Washington County Probate Records
Probate work in Washington County runs through the Washington County Clerk of Courts and the Washington Circuit and Superior Courts. The county's estate page states that estate cases may be filed in either court through the Clerk's Office in the Washington County Justice Center. The guardianship page gives the same filing channel for adult and child guardianship petitions. Current 2026 local rules add a more specific assignment rule: estates are assigned to Circuit Court and guardianships are assigned to Superior Court.
The official Washington County estate case filing page identifies the local filing route for estate matters.
That county source is the best starting point for estate probate records because it ties estate filings to the Clerk's Office and trial courts.
Common Washington County probate records may include petitions to open an estate, will filings, notices, claims, inventories, letters of administration, accountings, orders, distributions, and closing reports. Guardianship records may show a petition, protected person, proposed guardian, attorney, hearing, bond, inventory, reports, and court orders when those items are public. Adoption and mental health matters should not be treated as open probate records, even though local rules place them near related family or estate categories.
Washington County Probate Courts
Washington County has two primary trial courts for probate-related filings. Both use the Clerk of Courts as the filing and record office. For public case lookup, MyCase can be searched by party name, case number, court, case type, and file date. For copies, missing documents, older cases, or certification, the clerk is the access channel.
Washington Circuit Court
801 S. Jackson Street, Suite 103
Salem, IN 47167
812-883-5302
Mon-Fri 8:00-4:00
Washington Superior Court
801 Jackson Street, Suite 101
Salem, IN 47167
812-883-4949
Ground-level, handicapped accessible facilities
Washington County Clerk of Courts
801 S. Jackson Street, Suite 102
Salem, IN 47167
812-883-5748
clerk@washingtoncounty.in.gov
Washington County Guardianship Records
Guardianship filings are a major probate-adjacent record type in Washington County. The official county page says petitions alleging a need for guardianship over an incompetent adult or a child may be filed through the Clerk's Office in Circuit or Superior Court. Under the current local allocation, guardianships are assigned to Superior Court. That means a Washington County guardianship search should include Superior Court filters when using MyCase, plus direct clerk contact when documents are not online.
The county guardianship case filings page documents the local guardianship filing route.
This county source matters because guardianships may involve children or incapacitated adults, so public access can be narrower than for a standard estate.
Washington County Probate Terms
Probate records use terms that can hide what the filing actually does. These short definitions keep the Washington County probate search focused on the right case type and office.
- Testator
- A person who made a will.
- Executor
- A person named in a will to carry out estate duties, often called a personal representative in court records.
- Intestate
- Dying without a valid will, which changes how estate property is handled.
- Guardianship
- A court case asking for authority over an adult who cannot manage affairs or over a child.
- Conservatorship
- A protective arrangement for property or financial matters, often discussed with guardianship in plain use.
Search Washington County Probate Records
Use Indiana MyCase for public probate and guardianship case information. Probate case types may include estate supervised, estate unsupervised, estate miscellaneous, and guardianship categories. Search by the decedent, estate name, protected person, fiduciary, attorney, case number, court, or file date. If the record is not visible, use the Clerk's Office rather than assuming the case does not exist.
- Open MyCase and choose a party, case, or advanced search path.
- Search the decedent, estate, fiduciary, guardian, or protected-person name if public.
- Limit results to Washington County courts when statewide results are too broad.
- Check the case type for estate or guardianship codes such as ES, EU, EM, or GU.
- Contact the Clerk of Courts for certified copies or documents without public links.
The Indiana probate code is the state source for probate administration, wills, and estate procedure.
The law source gives the state framework, while Washington County local rules and clerk procedures control the local filing path.
Washington County Probate Fields
A public probate result may show enough information to identify the case before requesting copies. It may not show every document. The research did not locate a detailed Washington County probate filing-fee schedule, so fee content should not add unsupported amounts.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Case number and type | Estate, estate miscellaneous, unsupervised estate, supervised estate, or guardianship where public. |
| Court | Washington Circuit Court or Washington Superior Court. |
| Filing date and status | When the probate case opened and whether it remains active or closed. |
| Estate or protected person | Decedent, estate, or protected-person name when public access allows display. |
| Fiduciary or guardian | Personal representative, petitioner, or guardian names where public. |
| Docket events | Petitions, letters, notice, inventory, claims, hearings, orders, accountings, and closing entries. |
| Documents | Some non-confidential orders or filings may be online, while others require clerk access. |
| Probate fee item | Amount | Source note |
|---|---|---|
| Estate filing fee | Not published in captured county text | Call the Clerk before filing. |
| Guardianship filing fee | Not published in captured county text | County page routes filings through the Clerk. |
| Certified probate copy | Not published in captured county text | Use the Clerk for current copy and certification costs. |
| Court reporter transcript | $5.50 per page | Local rule, with $55 minimum if under 10 pages. |
Probate vs Bankruptcy Records
Estate probate records are local Indiana trial court records. Bankruptcy records are federal records. If a decedent, heir, fiduciary, or business has a bankruptcy issue, that record is not searched through Washington County probate court or MyCase. It is searched through the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Indiana and federal CM/ECF or PACER channels.
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Indiana is the federal court source for Indiana bankruptcy matters.
This helps separate local probate files from federal debt cases that may affect an estate but are not part of the county probate docket.
The bankruptcy court's CM/ECF system is the electronic filing and docket system for federal bankruptcy records.
CM/ECF is for federal bankruptcy users and does not replace the Washington County Clerk for estate or guardianship copies.
The PACER bankruptcy court lookup lists federal bankruptcy court access details.
PACER can be relevant when probate research crosses into federal bankruptcy, but certified probate copies still come from the county court record.
Restricted Washington County Probate Records
Not every probate-related file is public. Adoption records are generally confidential, even though local rules allocate adoptions to Circuit Court. Mental health matters are also allocated to Circuit Court and are commonly restricted because they contain sensitive personal or medical information. Guardianship cases may include protected-person details, minor information, medical facts, or financial data that is not fully available online. MyCase may show a public case shell without posting every document.
Note: A missing MyCase document link means the Clerk should be contacted; it does not prove the Washington County probate record is sealed.