|---|---|
| Opening a probate | $290 total: $200 filing fee (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f)) plus a $40 judicial surcharge ((5)(c)) plus a $50 judicial surcharge ((6)). Statutory and the same in every Washington county. Fee waivers under GR 34 |
| Ex parte presentation of an order | $30 for each presentation (RCW 36.18.016(12)) |
| Fax filing | $5 for the first page and $1 for each additional page, not counting the cover sheet (RCW 36.18.016(19)), plus the card processor's service fee. Copies emailed back after filing are $0.50 per page |
| Certificate of qualification, or a certified copy of letters | $5 each (RCW 36.18.016(9)). The schedule lists these as two separate lines and nicknames the certificate of qualification Form K |
| Certified copy of a document | $5 for the first page plus $1 for each additional page (RCW 36.18.016(4)). An uncertified copy, printed or emailed, is $0.50 per page, and copies delivered on a CD, USB drive, or similar medium carry an added $5 |
| Filing a will after death with no probate | $20 (RCW 36.18.012(7)). Depositing a will with the clerk before death is also $20 (RCW 36.18.016(28), RCW 11.12.265) |
| Notice of probate to creditors, probate filed outside the county of residence | $20 (RCW 36.18.050, RCW 11.40.020(2)) |
| Nonprobate notice to creditors with no probate filed | $290 total, the same three components as a probate filing (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)) |
| Contesting a will or trust, or admitting a rejected will | $290 each (RCW 36.18.020(2)(g), (5)(c), (6)). A nonjudicial resolution petition, agreement, or memorandum filed in an existing case is $20 (RCW 11.96A.220) |
| Records research and mailing | $30 per hour for searching records or compiling reports (RCW 36.18.016(11)); postage at actual cost plus a $2 handling fee if the office mails your copies; $50 for a returned check |
Publication of the creditor notice is not a court fee. The Asotin County Clerk names the Lewiston Morning Tribune as the designated legal newspaper for Asotin County matters under RCW 65.16.070, and the newspaper sets its own rate, so ask it what three weekly insertions will cost (RCW 11.40.020(1)).
Recent updates
| Change | What it means for an Asotin County probate |
|---|---|
| Asotin County Clerk's fee schedule, effective June 11, 2026 | The Clerk's published schedule prints the Estate (Probate) line as $200 plus a $40 judicial surcharge plus a $50 judicial surcharge, $290 total (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)), which retires the lower total that older sources still circulate. It also sets out the charges a probate filer actually meets: $30 for each ex parte presentation of an order, $5 plus $1 per page for fax filing, $5 for a certificate of qualification or a certified copy of letters, and $20 to file a will after death |
| LCR 1(b) mandatory case cover sheets, effective September 1, 2025 | The joint local rules for Asotin, Garfield, and Columbia counties now require the statewide form coversheets from courts.wa.gov in all cases filed with the Superior Court Clerk's Office, and the rule names a Probate Cases cover sheet (06/2025). A new probate filing here is incomplete without it |
| LGR 2, remote access to court proceedings, adopted effective September 1, 2025 | The three counties adopted a written remote access rule on top of LCR 7(5). It limits remote access to parties with pending matters, attorneys and their staff, and other listed or approved participants; requires identification by the name on the case, working audio and video, and courtroom decorum; states that court staff do not provide technical support; and requires court approval seven calendar days in advance to appear by any method other than the court's established platform, granted only for emergencies and extreme hardship |
Page last reviewed: July 2026.
