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Chelan County, WA Probate Information
Quick facts
| Category | Current rules |
|---|---|
| Court | The Superior Court in Chelan 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. Chelan County has its own bench, three superior court judges sitting in numbered departments plus one full-time court commissioner, and shares its judges with no other county. The county's own local court rules are cited as CCLCR and were adopted July 1, 2022, effective September 1, 2022, superseding all prior rules of the court |
| Filing office | The Chelan 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 Clerk is an elected county officer under Article IV, section 26 of the Washington Constitution and is the administrative and financial officer of the Superior Court, and issuing letters testamentary is one of the duties the office lists for itself |
| Courthouse | Chelan County Courthouse, 350 Orondo Avenue, Suite 501, fifth floor, Wenatchee, WA 98801. Parking is limited but free in the lot between the Wenatchee Public Library and the Law and Justice Building and courthouse complex |
| Mailing address | The Chelan County Clerk, 350 Orondo Avenue, Suite 501, Wenatchee, WA 98801. The Clerk's Office has no PO Box, so probate filings by mail go to the street address. Do not send a petition to PO Box 880: that is the mailing address for all of the judges under LCR 7(b)(1)(C), used for bench copies rather than filings |
| Phone | (509) 667-6380, the Chelan County Clerk's line. The Superior Court's own chambers and administration line is (509) 667-6210, used for scheduling rather than filing |
| Fax | (509) 667-6611, the County Clerk's fax, as listed in the courts.wa.gov court directory. The clerk publishes a fax filing form, but ask before faxing anything you intend as a probate filing |
| [email protected], the office mailbox the courts.wa.gov court directory publishes for the Chelan County Clerk. It is a general contact address, so ask the clerk before emailing anything you intend as a filing | |
| Office hours | Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., per the Clerk's Office's own published hours; the counter closes from noon to 1 p.m. for lunch. Court files filed since January 1, 1996 can be viewed on the public access terminal in the Clerk's Office on the fifth floor, and viewing documents at the courthouse is free. Note that the office has been working through a backlog since a May 2026 outage and warns of delays in phone and email responses, so call ahead |
| 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). Chelan County's own probate and guardianship fee schedule, effective July 28, 2025, lists the same figure as "Probate Filing, RCW 36.18.020(2,5,6)". Confirm the current schedule with the Chelan County Clerk |
| Local forms | Yes, a short list. Washington publishes no statewide probate form set, but a Case Information Cover Sheet is mandatory with each new case under LCR 5(d)(6), and the clerk states that a filing without it will be rejected. The clerk also sells a Small Estate Settlement packet for $5 under the heading for probate and estates on its forms page, available for pickup at the counter rather than by mail, and LCR 7 Exhibit B is a Note for Motion example form written for Chelan County causes. The petition, the order, the oath, and the notices are drafted documents |
| E-filing | Available but optional, and it cannot carry the core probate documents. The clerk's electronic filing page states that TrueFiling is an optional system, that it incurs additional fees and is not mandatory, and that you may instead file by U.S. mail, courier, or in person; LCR 5(d)(7) permits electronic filing in a manner approved by the Superior Court Clerk and treats a document transmitted by 5 p.m. Pacific as filed that day. The clerk's own list of documents that cannot be e-filed includes original wills and codicils, new probate cases that include an original will or codicil, letters testamentary, letters of administration, letters of guardianship, small estates, death certificates, bail bonds in probate and guardianship cases, and any order to be submitted at a hearing. A $5 bundle fee applies per case number, and combining several documents into one PDF draws a rejection |
| Case search | Chelan 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), which the clerk links from its own court calendars page. The statewide index at https://dw.courts.wa.gov/ also reaches superior court cases, but it carries its own notice that dockets and case status may be inaccurate and directs users to Odyssey Portal or the court of record. The clerk reports probate and guardianship records online from 1900 to the present, with documents filed since January 1, 1996 available as images; coverage varies, so for records in a Chelan County case contact the County Clerk |
| Hearing dates | Fridays. Under LCR 77(o)(1) the Motion Judge holds Probate and Law and Motion calendars each Friday at 9:30 a.m., with adoptions heard at 9 a.m. on the same calendar; the judges rotate as Motion Judge on a schedule they publish, and on the first and third Friday the Law and Motion calendar is presided over by the court commissioner. The clerk posts the Friday list as Law and Motion, Probate and Guardianship, and posts changes or additions at 4 p.m. the day before, warning that anything changed after 4 p.m. will not show on the web. Many uncontested probate matters need no calendar date at all and are presented ex parte under LSPR 98.04(a) |
| Remote appearance | Allowed on request, arranged in advance. Under LCR 7(b)(1)(E) any party may ask to argue a motion by telephone or by audio or video conference, the preferred method is Zoom video, and the request goes to the judge's chambers or the person who schedules that judge's calendar at least three days before the hearing; every party keeps the right to argue in person even if another party appears remotely. The court publishes standing Zoom meetings and asks that arrangements be made in advance by calling (509) 667-6210 or emailing [email protected] |
| Website | https://www.co.chelan.wa.us/clerk (the Chelan County Clerk's own pages: hours, contacts, the probate and guardianship fee schedule, the forms list, electronic filing, and the court calendars), https://www.co.chelan.wa.us/superior-court (the Superior Court's pages), and https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/orgs/264.html (the courts.wa.gov directory entry for Chelan County) |
Before you begin — know the assets and liabilities
Before you file anything with the Chelan 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. That matters more than usual here: the Clerk's Office rejects a new case filed without a Case Information Cover Sheet (LCR 5(d)(6)), and it has been working through a document backlog since a May 2026 outage, so a filing that has to be corrected and refiled can cost weeks.
