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Kitsap County, WA Probate Information
Quick facts
| Category | Current rules |
|---|---|
| Court | The Superior Court in Kitsap County, Washington's general-jurisdiction trial court. There is no separate probate court in Washington; the superior court handles probate as a case type under Title 11 of the Revised Code of Washington (RCW Title 11). Probate matters are opened on the daily ex parte calendar before a judge or court commissioner, and probate motions in cases not preassigned to a judge are heard Friday at 9:00 a.m. (Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 77(k)(2) and (k)(4)) |
| Filing office | Kitsap County Clerk, Clerk of the Superior Court. The clerk states that the County Clerk is an elected official provided for by the Washington State Constitution and is the administrative and financial officer for the Superior Court, that the office receives, processes and preserves every Superior Court document including probate, and that it performs quasi-judicial functions such as issuing letters testamentary. Kitsap follows Washington's ordinary elected-clerk pattern |
| Courthouse | Kitsap County Clerk, Kitsap County Courthouse, 614 Division Street, Room 202, Port Orchard, WA 98366. Room 202 is also the ex parte check-in counter and the sealed will repository |
| Mailing | Kitsap County Clerk, 614 Division Street, MS-34, Port Orchard, WA 98366 (the Washington State Court Directory gives the ZIP+4 as 98366-4692). MS-34 is the courthouse mail stop, not a room number. Ex parte submissions by mail are addressed to Kitsap County Clerk - Ex Parte at the same address |
| Phone | (360) 337-7164 for the Clerk's Office. The Superior Court's own line is (360) 337-7140, and hearing confirmations go to that number, option 2 |
| Fax | (360) 337-4927 for the Clerk's Office, confirmed against the Washington State Court Directory. All faxes to the Superior Court must go through the Clerk's Office: the court's own policy is that faxing the Superior Court directly is not allowed without prior permission from a judicial officer or staff. The clerk charges a fax filing service fee of $5 for the first page plus $1 per additional page (RCW 36.18.016(20)) and publishes a fax filing coversheet |
| Hours | 8:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. and 1:15 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday. The Clerk's Office is closed for lunch from 12:15 to 1:15 every day, and the Superior Court office keeps the same hours. The clerk publishes its holiday closure list for the year; the courthouse is closed on those days |
| 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), and the clerk publishes a filing fee waiver form. The clerk's own Probate Filing page states a "$290 filing fee," and the Kitsap County Clerk's Office Fee Schedule, effective July 27, 2025, lists "Probate Filing $290.00, RCW 36.18.020(2f),(5c),(6)." Pay by cash, card, money order or cashier's check; personal checks are not accepted, fees must be paid in advance (RCW 36.18.060), and card payments carry a 2.4 percent processing charge with a $2 minimum. Confirm the current schedule with the Kitsap County Clerk |
| Local forms | Yes. Washington publishes no statewide probate form set, so the petition, order and letters are drafted by the filer or the attorney, but Kitsap requires the statewide Probate Case Information Cover Sheet, which the Clerk's Office will provide, and publishes its own General Procedure for Starting Probate handout, a Small Estate Affidavit and Procedure packet, Sealed Will Repository information and coversheet, an ex parte coversheet and letter of instruction, a fax filing coversheet, a filing by mail coversheet, a Note for Motion Docket in the form of Exhibit E, a filing fee waiver, and a newspaper publications list. Probate kits are sold at the counter or by online order |
| E-filing | Available and optional, not mandatory. The clerk states that Kitsap County is participating in an eFile pilot program through the Administrative Office of the Courts, runs it through the statewide eFileWA portal, and is still developing local clerk policies for it; the clerk publishes its own eFileWA filing procedure and an e-filing document order. No Kitsap local rule requires anyone, attorney or self-represented, to file electronically. Paper filing at the counter in Room 202, by mail with the clerk's filing by mail coversheet, and by fax with the clerk's fax filing coversheet all remain available |
| Case search | Split by what you need. Odyssey Portal (odysseyportal.courts.wa.gov) is the current superior court case search for Kitsap, the Administrative Office of the Courts index at dw.courts.wa.gov routes Kitsap County Superior Court searches there, and the clerk tells anyone who does not know a case number to look it up on Odyssey Portal. Viewing and purchasing the documents is different: the general public and infrequent users buy Kitsap Superior Court records through the Washington State Digital Archives, selecting Superior Court Records and Kitsap County and entering the case number with dashes, while an Odyssey Portal subscription, which the clerk states is for businesses and attorneys that need frequent access to court documents and is not for general public use, is registered through [email protected]. Treat dw.courts.wa.gov as a pointer only: its own notice warns that dockets, judgments, document links and case status may be inaccurate |
| Remote appearance | Available for probate. Kitsap County Superior Court permits Zoom appearances on the ex parte calendars, provided the proposed orders reach the court before the calendar begins, and on the weekly civil motions, probate and guardianship calendars, with in-person appearance encouraged. The court publishes a standing Zoom meeting for the courtroom that hears the probate and guardianship calendar and for the daily ex parte calendar, and posts courtroom and Zoom assignments by the end of business the day before the hearing. A Zoom appearer must still get the documents to the courtroom by upload, fax, mail or messenger with a letter of instruction |
| Website | https://www.kitsap.gov/clerk |
Before you begin — know the assets and liabilities
The first Kitsap County question is not which form to use, it is what the estate actually holds. Washington's routes are a petition to probate the will with letters testamentary; a petition for letters of administration where there is no will, in the priority order the statute sets; nonintervention powers, which let a solvent estate be administered and closed without further court supervision (RCW 11.68.011); and, for a modest estate holding only personal property, a sworn small estate affidavit collected without opening any court case (RCW 11.62.010). Which one fits turns on whether there is a will, what the estate holds, whether it is solvent, and who is entitled to serve; the routes and their thresholds are covered on the Washington state page.
Before you file, identify every bank and credit union account, brokerage and retirement account, life insurance policy, vehicle, business interest, and parcel of Kitsap County real estate, along with every debt, and identify each heir, legatee and devisee by name and address. Kitsap makes that front work matter in two concrete ways: a 2026 change to Washington law now requires an application for letters of administration to describe the heirs and the applicant's search for them and, in most cases, to give a general description of the major probate assets (RCW 11.28.110), and Kitsap County Local General Rule 31(10) requires a petition or notice filed under RCW 11.28 to give the full names and ages of any children who are heirs. Sunset's asset-discovery work, searching more than 2,300 financial institutions, exists for this step.