Scenarios
| Situation | Likely path in Asotin County | Where Sunset helps |
|---|---|---|
| Surviving spouse, co-owned home | If the Clarkston home was community property covered by a community property agreement (RCW 26.16.120), or was held with a right of survivorship, it can pass to the surviving spouse without a probate. If assets stood in the decedent's sole name and there is a will, the spouse petitions the Superior Court in Asotin County to admit the will and issue letters testamentary; with no will, the surviving spouse has first priority for letters of administration (RCW 11.28.120(1)). Either way the spouse can ask for nonintervention powers so a solvent estate is administered without further court supervision (RCW 11.68.011), and the petition is filed with the Asotin County Clerk at the courthouse in Asotin. | Asset discovery to confirm how the home and the accounts are titled, including accounts held across the river in Idaho, and what actually has to go through the court. Packet generation for the filing with the Asotin County Clerk. A vetted attorney referral if a dispute arises. |
| Out-of-state adult child, small estate | Where the estate is personal property only, the probate estate less liens and encumbrances does not exceed $100,000, and 40 days have passed since death, a claiming successor can often collect the property with a small estate affidavit instead of a court case (RCW 11.62.010). If a probate is needed, a filer living out of state can mail the petition to the Asotin County Clerk at PO Box 159, Asotin, WA 99402-0159, or fax it after calling (509) 243-2081 to pre-pay, and mail a check or money order with a self addressed stamped envelope for the certified copies, so the case can be opened without flying into the Lewiston-Clarkston valley. | Asset discovery to confirm the estate qualifies and to locate accounts from out of state. Packet generation for the affidavit or the probate petition, prepared so an out-of-state filer can proceed by mail or by fax. |
| Parent settling a predeceased child's estate, home must be sold | Because the estate holds real property that has to be sold, the affidavit route does not reach it and the estate goes through probate: with no will the parent petitions for letters of administration in the priority order of RCW 11.28.120(1) and now must also describe the search for the heirs (RCW 11.28.110); with a will the parent probates it and receives letters testamentary. With nonintervention powers the personal representative can sell the Asotin County house and distribute the proceeds without returning to court for approval (RCW 11.68.011). Any hearing is heard by the judge who serves Asotin, Columbia, and Garfield counties, on the docket dates the county posts for Asotin. | Asset discovery for the child's accounts, property, and debts. Packet generation for the probate petition and the notices. Attorney referral if the sale or a dispute among heirs turns contested. |
Self-help resources
| Resource | What it offers |
|---|---|
| Asotin County Clerk (co.asotin.wa.us), (509) 243-2081 | The filing office for probate: hours of 8 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., the counter on the second floor at 135 2nd Street in Asotin, the PO Box 159 mailing address, the fee schedule, the fax filing rules, and the document request form. Clerk staff can explain procedure but cannot give legal advice |
| Asotin County Superior Court (co.asotin.wa.us), (509) 243-2082 | The court's own page, which lists probates and guardianships among its functions and posts the joint local court rules and the courtroom conduct rules, including the rules that apply when you appear by Zoom or by phone |
| Asotin County court calendar (co.asotin.wa.us) | The docket calendar the joint local rules designate for the three counties' regular docket days (LCR 77(f)(1)): the posted Monday and Tuesday dates for the year and the times each calendar is called, including the civil calendars on Tuesdays |
| Asotin County Clerk legal resource links (co.asotin.wa.us) | The clerk's own curated list of legal resources, including WashingtonLawHelp, the Northwest Justice Project, the Washington State Bar Association, the Revised Code of Washington, and the local court rules |
| Washington Courts court directory (courts.wa.gov) | The government directory of superior court and county clerk addresses, phones, and faxes, including the separate Superior Court and County Clerk listings for Asotin County |
| WashingtonLawHelp (washingtonlawhelp.org) | Washington's main plain-language legal self-help publisher, with probate and small estate guides and the small estate affidavit packet (RCW 11.62.010) |
| Odyssey Portal (odysseyportal.courts.wa.gov) | The public case search for Washington superior courts, including Asotin County. Probate cases appear as superior court civil cases; document coverage varies, and remote electronic access to Asotin County records through the portal runs on the county's own paid Odyssey Portal registration |