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 Wenatchee, an orchard in the Wenatchee River valley, or a cabin above Lake Chelan generally requires a probate in the superior court so that a personal representative has authority to sign a deed. Knowing the debts matters too, because nonintervention powers are granted only if the court finds the estate solvent (RCW 11.68.011), and Chelan County's own probate rule expects an inventory or partial inventory of assets and debts sufficient to prove solvency in the file before an ex parte presentation (LSPR 98.04(b)). Sunset's asset discovery work, searching more than 2,300 financial institutions, exists for this step.
Which court handles jurisdiction
The Chelan County Clerk, the Clerk of the Superior Court, is the single probate filing office for all of Chelan County, at one counter on the fifth floor of the Chelan County Courthouse at 350 Orondo Avenue, Suite 501, in Wenatchee. There is no second location and no branch counter. The office serves the entire county, including Wenatchee, the county seat and largest city, and Cashmere, Chelan, Entiat, and Leavenworth, along with the unincorporated communities and orchard country around them, among them Manson, Chelan Falls, Peshastin, Dryden, Monitor, Malaga, Ardenvoir, Plain, Winton, and Lake Wenatchee, north to Stehekin at the head of Lake Chelan, which no road reaches. Estates from every part of the county are filed here, in person at the counter, by mail to 350 Orondo Avenue, or through the county's optional TrueFiling system for the documents that system accepts.
Two Chelan County addresses do different jobs, and mixing them up costs time. The Clerk's Office, where a probate is filed, is at 350 Orondo Avenue with the phone line (509) 667-6380. The Superior Court itself, meaning chambers and court administration, is at 401 Washington Street, fifth floor, in the Law and Justice Building, with the phone line (509) 667-6210, and the mailing address for all of the judges is PO Box 880, Wenatchee, WA 98807-0880 (LCR 7(b)(1)(C)). File with the Clerk; send bench copies, proposed orders, and scheduling requests to the court. The county's district court, which does not handle probate, is in the same building as the Clerk's Office on the fourth floor, so ask for the fifth floor when you arrive. Chelan County has three superior court judges and a full-time court commissioner of its own and shares its bench with no other county, so a Chelan County estate is heard in Wenatchee.
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 Chelan County, file with the Chelan County Clerk. 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 with the Social Security number redacted, the affidavits of the will's subscribing witnesses, 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. Chelan County's own probate rule lists what the file must hold before an uncontested matter can be presented ex parte, and that list is a useful checklist: the original will, the witness affidavits, the certified death certificate, the order admitting the will or appointing an administrator where a surviving spouse petitions, a petition for an order of solvency if solvency is requested, an inventory or partial inventory sufficient to prove solvency, and the order of solvency (LSPR 98.04(b)). 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 covers 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 it 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, starting with the cover sheet. 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. One form is mandatory: LCR 5(d)(6) requires a Case Information Cover Sheet with each new civil case filing, and the Chelan County Clerk states plainly that a filing submitted without it will be rejected. The cover sheet is a statewide form on the courts.wa.gov forms pages. The clerk also sells a Small Estate Settlement packet for $5 at the counter, for the route under RCW 11.62.010 that opens no court case, and WashingtonLawHelp publishes the plain-language packets a self-represented filer can work from.