Which court handles jurisdiction
One courthouse serves the whole county. The Superior Court in Kitsap County and the Kitsap County Clerk both sit at the Kitsap County Courthouse, 614 Division Street in Port Orchard, and every Kitsap probate is filed there whether the decedent lived in Port Orchard, Bremerton, Silverdale, Poulsbo, Bainbridge Island, Kingston, Suquamish, Port Gamble, Manchester, Seabeck, Hansville or anywhere else on the peninsula or the island. Kitsap has its own superior court judges rather than sharing a judge with a neighboring county, and there is no second clerk counter and no branch probate location.
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)). Once letters have been granted, the rest of the estate stays in that county (RCW 11.96A.050(5)). A narrow exception removes the choice: a petitioner seeking appointment under RCW 11.28.120(3), the route open to a person not otherwise entitled after 90 days, must file where the decedent resided.
Getting to the courthouse is the one piece of Kitsap geography that matters procedurally, because much of the county is reached from Seattle by ferry. Kitsap answers that with distance-friendly filing rather than a second counter: the clerk accepts probate filings and ex parte presentations by mail on its own coversheet, by fax on its own coversheet, and through the eFileWA pilot, and the court permits Zoom appearances on both the ex parte and the probate calendars. Within the county, a probate is not preassigned to a judge when it opens, so the estate goes to the shared ex parte and probate calendars rather than to a single department; case scheduling under Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 40 expressly excludes probates, and the clerk confirms that no track assignment request is needed because Kitsap cases are not assigned until they are set for trial.
The jurisdiction process
- Confirm venue. 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, so Kitsap County is the practical county when the decedent lived here at death. An interested party can move venue to the county of residence within four months of the notice of appointment, and if the probate is filed elsewhere the creditor notice must still be published in the county of residence (RCW 11.40.020(2)).
- Choose the route. With a will, the petitioner asks the court to probate the will and issue letters testamentary, and the court may hear the proofs immediately and enter an order establishing the will (RCW 11.20.020). With no will, the applicant petitions for letters of administration in the statutory priority order (RCW 11.28.120(1)), and the 2026 amendments to RCW 11.28.110 require the application to state the heirs and the applicant's search for them and, unless the applicant is the spouse, domestic partner or next of kin, to describe the major probate assets. Most Washington personal representatives also petition for nonintervention powers so the estate can be administered and closed without further court supervision (RCW 11.68.011). A modest estate holding only personal property may instead be collected by sworn affidavit with no court case opened (RCW 11.62.010); the routes and their thresholds are on the Washington state page.
- Prepare exactly what the Kitsap County Clerk asks for. The clerk's published list to open a probate is the case cover sheet, which the Clerk's Office can provide and which is the statewide Probate Case Information Cover Sheet; the Petition for Probate of Will and Letters Testamentary, or for Letters of Administration if there is no will; the original will if there is one; the Order Admitting Will to Probate and Granting Letters; the Oath, signed and notarized, because the Clerk's Office has no notary on site; and the Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration themselves, which the clerk publishes and can also issue. The judge may require more on a case by case basis. Kitsap County Local General Rule 31(10) requires a petition or notice filed under RCW 11.28 naming children as heirs to give their full names and ages and the other information RCW 11.28.110 and RCW 11.28.330 require, with a date of birth only as General Rule 22 allows.
- Format the papers the way the counter expects. Typed documents use at least 12-point font and double spacing (Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 10(d)). Documents submitted to the Clerk's Office for filing are not stapled, and proposed orders are not filed at all unless a judicial officer directs it: they go to the court as bench copies, individually stapled, with paperclips reserved for proposed order submissions.
- Open the probate on the ex parte calendar. Ex parte court sits Monday through Friday at 8:30 a.m. and Monday, Thursday and Friday at 3:30 p.m. (Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 77(k)(4)). To appear in person, check in at the Clerk's Office in Room 202 at least 20 minutes before the calendar with the documents prepared, the case number and party names, and the filing fee. To appear by Zoom, check in online through the clerk's contact and ex parte check-in form and route the documents to the courtroom yourself, by upload for a $0.25 per page printing charge, or by fax, mail or messenger with a letter of instruction. Faxed ex parte documents must arrive by 3:30 p.m. the prior business day for the 8:30 a.m. calendar, and by 2:00 p.m. the same day for the 3:30 p.m. calendar.
- Or present ex parte by mail without appearing at all. Address the packet to Kitsap County Clerk - Ex Parte, 614 Division St. MS-34, Port Orchard, WA 98366, use the clerk's ex parte coversheet and letter of instruction stating the purpose of the documents and every service requested, and send original documents rather than proposed orders for filing. Include a self-addressed stamped envelope with enough postage if you want conformed copies back, and pay $30 for each presentation, which the clerk ties to RCW 36.18.016(12); a self-represented filer must pay that by money order or cashier's check. The clerk is explicit that payment only ensures the order is presented to the court, that a resubmission requires a new ex parte fee, and that a packet missing any requirement is returned unprocessed.
- Pay the filing fee. $290 to open a 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)), and listed as "Probate Filing $290.00" on the Kitsap County Clerk's Office Fee Schedule, effective July 27, 2025. Pay by cash, card, money order or cashier's check; personal checks are not accepted, fees must be paid in advance (RCW 36.18.060), and cards carry a 2.4 percent charge with a $2 minimum. A filer who cannot afford the fee may ask the court to waive it under GR 34 using the clerk's filing fee waiver form.
- Note any matter that needs notice or argument for the Friday probate calendar. Probate, guardianship and civil motions in cases not preassigned to a judge are heard Friday at 9:00 a.m.; a preassigned case goes to that judge's departmental calendar Friday at 1:30 p.m. (Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 77(k)(2)). The note for the motion docket goes to the Clerk's Office by 4:30 p.m. at least five calendar days before the hearing, at the same time as the motion, the notice of hearing and the supporting pleadings, substantially in the form of Exhibit E (LCR 77(k)(11)(B)(iii)). Supporting papers are served and filed at least five court days out, responses by noon two days before the hearing, and anything in strict reply by noon the court day before (LCR 7(b)(1)(A)). Bench copies are mandatory for every hearing with filed pleadings and go to the Superior Court office at the same time as the filing (LCR 7(b)(1)(B)).