| Washington Courts case search (dw.courts.wa.gov) | The statewide pointer index across municipal, district, superior, and appellate courts. Useful for finding a case number, but its own notice warns that case status may be inaccurate and names Odyssey Portal for Asotin County records |
| Washington Courts court forms (courts.wa.gov) | The statewide Case Information Cover Sheet that LCR 1(b) requires, including the Probate Cases cover sheet, and the GR 34 fee waiver forms. There is no statewide probate forms category |
| Northwest Justice Project CLEAR, 1-888-201-1014, nwjustice.org | Free civil legal aid intake for low-income Washington residents, Monday to Friday mornings; callers 60 and over can use CLEAR Sr at 1-888-387-7111. CLEAR targets basic-needs civil problems, so ask whether an estate matter qualifies |
| Washington State Bar Association, find legal help (wsba.org) | Lawyer referral and public resources for finding a Washington probate attorney who covers Asotin County |
| Washington State Law Library (courts.wa.gov), (360) 357-2136 | Legal reference help by phone and email for anyone in the state, useful because Asotin County lists no law library among its offices |
When to hire an attorney
Many Asotin County estates are uncontested, and a personal representative granted nonintervention powers administers and closes a solvent estate without further court supervision (RCW 11.68.011), which is why plenty of families here get through probate with limited legal help. 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, when farm or range ground, a business, or property in another state has to be valued or divided, when the estate is large enough to owe Washington estate tax under chapter 83.100 RCW, or when no one entitled to appointment has come forward and the petition has to be made under RCW 11.28.120(3). Two local facts add their own reasons. Assets on the Idaho side of the river are common in the Lewiston-Clarkston valley, and property in a second state can mean a second proceeding. And because the judge who serves Asotin, Columbia, and Garfield counties sits in Asotin on posted docket dates, a lawyer who already appears on that rotation can present an order at the opening of court without an extra trip. The Asotin County Clerk can explain procedure but cannot give legal advice. Sunset can connect families to a vetted Washington probate attorney serving Asotin 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, Asotin County real estate, and unclaimed property, so you know the estate's value and which Washington estate settlement route fits before you file.
Generate the probate packet. Sunset assembles the paperwork for your route, whether a probate with letters testamentary or letters of administration, a request for nonintervention powers, or a small estate affidavit, ready to file with the Asotin County Clerk at the counter in Asotin, by mail, or by fax.
Find a local probate attorney. When a matter is contested or otherwise calls for counsel, Sunset connects families to a vetted Washington probate attorney serving Asotin 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 Asotin County?
With the Asotin County Clerk, the Clerk of the Superior Court, at the counter on the second floor of the Asotin County Courthouse, 135 2nd Street in Asotin, or by mail to PO Box 159, Asotin, WA 99402-0159. Washington has no separate probate court: the Superior Court in Asotin County handles probate as a case type under RCW Title 11, and the County Clerk is the filing office. Washington law lets a petitioner file in any county (RCW 11.96A.050(4)), but file where the decedent lived, because venue can be moved there within four months of the notice of appointment and the creditor notice must be published in the county of residence anyway (RCW 11.40.020(2)). Note the courthouse is in the city of Asotin, not in Clarkston, where most of the county's residents live.
Can I file an Asotin County probate by mail or by fax?
Both work. For mail, send the papers to the Asotin County Clerk at PO Box 159, Asotin, WA 99402-0159, with payment for the $290 filing fee (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)) by check or money order made payable to the Asotin County Clerk, and include a self addressed stamped envelope if you need certified copies back. Fax filing is the county's own alternative: the Clerk's Office accepts fax filings under GR 17 and RCW 36.18.016(19), but you must call (509) 243-2081 first to confirm the page count and pre-pay by card over the phone, meet the GR 14 margins, and send the county's fax filing cover sheet with a separate sheet for each case before faxing to (509) 243-4978. The fax fee is $5 for the first page and $1 for each additional page beyond the cover sheet, plus the card service fee, and copies emailed back are $0.50 per page. Call before you mail or fax an original will. Watch the address too, because the county uses several PO Boxes and probate goes to the Clerk's box, PO Box 159.