- File with the Chelan County Clerk. Take the papers to the counter on the fifth floor of the Chelan County Courthouse, 350 Orondo Avenue, Suite 501, in Wenatchee, open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., or mail them to the Clerk at the same street address. Chelan County also offers optional TrueFiling e-filing, but the clerk's own list of documents that cannot be e-filed covers most of what a probate needs at the outset, including original wills and codicils, any new probate case that includes an original will or codicil, letters, small estates, and death certificates, so plan on paper for the opening filing. Mail is a recognized route here rather than a workaround: LSPR 98.04(c) lets an original probate application be presented by mail if the mailing holds all of the LSPR 98.04(b) documents, every document carries the personal original signature of counsel or of the party appearing pro se, a personally signed covering letter of explanation asks the Clerk to deliver the documents to a Judge or Court Commissioner for signing, and a self-addressed return envelope with sufficient postage is enclosed for any conformed copies you want back.
- 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)). Chelan County's own probate and guardianship fee schedule, effective July 28, 2025, lists that figure with the same statutory cites. A filer who cannot afford the fee can ask the court to waive it under GR 34, and the clerk publishes a list of filings that carry no fee by statute. The clerk's schedule states that fees are paid in advance and that there are no refunds, so check the papers before you file. Chelan County takes card payments by phone and online through nCourt with a convenience fee under the clerk's published schedule, and a check or money order made payable to the Chelan County Clerk works at the counter or by mail. 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 Chelan 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 Chelan County Clerk publishes the county's legal newspapers, the Wenatchee World, the Douglas County Empire Press, and Ward Media's Leavenworth Echo and Lake Chelan Mirror. Confirm the publication schedule and cost with the newspaper before you count on a date, because first publication starts the four-month claim period (RCW 11.40.051).
- Get on the Friday calendar if your matter needs one. Many probate orders never reach a hearing: LSPR 98.04(a) provides that all probate matters that are not contested, and in which notice is not required by statute, rule, or a filed request for notice under RCW 11.28.240, or where notice has been waived, may be done ex parte. Anything set for argument goes on the Friday calendar: under LCR 77(o)(1) the Motion Judge holds Probate and Law and Motion calendars each Friday at 9:30 a.m., presided over by the court commissioner on the first and third Friday of the month. To note a motion, file it with the Clerk and serve all parties and the assigned or presiding judge at least five court days before the hearing date, with a Note for Motion (LCR 7 Exhibit B is a Chelan County example form), and deliver or mail a bench copy to the judges at PO Box 880, Wenatchee, WA 98807-0880 (LCR 7(b)(1)(C)). Proposed orders go to Court Administration at least three court days out, by hard copy with a cover sheet showing the hearing date and time or by email to [email protected] (LCR 7(b)(2)). To appear remotely, ask chambers or the judge's scheduler at least three days ahead; Zoom video is the court's preferred method (LCR 7(b)(1)(E)). A special setting is arranged by calling (509) 667-6210 or emailing the same chambers address (LCR 7(b)(1)(F), LCR 77(o)).
- 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 Chelan County Clerk issues certified copies. Letters cannot be e-filed here, so expect to collect or receive them on paper. 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 county's schedule charges $5 for letters testamentary, letters of administration, or letters of guardianship and for any other issuance of a certificate of qualification (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 a pleading needs the clerk to act, for example to issue letters, caption it "Clerk's Action Required" directly below the case number and say in the body exactly what the Clerk must do (LCR 78(g)).
- 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 Chelan County
Washington publishes no statewide probate form set, and 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). The Chelan County probate 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.
Chelan County does publish a short list of its own, and one item on it is mandatory. LCR 5(d)(6) requires a Case Information Cover Sheet with each new civil case filing, and the Chelan County Clerk states that a filing submitted without the cover sheet will be rejected, so the cover sheet is a required part of opening a probate here. The clerk's forms page lists, under its heading for probates and estates, a Small Estate Settlement packet for $5, for the affidavit route that opens no court case (RCW 11.62.010); the clerk's forms are not available by mail and are picked up at the counter between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. LCR 7 Exhibit B is a Note for Motion example form written for Chelan County causes, and the rule allows you to delete the sections that do not apply. The GR 34 fee waiver forms are on the courts.wa.gov forms pages if you cannot afford the $290 filing fee (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)), and the clerk separately publishes a fee exemption list of filings that carry no fee by statute. Everything else on the clerk's forms list is family law, protection order, criminal, or other non-probate material. Ask the Chelan County Clerk at (509) 667-6380 what the office wants on intake before you file.