- Confirm the hearing, or it may not be heard. A probate motion must be confirmed no later than 12:00 noon one day before the hearing, and no earlier than 48 hours in advance, in person, by telephoning the Superior Court at (360) 337-7140 option 2, or through the court's online confirmation form; give the confirming party's name and phone number, the case number, and the date and time. The court states that matters not confirmed may not be pursued (Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 77(k)(10)(A)). Argument is limited to 10 minutes per side, and a case whose argument runs long may be moved to the end of the calendar.
- Appear, in person in Port Orchard or by Zoom. Kitsap County Superior Court permits remote appearances on the ex parte calendars, provided the proposed orders reach the court before the calendar begins, and on the weekly civil motions, probate and guardianship calendars, while encouraging in-person appearance. Courtroom and Zoom assignments are posted by the end of business the day before, and the court cautions that calendar lengths can mean waiting an hour or more before a case is called.
- Receive the letters. The Clerk of the Superior Court issues the letters testamentary or letters of administration once the court signs the order admitting the will to probate and granting letters, and the clerk will issue the letters document itself if you have not prepared one. Order certified copies for the banks, brokerages and title companies that will ask for proof of authority: certified copies of the letters are $5 each, the line the Kitsap County Clerk's Office Fee Schedule, effective July 27, 2025, labels "Letters Testamentary, Administration, Guardianship $5.00" (RCW 36.18.016(9)), and a certified copy of any other estate document is $5 for the first page plus $1 per additional page (RCW 36.18.016(4)). An authenticated or exemplified copy, which another state or country may require, is $9 for the first page plus $1 per additional page.
- Administer and close. Within 20 days after appointment, 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 nonprobate beneficiary, and file proof of mailing (RCW 11.28.237(1)). If you give notice to creditors, file the notice with the court and publish it once each week for three successive weeks in a legal newspaper in the county, which triggers the four-month claim bar (RCW 11.40.020 and RCW 11.40.051); the clerk's own newspaper publications handout names The Kitsap Sun and Kitsap Daily News, which covers the Port Orchard Independent, the Bainbridge Island Review and the North Kitsap Herald. The clerk lists the documents that usually follow as the probate notice to creditors, the notice of appointment, and receipts and waivers from the heirs. Collect the assets, pay valid debts, sell Kitsap County real estate where the estate needs to, distribute, and close; a personal representative with nonintervention powers closes without returning to court for supervision.
Executor duties
A Kitsap County personal representative carries the statewide Washington duties, which are covered on the Washington state page: notice of the appointment and pendency of the probate within 20 days (RCW 11.28.237(1)), creditor notice and the four-month claim bar (RCW 11.40.020 and RCW 11.40.051), collecting the assets, paying valid debts, and distributing and closing, with nonintervention powers removing the need for court supervision along the way (RCW 11.68.011). Kitsap's local rules add a short list of mechanics on top of those, and they are the ones that most often cost a Kitsap filer a hearing date.
Confirm every hearing. A probate motion must be confirmed no later than 12:00 noon one day before the hearing, and no earlier than 48 hours in advance, in person, by phone at (360) 337-7140 option 2, or online, and the court states that matters not confirmed may not be pursued. A motion that was administratively continued still has to be confirmed by the moving party. Give the confirming party's name and phone number, the case number, and the hearing date and time.
File bench copies, and file them separately. Bench copies are mandatory for every hearing where pleadings have been filed, and they go to the Superior Court office at the same time the documents are filed with the Clerk's Office, with the trial or hearing date noted on them (Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 7(b)(1)(B)). If a hearing is confirmed but not held, the bench copy is discarded at the end of the calendar; if a hearing is not confirmed, retrieve the bench copy on or before the original date, re-date it and refile it, or file a new set. Bench copies are individually stapled, while documents submitted for filing are not stapled at all, and proposed orders are not filed unless a judicial officer directs it (LCR 10(d)).
Watch the 10-day revision window. A motion to revise a court commissioner's probate decision must be filed within 10 days after entry of the written order or judgment, is noted on the Presiding Guardianship Judge's departmental calendar, is limited to the materials originally submitted to the commissioner, and gets 10 minutes of argument per side (Kitsap County Local Special Proceedings Rule 98.40, adopted effective September 1, 2024). The commissioner's orders remain valid while the motion is pending unless stayed.
Protect children's identifiers in the paperwork. Where children are heirs, a petition or notice filed under RCW 11.28 must give their full names and ages and the other information RCW 11.28.110 and RCW 11.28.330 require, and may include a date of birth only as General Rule 22 permits (Kitsap County Local General Rule 31(10)). And if the estate involves settling a minor's claim, that petition is noted on the same Friday 9:00 a.m. probate calendar, with bench copies of all pleadings and reports submitted by 12:00 noon the day before and mandatory personal attendance by the attorney in charge, the child and at least one parent or legal custodian (Kitsap County Local Special Proceedings Rule 98.16).
Forms and documents
Probate forms in Kitsap County
Washington has no statewide probate form set, and that is worth saying plainly because it surprises people who expect a fill-in packet. The Washington Courts forms index at courts.wa.gov publishes statewide forms for family law, guardianship and conservatorship, criminal, behavioral health, juvenile, financial, protection order and access-to-court matters, among others, and it publishes case information cover sheets and the GR 34 fee-waiver forms, but there is no probate category. A Washington probate petition, the oath, the proposed order and the proposed letters are drafted by the filer or the attorney, not filled in on a state form.
Kitsap County does require a cover sheet and does publish its own probate material. A new probate needs the statewide Probate Case Information Cover Sheet, which the Clerk's Office will provide at the counter and which the clerk lists first among the documents required to open a probate. Beyond that the clerk publishes, on its Forms, Kits and Instructions page, a General Procedure for Starting Probate handout, a Small Estate Affidavit and Procedure packet, and Sealed Will Repository information with its will repository cover sheet, and publishes on its Filing Assistance page the filing coversheets a Kitsap probate actually runs on: the ex parte coversheet and letter of instruction, the fax filing coversheet, and the filing by mail coversheet. The Note for Motion Docket in the form of Exhibit E is the note used to set a matter on the Friday probate calendar, and the clerk publishes a filing fee waiver form and a newspaper publications list naming the county's legal newspapers.