Do I have to e-file probate in Asotin County?
No, and you could not if you wanted to: Asotin County does not accept e-filings. The joint local rules for Asotin, Garfield, and Columbia counties say so directly (LCR 5(e)(1)), and the rules' electronic filing provision covers Columbia County only (LCR 5.1). An Asotin County probate is filed on paper at the clerk's counter, by mail to PO Box 159, or by fax under GR 17. Fax filing is not e-filing: GR 17 is the statewide fax rule, under which the Clerk's Office receives and files the pages that arrive by fax for a per-page fee, while filing through an electronic court filing system is exactly what LCR 5(e)(1) rules out. Two narrow uses of email survive: bench copies of pleadings for a scheduled hearing may be emailed to the Court Administrator and are due by 9:00 a.m. two court days before the hearing (LCR 5(e)(1)), which is a courtesy copy for the judge rather than the filing itself, and the Clerk can email copies back to you after a fax filing for $0.50 per page.
When does the superior court judge sit in Asotin?
On posted docket dates rather than every day. One superior court judge serves Asotin, Columbia, and Garfield counties (RCW 2.08.064), and under the counties' joint local rules the court is in session on all judicial days from 8:30 a.m. to noon and from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., with the regular docket days for each county posted on Asotin County's own court calendar page (LCR 77(f), LCR 77(f)(1)). Asotin posts Monday and Tuesday dates for the year, roughly two of each a month, and lists the times each calendar is called, with the civil calendars on Tuesdays at 9 a.m. for represented parties and 10 a.m. for self-represented parties; the page warns that dates can change, and holiday weeks shift the schedule (LCR 77(f)(2)). Ask the County Clerk at (509) 243-2081 which docket a probate matter belongs on and what the next available date is. Sharing a judge affects the calendar, not the county: the estate is still filed with the Asotin County Clerk and keeps an Asotin County case number. Docket matters are limited to those needing no more than ten minutes, and anything longer is specially set through the Court Administrator at (509) 243-2082 Ext 1230 (LCR 7(7), LCR 7(8)). Many probate orders never need a docket date at all, because ex parte matters, emergency orders, and writs are considered at the opening of court each day and a non-emergency order can be left with the Clerk for the judge or court commissioner (LCR 77(f)(4)).
Can I appear by Zoom or phone in an Asotin County probate?
Yes, if you arrange it in advance and follow the court's remote rule. Under LCR 7(5) of the counties' joint local rules, arguments on motions may be conducted in person or via Zoom, and arrangements may also be made for telephonic appearance; all arrangements should be made directly with the Clerk's office by noon at least two business days before the hearing. LGR 2, adopted effective September 1, 2025, sets the conditions: remote access is for parties with pending matters on the docket, attorneys and their staff, and other listed participants or others the court approves; you must identify yourself by first and last name as it appears on the case or docket; you need audio and video good enough to be seen and understood in the courtroom; the courtroom dress and decorum rules apply to you at home; court staff do not provide technical support; and appearing by any method other than the court's established platform requires court approval obtained seven calendar days in advance, granted only for emergencies and extreme hardship. The county's courtroom conduct page puts it plainly: you are still in court when you appear by Zoom or by phone. Call the Clerk's office at (509) 243-2081 rather than assuming a hearing can be handled from home.
How do I look up an Asotin County probate case online?
Start with Odyssey Portal, the public case search for Washington superior courts; the statewide index at dw.courts.wa.gov lists Asotin among the counties Odyssey covers, and warns that its own dockets and case status may be inaccurate. For remote electronic access to Asotin County Superior Court records through that same portal, Asotin County runs its own Odyssey Portal registration, which the Clerk describes as covering criminal, civil, domestic, probate and guardianship, and juvenile offender cases: a signed Master Registration Form and Subscription Agreement are mailed or delivered to the Clerk's Office, and the annual subscription fee is $120 per user, paid annually by December 1, with an attorney's registration covering the attorney and one legal assistant. Attorneys of record who have filed a notice of appearance can get elevated access to confidential records in their own cases. If you only need one estate file, it is simpler to call the Clerk at (509) 243-2081 or use the county's document request form; requests can take five to seven business days depending on staffing and complexity.