| Resource | What it provides |
|---|---|
| Chelan County Clerk forms and fees (co.chelan.wa.us) | The clerk's own form list, including the $5 Small Estate Settlement packet under the probates and estates heading, with the counter pickup rule and the packet prices |
| Chelan County Clerk electronic filing (co.chelan.wa.us) | The county's TrueFiling notice: e-filing is optional and carries extra fees, the Case Information Cover Sheet is required or the filing is rejected, and the list of documents that cannot be e-filed, including original wills and codicils, letters, small estates, and death certificates |
| Washington Courts court forms (courts.wa.gov) | The statewide Case Information Cover Sheet that LCR 5(d)(6) makes mandatory for a new case, and the GR 34 fee waiver forms. There is no probate category here, which is the point: Washington has no statewide probate forms |
| Local Court Rules of the Superior Court of Chelan County (courts.wa.gov) | The county's current adopted rules, effective September 1, 2022, cited as CCLCR: LSPR 98.04 on probate ex parte presentation and presentation by mail, LCR 5 on filing and e-filing, LCR 7 on motions and remote appearance with the Note for Motion example form at Exhibit B, LCR 77(o) on the Friday probate calendar, and LCR 78(g) on the Clerk's Action Required caption |
| 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: Chelan County (courts.wa.gov) | The government listing that confirms the Chelan County Clerk's address, phone, fax, and office mailbox, and the separate Superior Court address and PO Box |
Fees
The $290 to open a probate is statutory and identical in every Washington county (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)). What varies is everything around it, and Chelan County publishes its own probate and guardianship fee schedule, effective July 28, 2025, plus separate charges for e-filing, records, and audio. These are the Chelan County figures a family actually meets; confirm the current schedule with the Chelan County Clerk before you write a check, because the clerk states that fees are paid in advance and that there are no refunds.
| Item | What the Chelan County Clerk charges |
|---|---|
| Probate filing | $290, listed on the county's schedule as "Probate Filing, RCW 36.18.020(2,5,6)": the $200 statutory fee plus a $40 surcharge and a $50 surcharge (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)). The same $290 applies to a nonprobate notice to creditors, to a petition admitting a rejected will or contesting a will or objecting to a written agreement or memorandum, and to a counter petition, cross-claim, or third-party claim in a probate or guardianship case |
| Letters and certificates of qualification | $5 for letters testamentary, letters of administration, or letters of guardianship, the line the county's schedule labels Form K, and $5 for any other issuance of a certificate of qualification (RCW 36.18.016(9)). Name the item by function when you order, because two different statutory lines carry that nickname |
| Certified copies from the file | $5 for the first page and $1 for each additional page, per document, certified with or without seal (RCW 36.18.016(4)). The clerk states that documents cannot be separated or partially copied, and that viewing documents at the courthouse is free |
| Records search with a written report | $30 per hour or any portion of an hour, a Chelan County charge on top of the copy fees. Additional fees apply for noncertified copies provided by fax or email |
| Filing a will where no probate is opened | $20 to file a will only, with no probate of the decedent's estate (RCW 36.18.012(7)), and a separate $20 to deposit a will in the clerk's will repository (RCW 36.18.016(28)) |
| TrueFiling e-filing | A $5 bundle fee per case number for documents submitted through TrueFiling, on top of the vendor's own charges. If a filing is rejected the clerk refunds the associated fees except the credit card processing fee. Judge's, working, or bench copies delivered to chambers through the system cost $0.50 per page |
| Court audio recordings | $25 for each hearing day for each case number, plus $5 per device or file transfer and $2 plus postage for a mailed device. The clerk asks that you submit the request first and pay the quoted total rather than prepaying |
| Card payments | Chelan County takes card payments by phone and online through nCourt, which charges a convenience fee under the schedule the clerk publishes. A check or money order payable to the Chelan County Clerk avoids it |
| Other probate line items | $20 for the appointment of a special representative (RCW 11.96A.160, RCW 36.18.050), $20 for a certification of trust, $20 for a nonjudicial binding agreement under the Trust and Estate Dispute Resolution Act filed in an existing case and $290 if it opens a new one, and $2 to file a Department of Revenue affidavit in an escheat proceeding (RCW 11.08.300) |
| Fee waiver and exemptions | A filer who cannot afford the filing fee can ask the court to waive it (GR 34), and the clerk publishes a fee exemption list of filings that carry no fee by statute. The small estate affidavit route under RCW 11.62.010 opens no court case and so carries no court filing fee, though the clerk's Small Estate Settlement form packet costs $5 |
Timeline
- Probate calendar, every Friday at 9:30 a.m. LCR 77(o)(1) of the Chelan County local rules provides that the Motion Judge will hold Probate and Law and Motion calendars each Friday at 9:30 a.m., with adoption hearings at 9 a.m. on the same calendar. The clerk posts the Friday list as Law and Motion, Probate and Guardianship.
- Who presides rotates. The judges rotate as Motion Judge on a schedule they publish periodically, and on the first and third Friday of the month the Law and Motion calendar is presided over by the court commissioner (LCR 77(o)(2)). Which judicial officer hears a given Friday is not something to assume; check the posted calendar.