The clerk also sells probate kits. They can be bought in person at the Clerk's Office, 614 Division Street, Room 202, or ordered online through the clerk's kit request form, with mailed kits arriving in about seven to ten business days or a download link emailed within one to two business days that expires two days later. Kit sales are final, with no refunds or exchanges, and resale is prohibited. Note one limit before you rely on counter help: Kitsap's courthouse facilitator service is published as help with family law or guardianship cases, not probate, so it is not a probate resource. For plain-language guidance, WashingtonLawHelp (washingtonlawhelp.org), published by the Northwest Justice Project, is Washington's main self-help publisher for estates, including its small estate guidance and Small Estate Affidavit packet. Confirm any Kitsap form or handout against the clerk's current page before relying on it: some of the clerk's older handouts still carry superseded fee figures.
Fees
The $290 fee to open a probate is statutory and identical in every Washington county (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)). What Kitsap adds are the service charges a Kitsap estate actually meets, most of them published on the Kitsap County Clerk's Office Fee Schedule, effective July 27, 2025, which also states that personal checks are not accepted and that fees must be paid in advance (RCW 36.18.060). Pay by cash, card, money order or cashier's check; card payments carry a 2.4 percent charge with a $2 minimum. Confirm every figure against the clerk's current schedule before paying, because the clerk has scheduled increases in 2026 and some of its older handouts print superseded amounts.
| Charge | Amount | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| Ex parte presentation | $30 per presentation | Every ex parte submission the clerk presents to the court, including a probate opened by mail rather than in person. The clerk ties the service to RCW 36.18.016(12). A self-represented filer paying by mail must use a money order or cashier's check, payment only buys presentation, and a resubmitted packet needs a new fee |
| Fax filing service | $5 for the first page plus $1 per additional page (RCW 36.18.016(20)) | Filing or presenting documents by fax on the clerk's fax filing coversheet. All faxes to the Superior Court go through the Clerk's Office; there is no extra charge to route a faxed document to the courtroom for a Zoom appearance |
| Ex parte document upload | $0.25 per page printing charge | Checking in online for ex parte and uploading the documents through the clerk's contact and ex parte check-in form instead of delivering them |
| Certificate or certified copy of the letters | $5 each (RCW 36.18.016(9)) | The certified proof of authority a bank, brokerage or title company asks for. The clerk's Probate Filing page prices certified copies of the letters at $5 each, and the schedule labels the line "Letters Testamentary, Administration, Guardianship." A certified copy of any other document in the estate file is $5 for the first page plus $1 per additional page (RCW 36.18.016(4)) |
| Authenticated or exemplified copy | $9 for the first page plus $1 per additional page (RCW 36.18.016(4)) | A copy carrying the court's seal, and in the exemplified form the clerk's and judge's sworn statements, which a court in another state or country may require |
| Copies | $0.50 per page prepared by staff, $0.25 per page electronic, $20 on compact disc plus copy charges (RCW 36.18.016(4)) | Copying anything in the estate file. The clerk has posted that copy fees increase to $0.50 per page effective June 11, 2026 under HB 2543, and that from July 1, 2026 documents and records delivered on an electronic storage platform carry an added $5 mandatory charge (RCW 36.18.016) |
| Record search and report compilation | $30 for up to one hour (RCW 36.18.016(11)) | Asking the clerk to search records, including a search of the sealed will repository for a will after a death |
| Will repository deposit | $20 per will or codicil (RCW 36.18.016(28)) | Depositing an original will with the clerk under seal while the testator is living. Each later deposit is treated as a new transaction with a new fee |
| Will only filing | $20 | Lodging an original will with the clerk after a death where no probate is being opened |
| Non-judicial filing | $20 (RCW 36.18.012(3)) | A filing that opens no court case, the line the clerk applies to filings such as a small estate affidavit. Confirm what the clerk charges for the affidavit before you send payment |
| Petition contesting a will or trust, or to admit a rejected will | $290 each (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)) | A will contest, or a petition to admit a will the court rejected, filed in a Kitsap estate |
| Nonprobate notice to creditors | $290 (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c), (6)) | A notice agent settling an estate by nonprobate notice to creditors under chapter 11.42 RCW where no personal representative has been appointed |
| Trust and Estate Dispute Resolution Act nonjudicial binding agreement | $20 in an existing case (RCW 36.18.012(8)), $290 as a new case | Filing an agreement reached under the Trust and Estate Dispute Resolution Act, priced by whether a Kitsap case already exists |
| Audio recording of a hearing | $30 per hearing day for pickup or download, $35 mailed, $50 or $55 expedited | Ordering the clerk's audio of a probate hearing. All hearings are recorded by the Clerk's Office; recordings are normally ready in three to five business days, or one to two expedited |
| Probate kit | Priced by the clerk and subject to change | Buying a probate kit at the counter or by online order. All kit sales are final, with no refunds or exchanges, and resale is prohibited |
Timeline
- Opening a probate does not wait for a monthly docket. Ex parte court sits Monday through Friday at 8:30 a.m. and Monday, Thursday and Friday at 3:30 p.m. (Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 77(k)(4)), so a complete packet can usually be presented on the next business day's calendar. Arrive at the Clerk's Office in Room 202 at least 20 minutes before the calendar with the documents prepared and the filing fee.
- If you are faxing ex parte documents rather than carrying them in, work back from the calendar: documents for the 8:30 a.m. calendar must be faxed no later than 3:30 p.m. the prior business day, and documents for the 3:30 p.m. calendar no later than 2:00 p.m. the same day.
- A matter that needs notice or argument goes on the Friday 9:00 a.m. probate calendar instead, and the note for the motion docket must be filed with the Clerk's Office by 4:30 p.m. at least five calendar days before that hearing, at the same time as the motion, the notice of hearing and the supporting pleadings (Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 77(k)(11)(B)(iii)). A preassigned case is noted for that judge's departmental calendar on Friday at 1:30 p.m. instead.
- Supporting papers are served and filed at least five court days before the hearing; responsive materials by 12:00 noon two days before; anything in strict reply by 12:00 noon on the court day before (Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 7(b)(1)(A)). Bench copies go to the Superior Court office at the same time as the filing, and are mandatory for every hearing where pleadings have been filed.
- Confirm between 48 hours and 12:00 noon one day before the hearing, in person, by phone at (360) 337-7140 option 2, or online. Unconfirmed probate matters may not be pursued, and a matter that was administratively continued must be confirmed by the moving party to be heard.
- A hearing you noted can be struck or re-noted unilaterally before it is confirmed; once confirmed, striking or re-noting requires prior notice to the other parties, and an agreed continuance goes in as a notice of continuance signed by at least one attorney. Continuances are not granted by telephone.
