Clark County law library offers small estate self-help

The Clark County Law Library is selling a new self-help document kit: the small estate affidavit process, which can be an alternative to probate in some circumstances.

The kit includes forms and instructions to transfer the personal property of a Washington resident who died without using probate, in which a will is reviewed to determine its validity.

The kit generally helps in situations where there is no real estate and the value of the estate is less than $100,000, according to a Clark County Law Library news release.

Flowcharts help people decide if they are eligible to use the process, determine who is a “successor” for the procedure, understand the different types of property and explain how to distribute the property, the release says.

“We are glad to be able to offer a resource that is so much more detailed and helpful than any material we have previously had access to,” said Law Librarian Maria Sosnowski. “Hopefully this kit will provide assistance after a death in what is typically a very stressful time.”

The kit can be purchased online, and the Law Library will then mail the kit to the purchaser. For information and a link to purchase self-help form kits, visit https://clark.wa.gov/law-library/self-help-form-kits.