- Uncontested matters often skip the calendar. An uncontested probate matter in which notice is not required by statute, rule, or a filed request for notice under RCW 11.28.240, or in which notice has been waived, may be done ex parte (LSPR 98.04(a)), so many routine probate orders are presented rather than argued.
- Note a motion at least five court days out. Any party bringing a motion before trial, other than a summary judgment motion, must file it with the Clerk and serve all parties and the judge assigned to hear it, or the Presiding Judge, at least five court days before the date fixed for the hearing, and must deliver a bench copy of the motion and supporting documents to the courthouse or mail it to the judges at PO Box 880, Wenatchee, WA 98807-0880 (LCR 7(b)(1)(C)).
- Responses by noon two court days before; replies by noon the day before. Responding documents and briefs must be filed with the Clerk and served on all parties and the judge no later than noon two court days before the hearing, and any additional responding or reply documents no later than noon of the court day before the hearing (LCR 7(b)(1)(C)). Material offered late may be rejected or the matter continued (LCR 7(b)(1)(D)).
- Proposed orders three court days out. Proposed orders go to Court Administration at least three court days before the scheduled hearing, either as a hard copy with a cover sheet showing the hearing date and time and the name of the proposing party, or by email to [email protected] with the case name and cause number (LCR 7(b)(2)).
- Ask to appear remotely at least three days ahead. A party wanting to argue by telephone or by audio or video conference asks chambers or the person who schedules the assigned judge's calendar at least three days before the hearing; Zoom video is the preferred method, and any other party keeps the right to argue in person (LCR 7(b)(1)(E)).
- Ask for a court reporter two court days ahead if you want one. A court reporter will not be provided for a civil matter unless requested at least two court days before the hearing or trial, though one is provided for all jury trials (LCR 77(o)).
- Check the calendar the afternoon before. The Chelan County Clerk posts changes or additions to any calendar at 4 p.m. on the day before it runs, and states that changes or additions made after 4 p.m. will not be reflected on the web.
- Do not plan around a filing-to-hearing estimate. Chelan County publishes no expected wait between filing a probate and getting an order, and the Clerk's Office has been working through a backlog of more than 6,000 documents since a May 2026 outage. Call (509) 667-6380 for the current picture before you promise a date to a bank or a buyer.
Local nuance
Chelan County-specific considerations
Chelan County has its own probate rule, and it is unusually friendly to a filer who cannot come to the counter. LSPR 98.04(c) of the county's local rules provides that an original probate application may be presented by mail on four conditions: the mailing holds all of the documents LSPR 98.04(b) requires; every document bears the personal original signature of counsel or of the party appearing pro se; a covering letter of explanation, personally signed by the presenter, asks the Clerk to deliver the documents to a Judge or Court Commissioner for signing; and a self-addressed return envelope with sufficient postage is enclosed for the return of any conformed copies requested. Read together with LSPR 98.04(a), which lets an uncontested probate matter be done ex parte where notice is not required or has been waived, that means an out-of-town family can often open a Chelan County probate and get the opening orders signed without appearing at all. The covering letter is not a formality; it is what tells the Clerk to route the packet to a judicial officer.
Two addresses do different jobs. The Chelan County Clerk, where a probate is filed, is on the fifth floor at 350 Orondo Avenue, Suite 501, (509) 667-6380, with no PO Box. The Superior Court's chambers and court administration are at 401 Washington Street, fifth floor, in the Law and Justice Building, (509) 667-6210, and LCR 7(b)(1)(C) states that the mailing address for all of the judges is PO Box 880, Wenatchee, WA 98807-0880. Petitions and other filings go to the Clerk at 350 Orondo Avenue; bench copies, proposed orders, special settings, and remote appearance requests go to the court. The county's district court, which does not handle probate, occupies the fourth floor of the same building as the Clerk's Office, so ask for the fifth floor. If a pleading needs the Clerk to do something, for example issue letters, LCR 78(g) requires the caption "Clerk's Action Required" directly below the case number, with the specific action stated in the body.
E-filing exists here and will not carry the documents a probate turns on. The clerk's electronic filing page states that TrueFiling is optional, incurs additional fees, and is not mandatory, and that a filer may instead use U.S. mail, a courier, or the counter; LCR 5(d)(7) permits electronic filing in a manner approved by the Superior Court Clerk and treats a document transmitted by 5 p.m. Pacific as filed that day. But the clerk's own list of documents that cannot be e-filed reads like a probate docket: original wills and codicils, including any new probate case that includes an original will or codicil; letters testamentary, letters of administration, and letters of guardianship; small estates; death certificates; bail bonds in probate and guardianship cases; and any order to be submitted at a hearing, which the clerk says should go to the judge's chambers instead. A $5 bundle fee applies per case number, combining several documents into a single PDF draws a rejection, and a filing without the Case Information Cover Sheet is rejected outright (LCR 5(d)(6)). For a Chelan County probate, plan on paper for the opening filing and treat e-filing as a convenience for what comes later.