- To challenge a court commissioner's probate ruling, file the motion for revision within 10 days after entry of the written order or judgment; it is noted on the Presiding Guardianship Judge's departmental calendar, decided on the materials originally submitted to the commissioner with no new evidence, and limited to 10 minutes of argument per side (Kitsap County Local Special Proceedings Rule 98.40). The commissioner's orders stay in effect while the motion is pending unless stayed.
- Build in the statutory clocks that run alongside the calendar: notice of the appointment and pendency of the probate within 20 days after appointment (RCW 11.28.237(1)); creditor notice published once each week for three successive weeks, opening the four-month claim bar (RCW 11.40.020 and RCW 11.40.051); and, for any party who wants the case moved to the county of residence, four months from the mailing of that notice of appointment (RCW 11.96A.050(4)(a)).
Local nuance
Kitsap County-specific considerations
The ex parte calendar is Kitsap's front door, and it is the single most useful thing to know about probate here. Most counties open a probate on a periodic calendar; Kitsap runs noncriminal ex parte matters Monday through Friday at 8:30 a.m. and again Monday, Thursday and Friday at 3:30 p.m. (Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 77(k)(4)), and the clerk's own probate page tells filers to arrive 20 minutes early at Room 202 with the documents and the fee. Only matters that require notice or real argument move to the Friday 9:00 a.m. probate motions calendar (LCR 77(k)(2)), where the noting, bench-copy and confirmation deadlines apply. The practical consequence is that a clean, uncontested Kitsap probate is usually a same-week matter rather than a scheduled one.
Kitsap also gives a distant filer three ways in that do not require standing at the counter, and it prices each one. The clerk presents ex parte submissions by mail on its own coversheet and letter of instruction for $30 a presentation, takes fax filings on its own coversheet for $5 plus $1 a page, and lets a filer check in online and upload documents for a $0.25 per page printing charge. Each has its own discipline: the mail packet must carry original documents rather than proposed orders for filing, a self-addressed stamped envelope if conformed copies are wanted, and payment by money order or cashier's check from a self-represented filer, and the clerk states that a packet missing any requirement is returned unprocessed and that a resubmission needs a new ex parte fee. Note the corollary for hearings: the clerk retired its pandemic-era ex parte email address on January 21, 2025 and does not monitor it, so a Zoom appearer has to route documents to the courtroom by upload, fax, mail or messenger with a letter of instruction.
E-filing exists but is not a Kitsap mandate, and it is not a county-built system. The clerk states that Kitsap County is participating in an eFile pilot program through the Administrative Office of the Courts, runs it through the statewide eFileWA portal, publishes its own eFileWA procedure and e-filing document order, and is still developing local clerk policies for it. Nothing in the current Kitsap local rules requires an attorney or a self-represented filer to e-file, which is the opposite of King County's mandatory-for-attorneys rule, so paper at the counter, mail and fax all remain fully supported paths in a Kitsap probate.
Records access splits between finding a case and buying its documents, which trips people up. Odyssey Portal is the current superior court case search for Kitsap, the statewide index at dw.courts.wa.gov routes Kitsap searches there, and the clerk tells anyone who does not know a case number to search Odyssey Portal. But the portal's subscription tier, which gives frequent access to the court documents themselves, is one the clerk states is for businesses and attorneys and is not for general public use, with registration through [email protected]. A family member pulling estate documents uses the Washington State Digital Archives instead, selecting Superior Court Records and Kitsap County and entering the case number with dashes, and buys certified or non-certified copies there. The clerk has also posted that copy fees increase to $0.50 per page on June 11, 2026 under HB 2543, and that from July 1, 2026 records delivered on an electronic storage platform carry an added $5 charge (RCW 36.18.016).
Two Kitsap rules reach probate filings directly and are easy to miss. Kitsap County Local General Rule 31(10) requires a petition or notice filed under RCW 11.28 where children are heirs to include the children's full names and ages and the other information RCW 11.28.110 and RCW 11.28.330 require, and permits a date of birth only as General Rule 22 allows. And Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 11, kept in force by emergency order effective June 1, 2026 and carried into the rule set that takes effect September 1, 2026, cautions attorneys and unrepresented litigants alike against filing anything drafted with generative artificial intelligence without checking it, makes any pleading citing caselaw or statutes that do not exist sanctionable, and sets a presumptive $2,000 per violation sanction against an attorney personally. A self-represented probate filer drafting a petition with an AI tool is squarely within that rule.
Finally, the clerk runs a sealed will repository, which is the reason a Kitsap will is sometimes already at the courthouse. A will or codicil can be deposited only while the testator is living, for $20 each (RCW 36.18.016(28)); it stays sealed and is released only to the testator on proper identification, and anyone else, including an attorney-in-fact or guardian, needs a court order on good cause. After a death, if it is not known whether a will is on deposit, the clerk will search on a certified death certificate plus the records search charge. A will withdrawn for immediate re-filing as a public record comes out on a certified death certificate plus the filing fee, which for a probate is $290; a will withdrawn without immediate re-filing needs a signed court order, and the clerk sells the forms, which are presented on the ex parte calendar. The clerk tells depositors to keep a copy of the sealed will repository cover sheet with their papers so whoever handles the estate can find the will and have it filed under RCW 11.20.010.