Are there local Asotin County probate forms?
No. Asotin County publishes no local probate forms, and Washington has no statewide probate form set either: the courts.wa.gov forms index has no probate category (verified July 2026). The petition, the order, the oath, and the notices are drafted documents. One statewide form is mandatory here: under LCR 1(b) of the counties' joint local rules, effective September 1, 2025, the parties shall use the form coversheets posted on courts.wa.gov in all cases filed with the Superior Court Clerk's Office, and the rule names a specific Probate Cases cover sheet (06/2025). The GR 34 fee waiver forms are on the same courts.wa.gov pages, and WashingtonLawHelp publishes the plain-language packets, including the small estate affidavit kit for the route that opens no court case (RCW 11.62.010). The clerk forms Asotin does publish are the fax filing cover sheet, the document request form, and the Odyssey Portal registration papers, and the county posts the joint local court rules and its courtroom conduct rules on its Superior Court page.
How much does it cost to file probate in Asotin County?
$290 to open the probate, set by statute and the same in every Washington county: a $200 filing fee plus a $40 surcharge and a $50 surcharge (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)). The Asotin County Clerk's own fee schedule, effective June 11, 2026, prints that line with those three components, so there is no county add-on to the $290 itself. A filer who cannot afford the fee can ask the court to waive it under GR 34. Budget separately for the county's other charges: $30 for each ex parte presentation of an order (RCW 36.18.016(12)), $5 for a certificate of qualification and $5 for a certified copy of letters (RCW 36.18.016(9)), $5 for the first page of a certified copy plus $1 per additional page (RCW 36.18.016(4)), $5 for the first page and $1 per additional page if you fax a filing (RCW 36.18.016(19)), $20 to file a will after death where no probate follows (RCW 36.18.012(7)), postage plus a $2 handling fee for mailed copies, and the newspaper's own rate for publishing the creditor notice. The schedule states that the office issues no refunds, so confirm the amount with the Clerk before you pay.
Where is the creditor notice published for an Asotin County estate?
In a legal newspaper in the county where the estate is being administered, once each week for three successive weeks (RCW 11.40.020(1)). The Asotin County Clerk publishes the designated legal newspaper for Asotin County matters under RCW 65.16.070 as the Lewiston Morning Tribune, 505 Capital Street, Lewiston, Idaho, which is across the Snake River from Clarkston and serves the whole valley. Confirm the arrangement with the Clerk's Office and the schedule and cost with the newspaper before you rely on a date, because first publication starts the four-month period for creditor claims (RCW 11.40.051). If the probate was filed somewhere other than the county where the decedent lived, publication still goes in the county of residence and the notice is filed where the case was commenced (RCW 11.40.020(2)); Asotin charges $20 to file that notice (RCW 36.18.050).
Do I have to travel to Asotin to settle an estate in Asotin County?
Often not, or not more than once. The petition and the later filings can be mailed to the Asotin County Clerk at PO Box 159, Asotin, WA 99402-0159, or faxed to (509) 243-4978 after you call (509) 243-2081 to pre-pay; certified copies can be mailed back to you for postage plus a $2 handling fee, or emailed after a fax filing for $0.50 per page; and a personal representative granted nonintervention powers administers and closes a solvent estate without returning to court for supervision (RCW 11.68.011). Where an appearance is needed, motion argument may be conducted via Zoom and telephonic appearance can be arranged, with arrangements made directly with the Clerk's office by noon at least two business days ahead (LCR 7(5)), subject to the remote access conditions in LGR 2. Distance matters most for a contested matter, which is heard in the courtroom in Asotin on the posted docket dates.
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.