Recent updates
| Change | What it means |
|---|---|
| May 2026 malware incident and document backlog | Chelan County discovered malware affecting its network on May 24, 2026, and the Clerk's Office lost access to the Washington State court document systems until June 22, 2026. Electronic filing was unavailable until July 1, 2026. The clerk reported a backlog of more than 6,000 documents and warned that there may be delays in responses to phone calls and emails while it catches up, and it suspended new passport appointments, moving to limited walk-in processing. Expect a probate filing, a certified copy request, or a records request to take longer than usual, and call (509) 667-6380 rather than emailing if a date matters |
| Probate and guardianship fee schedule effective July 28, 2025 | The clerk's current schedule for probate and guardianship matters lists the probate filing fee as $290 under RCW 36.18.020(2,5,6), matching the statutory total after the $50 surcharge added in 2025, and sets out the county's other probate line items, including $5 for letters and $20 to file a will where no probate is opened. The schedule states that fees are paid in advance and that there are no refunds |
| Local court rules effective September 1, 2022 | The current Local Court Rules of the Superior Court of Chelan County were ordered on July 1, 2022 and took effect September 1, 2022, superseding all prior rules of the court. They are the source for the Friday Probate and Law and Motion calendar (LCR 77(o)), the five court day noting requirement and remote appearance procedure (LCR 7(b)), the mandatory Case Information Cover Sheet and the electronic filing provision (LCR 5(d)), and the probate ex parte and presentation-by-mail rule (LSPR 98.04). Older Chelan County rule sets circulating elsewhere are superseded |
Page last reviewed: July 2026.
Scenarios
| Situation | Likely path in Chelan County | Where Sunset helps |
|---|---|---|
| Surviving spouse, co-owned home | If the Wenatchee 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 Chelan 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)), and Chelan County's own rule contemplates that petition being presented ex parte with an order appointing an administrator where the petitioner is the surviving spouse (LSPR 98.04(b)). 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 Chelan County Clerk at 350 Orondo Avenue in Wenatchee. | Asset discovery to confirm how the home and the accounts are titled and what actually has to go through the court. Packet generation for the filing with the Chelan County Clerk, including the mandatory Case Information Cover Sheet. 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); the Chelan County Clerk sells a Small Estate Settlement packet for $5 at the counter. If a probate is needed, Chelan County is one of the better counties to run from a distance: LSPR 98.04(c) lets the original probate application be presented by mail to the Clerk at 350 Orondo Avenue, Suite 501, Wenatchee, WA 98801, with original signatures, a signed covering letter asking the Clerk to deliver the papers to a Judge or Court Commissioner for signing, and a stamped self-addressed envelope for the conformed copies. | 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 under the county's own rule. |
| 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 Chelan County house and distribute the proceeds without returning to court for approval (RCW 11.68.011). If any step does need to be argued, it goes on the Friday Probate and Law and Motion calendar at 9:30 a.m. in Wenatchee, noted at least five court days ahead with a bench copy to the judges at PO Box 880 (LCR 77(o)(1), LCR 7(b)(1)(C)), and a parent living out of the area can ask to appear by Zoom three days in advance (LCR 7(b)(1)(E)). | 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 |
|---|---|
| Chelan County Clerk (co.chelan.wa.us), (509) 667-6380 | The filing office for probate: hours, the counter on the fifth floor at 350 Orondo Avenue, Suite 501, the probate and guardianship fee schedule, the forms list, the electronic filing rules, and the court calendars. The clerk publishes what its staff can and cannot do: case status, general information on court rules and procedures, court-approved forms and schedules, and how to get a matter scheduled, but no legal advice and no help filling out forms |
| Chelan County court calendars (co.chelan.wa.us) | The weekly calendar list, including the Friday Law and Motion, Probate and Guardianship calendar, with the county's holiday closures and the rule that changes or additions are posted at 4 p.m. the day before |
| Local Court Rules of the Superior Court of Chelan County (courts.wa.gov) | The county's current adopted local rules, effective September 1, 2022: LSPR 98.04 on probate ex parte presentation and presentation by mail, LCR 7 on noting motions and appearing remotely, and LCR 77(o) on the Friday probate calendar |
| Chelan County Law Library (co.chelan.wa.us), (509) 667-6210 | The county's public law library, required by RCW 27.24.010, on the fifth level of the Law and Justice Building at 401 Washington Street, open Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Two public terminals, one with OnBase access to Chelan County Superior Court case files and one with Lexis Advance including Washington State Bar Association deskbooks. The court's law clerk serves as county librarian and can help with reference questions but cannot do research for you |