Recent updates
| Date | Change | Source |
|---|---|---|
| September 1, 2026 | The 2026-2027 Kitsap County Superior Court local rules are adopted and take effect. They keep the ex parte calendar times and the Friday 9:00 a.m. probate motions calendar unchanged, and they carry Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 11, the generative artificial intelligence accuracy rule that binds attorneys and unrepresented litigants alike, into the permanent set. | 2026-2027 Kitsap County Local Court Rules, kitsap.gov/sc and courts.wa.gov/court_rules |
| July 1, 2026 | The clerk adds a $5 mandatory charge for documents and records delivered on an electronic storage platform (RCW 36.18.016). Kit pricing is also subject to change. | Forms, Kits and Instructions, kitsap.gov/clerk |
| June 11, 2026 | Regular copy fees at the Clerk's Office increase to $0.50 per page under HB 2543. Confirm per-page rates before ordering copies of an estate file. | Kitsap County Clerk and Filing Assistance pages, kitsap.gov/clerk |
| June 1, 2026 | Kitsap County Superior Court renewed its emergency local rules, including Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 11 on pleadings drafted with generative artificial intelligence, which applies to unrepresented litigants as well as attorneys and carries a presumptive $2,000 per violation sanction against an attorney who cites caselaw or statutes that do not exist. | Kitsap County Superior Court emergency local rules, courts.wa.gov/court_rules |
| September 1, 2025 | The current Kitsap County Superior Court local rules took effect, including LCR 7 on filing deadlines and mandatory bench copies, LCR 77(k) on the ex parte and Friday probate calendars and mandatory confirmation, LGR 31(10) on children as heirs in RCW 11.28 filings, and LSPR 98.40 on revising a court commissioner's probate decision. | Kitsap County Superior Court Local Rules, courts.wa.gov/court_rules |
| July 27, 2025 | The current Kitsap County Clerk's Office fee schedule took effect. It lists probate filing at $290 with the RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), (5)(c) and (6) authority, the $30 ex parte presentation, the $5 plus $1 fax filing service, the $20 will repository and will only filing lines, and the $5 certificate or certified copy of letters. Confirm any figure against the clerk's current schedule. | Kitsap County Clerk's Office Fee Schedule, kitsap.gov/clerk |
| January 21, 2025 | The Clerk's Office stopped accepting documents through the pandemic-era ex parte email address, which it no longer monitors. Ex parte check-in now runs through the clerk's online contact and check-in form or at the counter, and a filer appearing by Zoom must route documents to the courtroom by upload, fax, mail or messenger with a letter of instruction. | Kitsap County Clerk and Filing Assistance pages, kitsap.gov/clerk |
| Current practice | Kitsap County is participating in an e-filing pilot program through the Administrative Office of the Courts, run on the statewide eFileWA portal, and the clerk states that local clerk policies will be developed and updated as needed. E-filing is optional in Kitsap; no local rule requires it. | Filing Assistance, kitsap.gov/clerk |
Page last reviewed: July 2026.
Scenarios
| Situation | Likely path in Kitsap County | Where Sunset helps |
|---|---|---|
| Surviving spouse, co-owned home | A Port Orchard, Bremerton, Silverdale or Bainbridge Island home held with a right of survivorship, or covered by a community property agreement between the spouses (RCW 26.16.120), passes to the survivor outside probate, and title is cleared through the Kitsap County Auditor's recording office rather than the Superior Court. Accounts and property in the decedent's sole name may still need probate. Where they do, the survivor presents the petition, order, notarized oath and proposed letters on a Kitsap ex parte calendar and asks for nonintervention powers, which RCW 11.68.011 directs the court to grant a surviving spouse or domestic partner in a solvent all-community-property intestate estate with no outside issue, and the estate is then administered without further court supervision. If the sole-name property is only personal property and modest, the survivor may be able to use the small estate affidavit instead, with no case opened (RCW 11.62.010). | Asset discovery to separate survivorship and community property agreement property from sole-name assets. Packet generation for the small estate affidavit or for the petition, the Probate Case Information Cover Sheet and the nonintervention powers request. Guidance on clearing title through the county recording office. |
| Out-of-state adult child, small estate | If the parent lived in Kitsap County and left a modest estate holding only personal property, a claiming successor can often collect it with a sworn affidavit presented directly to whoever holds the property, with no Kitsap court case at all (RCW 11.62.010). Where a probate is needed, Kitsap is unusually workable from a distance: the child prepares the petition and the cover sheet and either mails the packet to Kitsap County Clerk - Ex Parte with the clerk's coversheet and letter of instruction and the $30 presentation fee, or checks in online and appears on the ex parte calendar by Zoom. The oath still has to be notarized, because the Clerk's Office has no notary on site, and the original will still has to reach the clerk. Certified copies of the letters are ordered from the clerk at $5 each. | Asset discovery to confirm what the estate holds and whether the affidavit route reaches it. Packet generation for the affidavit or for the petition, cover sheet, oath and proposed letters, ready to mail or to present on the ex parte calendar. Attorney referral if the estate turns out to be larger or contested. |
| Parent settling a predeceased child's estate, home must be sold | Probate in the Superior Court in Kitsap County. With no will, the parent applies for letters of administration under the RCW 11.28.120(1) priority order, and the application must now set out the heirs and the applicant's search for them under the 2026 amendments to RCW 11.28.110; if any heir is a child, Kitsap County Local General Rule 31(10) requires the full names and ages in the petition. The parent petitions for nonintervention powers and then sells the child's Kitsap real estate under that authority before distributing. Without those powers, a motion to confirm the sale is noted for the Friday 9:00 a.m. probate calendar on the local noting and confirmation deadlines, and a dispute among heirs can be brought under the Trust and Estate Dispute Resolution Act, which the clerk charges $290 to open as a new Kitsap case. | Asset discovery for the child's accounts, policies and property, which is also what RCW 11.28.110 now expects the application to describe. Packet generation for the administration application, the nonintervention powers petition and the sale papers. Attorney referral to handle a contested step or a disputed sale. |
Self-help resources
| Resource | What it offers |
|---|---|
| Kitsap County Clerk (kitsap.gov/clerk) | The filing office's own site: hours and the lunch closure, the courthouse and mail stop addresses, the phone and fax lines, the holiday closure list, and the contact and ex parte check-in form |
| Probate Filing page, Kitsap County Clerk | The clerk's own probate page: the exact document list to open a probate, the ex parte calendar times, the 20-minute early check-in, the $290 filing fee, the accepted payment methods, the documents that follow after a probate is opened, and the note that certified copies of the letters are $5 each |
| Filing Assistance page, Kitsap County Clerk | The clerk's filing hub: the eFileWA pilot procedure and portal link, the ex parte check-in procedure, the full ex parte by mail requirements, the fax deadlines, and the ex parte, fax filing and filing by mail coversheets, plus links to the fee schedule and the local rules |
| Forms, Kits and Instructions page, Kitsap County Clerk | Kitsap's local probate documents: the Probate Case Information Cover Sheet, the General Procedure for Starting Probate handout, the Small Estate Affidavit and Procedure packet, Sealed Will Repository information, the filing fee waiver, the newspaper publications list, and the online probate kit order form |
| Requesting Court Records page, Kitsap County Clerk | How to get Kitsap estate documents: the Washington State Digital Archives route for the general public, Odyssey Portal registration for business and attorney subscribers through [email protected], authenticated and exemplified copies, and audio recordings of probate hearings |
| Kitsap County Superior Court (kitsap.gov/sc) | The court's own site: office hours, today's calendar and the daily and weekly dockets, the general procedures and bench copy administrative order, the local rule forms, and the faxing policy |
| Remote Superior Court Access page, Kitsap County Superior Court | Which calendars allow a Zoom appearance, including the ex parte calendars and the weekly probate and guardianship calendar, the standing Zoom meeting per courtroom, the day-before posting of courtroom and Zoom assignments, and the Zoom conduct and observer rules |
| Mandatory Confirmation page and online confirmation form, Kitsap County Superior Court | The confirmation rule for probate motions, the noon deadline one day before the hearing, the 48-hour window, the (360) 337-7140 option 2 line, and the online confirmation form |
| Kitsap County Superior Court Local Rules (courts.wa.gov and kitsap.gov/sc) | The rules that actually govern a Kitsap probate: LCR 7 on filing deadlines and mandatory bench copies, LCR 10 on formatting and stapling, LCR 40 on case scheduling excluding probates, LCR 77(k) on the ex parte and Friday probate calendars and mandatory confirmation, LGR 31(10) on children as heirs, and LSPR 98.40 on revising a commissioner's probate decision. Current set effective September 1, 2025, with the 2026-2027 set adopted and effective September 1, 2026 |
| Odyssey Portal and the Washington State Digital Archives | Kitsap superior court case lookup: Odyssey Portal (odysseyportal.courts.wa.gov) to search for a case or case number, with its subscription tier for document access reserved for businesses and attorneys, and the Washington State Digital Archives (digitalarchives.wa.gov) where the general public views and purchases the records, selecting Superior Court Records and Kitsap County. The statewide index at dw.courts.wa.gov points to Odyssey Portal for Kitsap and warns that its own dockets and case status may be inaccurate |
| WashingtonLawHelp (washingtonlawhelp.org) | The Northwest Justice Project's plain-language self-help library, Washington's main publisher of estate guidance, including small estate guidance and a Small Estate Affidavit packet. The site blocks some automated fetchers, so open it in a browser |
| Washington Courts court forms and directory (courts.wa.gov/forms and courts.wa.gov/court_dir) | The statewide Probate Case Information Cover Sheet and the GR 34 fee waiver forms, plus the court directory entry confirming the Kitsap County Clerk's address, phone and fax. There is no statewide probate forms category |
| Kitsap Legal Services (kitsaplegalservices.org, (360) 479-6125) | Free civil legal assistance and information for low-income Kitsap County residents, and for people whose legal issue is in Kitsap County, through volunteer attorneys and community members, as the Clerk's Office describes it. It handles no criminal matters; confirm that it covers probate before relying on it |
| Northwest Justice Project and CLEAR (nwjustice.org) | Free civil legal help for income-eligible Washington residents through the CLEAR intake line at 1-888-201-1014, with CLEAR*Sr at 1-888-387-7111 for people age 60 and over regardless of income, as the Kitsap County Clerk publishes it. Confirm coverage of probate at intake; the same organization publishes WashingtonLawHelp |
| Dispute Resolution Center of Kitsap County (kitsapdrc.org) | The county's community mediation center, listed by the Clerk's Office among its resources and in the Washington State Court Directory. Confirm that it handles estate and family disputes of your type before relying on it; it is a mediation service, not a probate filing resource |
| Washington State Bar Association lawyer directory (wsba.org) | The statewide directory the Clerk's Office points to, because clerk staff cannot refer you to a specific attorney and cannot give legal advice |
When to hire an attorney
Many Kitsap County families complete a probate without counsel, because a solvent estate with nonintervention powers is administered and closed without court supervision (RCW 11.68.011), the clerk publishes the document list and sells the kits, and an uncontested estate can be opened on a weekday ex parte calendar or by mail. Counsel makes more sense when the estate is insolvent or its solvency is in doubt, because nonintervention powers depend on solvency; when there is a will contest, a petition to admit a rejected will, or a fight over who should serve; when a Trust and Estate Dispute Resolution Act proceeding is filed; when a matter moves off the ex parte calendar onto the Friday probate calendar with noting, bench-copy and confirmation deadlines to meet; when a court commissioner's ruling has to be revised within 10 days on the materials already submitted (Kitsap County Local Special Proceedings Rule 98.40); when the estate holds a business interest, out-of-state property, or Kitsap real estate whose sale terms are disputed; when the estate may owe Washington estate tax; or when the personal representative is appointed under RCW 11.28.120(3) and therefore cannot receive nonintervention powers. Sunset can connect families to a vetted Kitsap County probate attorney when the situation calls for counsel.
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, Kitsap County real estate, business interests, and unclaimed property, so you know the estate's value for estate settlement, can pick the right Washington route before you file, and can describe the major assets and the heirs the way RCW 11.28.110 now expects.
Generate the probate packet. Sunset assembles the Kitsap County filing: the small estate affidavit where the estate qualifies, or the petition, the Probate Case Information Cover Sheet, the oath, the proposed order and the proposed letters, plus the nonintervention powers request, ready to present on a Kitsap ex parte calendar, to mail to the clerk with the ex parte coversheet, or to e-file through the eFileWA portal.
Find a local probate attorney. When an estate is insolvent or contested, or a Trust and Estate Dispute Resolution Act proceeding is filed, Sunset connects families to a vetted Kitsap County probate attorney to file and appear.
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 probate in Kitsap County, Washington?
With the Kitsap County Clerk, the Clerk of the Superior Court, at the Kitsap County Courthouse, 614 Division Street, Room 202, Port Orchard, WA 98366. Mail goes to 614 Division Street, MS-34, Port Orchard, WA 98366, and ex parte submissions by mail are addressed to Kitsap County Clerk - Ex Parte at that address. The office is open 8:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. and 1:15 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday, closed for lunch from 12:15 to 1:15, and the phone line is (360) 337-7164. Washington has no separate probate court, so the Superior Court in Kitsap County handles probate as a case type under RCW Title 11. Venue is any county the petitioner selects (RCW 11.96A.050(4)), but in practice you file where the decedent lived, because an interested party can move venue 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)).
When is the probate calendar in Kitsap County?
There are two. Uncontested probate matters, including opening an estate, go on the ex parte calendar, which sits Monday through Friday at 8:30 a.m. and Monday, Thursday and Friday at 3:30 p.m. (Kitsap County Local Civil Rule 77(k)(4)); the clerk asks in-person filers to check in at Room 202 at least 20 minutes before the calendar with the documents prepared and the filing fee. Probate motions that need notice or argument are heard on the Friday 9:00 a.m. probate calendar in cases not preassigned to a judge, or on the preassigned judge's departmental calendar Friday at 1:30 p.m. (LCR 77(k)(2)). Argument on the Friday calendar is limited to 10 minutes per side.