| 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). The Chelan County Clerk links it from its own resources page |
| Odyssey Portal (odysseyportal.courts.wa.gov) | The public case search for Washington superior courts, including Chelan County, and the search the clerk links from its court calendars page. Probate cases appear as superior court civil cases; document coverage varies |
| Chelan County Clerk records information (co.chelan.wa.us) | What the clerk holds and how to get it: probate and guardianship records online from 1900 to the present, images for everything filed since January 1, 1996, a public access terminal on the fifth floor, free viewing at the courthouse, and the copy and search fees |
| 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 routes Chelan County searches to Odyssey Portal |
| Washington Courts court directory (courts.wa.gov) | The government directory of superior court and county clerk addresses, phones, faxes, and office mailboxes, including the separate Superior Court and County Clerk listings for Chelan County |
| Washington Courts court forms (courts.wa.gov) | The statewide Case Information Cover Sheet that LCR 5(d)(6) makes mandatory, 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. The Chelan County Clerk lists it among its resources |
| Washington State Bar Association, find legal help (wsba.org) | Lawyer referral and public resources for finding a Washington probate attorney who covers Chelan County |
When to hire an attorney
Many Chelan 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, particularly where the county's own rule lets the opening papers be presented ex parte or by mail (LSPR 98.04). 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 an orchard, a business, water rights, 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). Local practice is its own reason: contested matters land on the Friday Probate and Law and Motion calendar with noting, bench copy, and proposed order deadlines running five, three, and two court days out (LCR 77(o), LCR 7(b)), and an attorney who already appears on that calendar can move an order along. Note that the Chelan County Clerk's Family Law Facilitators, useful as they are, handle family law matters and do not cover probate, and clerk staff can explain procedure but cannot give legal advice. Sunset can connect families to a vetted Washington probate attorney serving Chelan 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, Chelan County real estate, and unclaimed property, so you know the estate's value and which Washington 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 Chelan County Clerk at the counter in Wenatchee or by mail under the county's own presentation-by-mail rule.
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 Chelan 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 Chelan County?
With the Chelan County Clerk, the Clerk of the Superior Court, at the counter on the fifth floor of the Chelan County Courthouse, 350 Orondo Avenue, Suite 501, in Wenatchee, open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Washington has no separate probate court: the Superior Court in Chelan County handles probate as a case type under RCW Title 11, and the County Clerk is the filing office. Do not send the petition to PO Box 880, which is the judges' mailing address for bench copies, and do not go to the fourth floor, which is the county's district court and does not handle probate. 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)).
Can I file a Chelan County probate by mail?
Yes, and the county's own local rule spells out how. LSPR 98.04(c) provides that an original probate application may be presented by mail if the mailing includes all of the documents LSPR 98.04(b) requires, every document bears the personal original signature of counsel or of the party appearing pro se, a covering letter of explanation personally signed by the presenter asks the Clerk to deliver the documents to a Judge or Court Commissioner for signing, and a self-addressed return envelope with sufficient postage is enclosed for any conformed copies you want back. Send it to the Chelan County Clerk at 350 Orondo Avenue, Suite 501, Wenatchee, WA 98801, with payment for the $290 filing fee (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)) by check or money order payable to the Chelan County Clerk. Call (509) 667-6380 before you mail an original will.
Do I have to e-file probate in Chelan County?
No. The Chelan County Clerk states that TrueFiling is an optional electronic filing system, that it incurs additional fees and is not mandatory, and that you may instead file by U.S. mail, courier, or in person. More to the point, e-filing cannot carry most of what a probate needs at the start: the clerk's list of documents that must be filed on paper includes original wills and codicils, any new probate case that includes an original will or codicil, letters testamentary, letters of administration, letters of guardianship, small estates, death certificates, bail bonds in probate and guardianship cases, and any order to be submitted at a hearing. If you do use TrueFiling, a $5 bundle fee applies per case number, several documents combined into one PDF will be rejected, and a filing without the Case Information Cover Sheet is rejected under LCR 5(d)(6). A document transmitted by 5 p.m. Pacific counts as filed that day (LCR 5(d)(7)).
When are probate hearings held in Chelan County?