Can I e-file a Kitsap County probate?
Yes, and no one is required to. Kitsap County participates in an e-filing pilot program run by the Administrative Office of the Courts, through the statewide eFileWA portal, and the clerk publishes its own eFileWA filing procedure and e-filing document order while noting that local clerk policies are still being developed. No Kitsap local rule requires an attorney or a self-represented filer to file electronically, which is different from counties such as King that mandate it for attorneys. You can also file on paper at the counter in Room 202, by mail with the clerk's filing by mail coversheet, or by fax with the clerk's fax filing coversheet, for which the clerk charges $5 for the first page plus $1 per additional page (RCW 36.18.016(20)). All faxes to the Superior Court go through the Clerk's Office.
How much does it cost to file probate in Kitsap County, and how can I pay?
$290 to open a probate. The fee is set by statute and is 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 clerk's own Probate Filing page states a "$290 filing fee," and the Kitsap County Clerk's Office Fee Schedule, effective July 27, 2025, lists "Probate Filing $290.00, RCW 36.18.020(2f),(5c),(6)." Pay by cash, card, money order or cashier's check; personal checks are not accepted, fees must be paid in advance (RCW 36.18.060), and card payments carry a 2.4 percent processing charge with a $2 minimum. A filer who cannot afford the fee may ask the court to waive it under GR 34 using the clerk's filing fee waiver form. Kitsap also charges a $30 ex parte presentation fee for a matter the clerk presents to the court, and $5 for a certified copy of the letters (RCW 36.18.016(9)).
Do I have to confirm my Kitsap County probate hearing?
Yes, for anything on the Friday probate calendar. A probate motion must be confirmed no later than 12:00 noon one day before the hearing, and no earlier than 48 hours in advance, in person, by telephoning the Superior Court at (360) 337-7140 option 2, or through the court's online confirmation form, and Kitsap County Superior Court states that matters not confirmed may not be pursued. A motion that was administratively continued still has to be confirmed by the moving party. Give the confirming party's name and phone number, the case number, and the hearing date and time. Note separately that the note for the motion docket must be filed with the Clerk's Office by 4:30 p.m. at least five calendar days before the hearing, and that bench copies are mandatory and go to the Superior Court office when the documents are filed.
Can I attend a Kitsap County probate hearing by Zoom?
Usually yes. Kitsap County Superior Court permits remote appearances on the ex parte calendars, provided proposed orders are submitted to the court before the calendar begins, and on the weekly civil motions, probate, guardianship and guardianship delinquency calendars, while encouraging in-person appearance. The court publishes a standing Zoom meeting for the courtroom that hears the probate and guardianship calendar and for the daily ex parte calendar, and posts courtroom and Zoom assignments by the end of business the day before, so check the court's remote access page and today's calendar rather than relying on an old meeting number. A Zoom appearer still has to get the documents to the courtroom, by upload through the clerk's online ex parte check-in for a $0.25 per page printing charge, or by fax, mail or messenger with a letter of instruction. Expect a wait: the court cautions that calendar lengths can mean an hour or more before a case is called.
How do I look up a Kitsap County probate case?
It depends whether you need the case number or the documents. Odyssey Portal (odysseyportal.courts.wa.gov) is the current superior court case search for Kitsap, the Administrative Office of the Courts index at dw.courts.wa.gov routes Kitsap County Superior Court lookups there, and the Kitsap County Clerk tells anyone who does not know a case number to search Odyssey Portal. To view and purchase the records themselves, the general public and infrequent users go to the Washington State Digital Archives at digitalarchives.wa.gov: choose Superior Court Records under Record Series, choose Kitsap County, and enter the case number with dashes. The clerk reserves Odyssey Portal subscriptions, the tier with frequent access to court documents, for businesses and attorneys, states that the subscription is not for general public use, and registers subscribers through [email protected]. Treat dw.courts.wa.gov as a pointer only, because its own notice warns that dockets, judgments, document links and case status may be inaccurate.
What probate forms does Kitsap County require?
Washington publishes no statewide probate form set, so the petition, the oath, the proposed order and the proposed letters are drafted by the filer or the attorney. Kitsap does require the statewide Probate Case Information Cover Sheet, which the Clerk's Office will provide, and the clerk's published list to open a probate is that cover sheet, the petition for probate of the will and letters testamentary or for letters of administration, the original will if there is one, the order admitting the will to probate and granting letters, the oath signed and notarized, and the letters themselves. The Clerk's Office has no notary on site, so get the oath notarized before you come. Kitsap also publishes a General Procedure for Starting Probate handout, a Small Estate Affidavit and Procedure packet, sealed will repository information and cover sheet, ex parte, fax filing and filing by mail coversheets, a Note for Motion Docket in the form of Exhibit E, a filing fee waiver, and a newspaper publications list, and it sells probate kits at the counter or by online order.
Do I have to travel to Port Orchard to settle a Kitsap County estate?
Often not. Kitsap has one courthouse, but the clerk supports three routes that do not require appearing at the counter: presentation by mail to Kitsap County Clerk - Ex Parte with the clerk's ex parte coversheet and letter of instruction and a $30 presentation fee, filing by fax on the clerk's fax coversheet, and electronic filing through the eFileWA pilot. The court also permits Zoom appearances on the ex parte and probate calendars. Two steps are harder at a distance: the oath must be notarized somewhere other than the Clerk's Office, which has no notary on site, and an original will has to reach the clerk. If you mail an ex parte packet, send original documents rather than proposed orders for filing, include a self-addressed stamped envelope if you want conformed copies, and pay by money order or cashier's check if you are self-represented, because the clerk returns non-compliant packets unprocessed.
Where do I publish the probate notice to creditors in Kitsap County?
In a legal newspaper in the county where the estate is being administered, once each week for three successive weeks, with the notice also filed with the court (RCW 11.40.020(1)); if the probate was filed outside the county where the decedent lived, publication goes in the county of residence and the notice is filed where the probate was commenced (RCW 11.40.020(2)). Publication is what opens the four-month claim bar (RCW 11.40.051). The Kitsap County Clerk publishes its own newspaper publications handout naming The Kitsap Sun and Kitsap Daily News, which covers the Port Orchard Independent, the Bainbridge Island Review and the North Kitsap Herald, so those are the outlets Kitsap filers use. Confirm current rates and deadlines with the paper's legal notices desk.
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.