Fridays. Under LCR 77(o)(1) of the Chelan County local rules the Motion Judge holds Probate and Law and Motion calendars each Friday at 9:30 a.m., and the Chelan County Clerk posts that Friday slot as the Law and Motion, Probate and Guardianship calendar. The judges rotate as Motion Judge on a schedule they publish, and on the first and third Friday of the month the court commissioner presides (LCR 77(o)(2)). Many probate matters never need a Friday date: LSPR 98.04(a) allows an uncontested probate matter in which notice is not required by statute, rule, or a filed request for notice under RCW 11.28.240, or in which notice has been waived, to be done ex parte. To put a matter on the calendar, file and serve it at least five court days ahead with a Note for Motion and get a bench copy to the judges at PO Box 880 (LCR 7(b)(1)(C)), and check the posted calendar the afternoon before, because changes are posted at 4 p.m. the day prior and anything changed later will not show online.
Can I appear by phone or video in a Chelan County probate?
Yes, if you arrange it in advance. Under LCR 7(b)(1)(E) any party may request to argue any motion by telephone or by audio or video conference, the court's preferred method is Zoom video, and the request goes to the judge's chambers or to the person who schedules that judge's calendar at least three days before the hearing. Every party keeps the right to argue in person even if another appears remotely. The Superior Court publishes standing Zoom meetings and asks that arrangements be made in advance by calling (509) 667-6210 or emailing [email protected]. Meeting links and IDs change, so get them from the court rather than from an old page.
How do I look up a Chelan County probate case online?
Use Odyssey Portal, the public case search for Washington superior courts, which covers Chelan County and which the Chelan County Clerk links from its own court calendars page. The statewide index at dw.courts.wa.gov will also find a case, but it carries its own notice that dockets and case status may be inaccurate and directs users to Odyssey Portal or the court of record. The clerk reports probate and guardianship records online from 1900 to the present, with everything filed since January 1, 1996 available as document images, and keeps a public access terminal in the Clerk's Office on the fifth floor where viewing is free. For copies, the clerk charges $5 for the first page of a certified copy plus $1 per additional page (RCW 36.18.016(4)) and $30 per hour for a records search with a written report.
Are there local Chelan County probate forms?
A few, and one is mandatory. Washington publishes no statewide probate form set (the courts.wa.gov forms index has no probate category, verified July 2026), so the petition, the order, the oath, and the notices are drafted documents. But LCR 5(d)(6) requires a Case Information Cover Sheet with each new civil case filing, and the Chelan County Clerk states that a filing without it will be rejected, so that statewide cover sheet is a required part of opening a probate here. The clerk also sells a Small Estate Settlement packet for $5 under the probates and estates heading on its forms page, picked up at the counter rather than mailed, and LCR 7 Exhibit B is a Note for Motion example form written for Chelan County causes. The GR 34 fee waiver forms are on the courts.wa.gov forms pages, and WashingtonLawHelp publishes the plain-language packets.
How much does it cost to file probate in Chelan 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)). Chelan County's own probate and guardianship fee schedule, effective July 28, 2025, lists that figure with the same cites. A filer who cannot afford it can ask the court to waive the fee under GR 34, and the clerk publishes a list of filings that carry no fee by statute. Budget separately for the Chelan County charges around it: $5 for letters testamentary or letters of administration (RCW 36.18.016(9)), $5 for the first page of a certified copy plus $1 per additional page (RCW 36.18.016(4)), $30 per hour for a records search with a written report, a $5 TrueFiling bundle fee per case number and $0.50 per page for judge's copies if you e-file, $20 to file a will where no probate is opened (RCW 36.18.012(7)), and an nCourt convenience fee if you pay by card. The clerk states that fees are paid in advance and that there are no refunds.
Where is the creditor notice published for a Chelan 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 Chelan County Clerk publishes the county's legal newspapers on its resources page: the Wenatchee World, the Douglas County Empire Press, and Ward Media's Leavenworth Echo and Lake Chelan Mirror, whose legal ads are handled by email. 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)). Confirm 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).
Do I have to travel to Wenatchee to settle an estate in Chelan County?
Often not. Chelan County is one of the easier counties to handle from a distance: LSPR 98.04(c) lets the original probate application be presented by mail to the Clerk at 350 Orondo Avenue with original signatures, a signed covering letter asking the Clerk to route the papers to a Judge or Court Commissioner, and a stamped self-addressed envelope for the conformed copies; LSPR 98.04(a) lets uncontested matters be done ex parte rather than at a hearing; a personal representative granted nonintervention powers administers and closes a solvent estate without returning to court (RCW 11.68.011); and where a Friday hearing is needed, you can ask to appear by Zoom at least three days ahead (LCR 7(b)(1)(E)). Travel matters most for a contested matter, which is argued in Wenatchee. One caution for anyone working remotely: the Clerk's Office has been processing a backlog since a May 2026 outage and warns of delays in phone and email responses, so build in time.
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.