How Do I Get Appointed as Executor in Oregon?

In Oregon, the Circuit Court appoints the personal representative and the Circuit court issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration; every appointment goes through the court.

State

Document Type

Getting appointed in Oregon

Personal Representative

The form that opens the estate

No statewide fill-in form

Attorney-drafted pleading

Where you file

Circuit Court (the County Court in Gilliam, Grant, Harney, Malheur, Sherman and Wheeler Counties)

What the court issues (with a will)

Letters Testamentary

issued by Circuit court

Letters are an output — the court issues them after granting the petition.

At a glance

UPC adoptedInformal trackE-filing (self-represented)Self-represented filingLocal/county forms

eFiling is mandatory for active Oregon State Bar licensees in all circuit courts (UTCR 21.140(1)); self-represented filers may eFile or file on paper. OJD Guide & File (the interactive-forms system) has no decedent-estate interview — its published case-type list covers protection orders, family/parenting, evictions, small claims, name or legal sex change, expungement, satisfaction of a money award, firearms surrender, court-appointed lawyer, Adult Guardian Reports, modifications of financial obligations and tax appeals, with no probate of a will and no appointment of a personal representative. Because the court publishes no statewide petition or Letters form, a self-represented filer must draft the petition and the limited judgment of appointment to ORS 113.035 themselves.

The OJD Forms Center "Estate" category has no statewide petition or Letters form — it lists only the Simple Estate packet and a Claim Against Estate form. Full-probate petitions and limited judgments of appointment are typed pleadings, and each circuit court applies its own Supplementary Local Rules (SLR) and local filing packets. Multnomah County SLR 9.085 additionally requires a would-be fiduciary who wants to proceed without a lawyer to notify the court and meet with a judge, "who will decide if you are competent to represent yourself."

Bond

Required before Letters: Yes
Waivable by will: Yes
Waivable by beneficiaries: No

What to file with the petition

Original will and any codicils, with an affidavit of attesting witness or affidavit of genuine signature (ORS 113.055)
Petition for appointment of personal representative stating decedent, venue, heirs/devisees, and nominee (ORS 113.035) — typed pleading, no statewide form
Proposed limited judgment of appointment of personal representative
Bond unless waived by the will or because the PR is the sole heir/devisee (ORS 113.105)

Small-estate alternative

Bypasses full Letters: Yes
Form name: Simple Estate Affidavit

State-specific notes

The Simple Estate Affidavit (ORS 114.510(1)(a) limits: <= $75,000 personal property other than manufactured homes and <= $200,000 real property/manufactured homes; the OJD instructions restate this as a $275,000 total, and ORS 114.515(3) bars filing until 30 days after death) is the only OJD OFFICIAL statewide layperson estate form. It is a flat, print-only packet, and it makes no appointment, so no Letters issue. For a full estate the filer needs a typed petition under ORS 113.035 and a limited judgment of appointment; the court then issues Letters Testamentary (testate) or Letters of Administration (intestate) under ORS 113.125 after any required bond is filed — ORS 113.125(3)-(4) print the statutory text of each.

General information about how a personal representative is appointed, not legal advice. Consult a licensed attorney for legal questions. Data verified Aug 24, 2026

Oregon has no single statewide fill-in petition; the opening document is prepared to statute and filed with the Circuit Court. Circuit court issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration after the court grants the petition.

Along with the petition, Oregon generally requires: Original will and any codicils, with an affidavit of attesting witness or affidavit of genuine signature (ORS 113.055); Petition for appointment of personal representative stating decedent, venue, heirs/devisees, and nominee (ORS 113.035) — typed pleading, no statewide form; Proposed limited judgment of appointment of personal representative; Bond unless waived by the will or because the PR is the sole heir/devisee (ORS 113.105).

Yes. Oregon requires a bond by default before Letters issue. A will can waive it.

Oregon permits a self-represented person to open an estate. E-filing is open to self-represented filers. The Oregon self-file probate assessment sets self-filing against attorney costs.

Yes. A revocable living trust passes its assets to the beneficiaries without a court appointment in Oregon: no petition, no Letters, no bond. A revocable trust built with SimplyTrust takes about fifteen minutes.

Getting Appointed in Oregon

In Oregon, a personal representative is appointed by the Circuit Court. Circuit court issues the Letters that prove authority over the estate — Letters Testamentary (with a will) or Letters of Administration (no will). Oregon has not adopted the Uniform Probate Code.

Oregon publishes no single statewide fill-in petition; the opening document is prepared to statute and filed with the court. The court filing fee runs $278 - $1,176 (based on estate value), and Oregon has no informal (registrar) appointment track, so every appointment goes through the court.

Oregon requires a bond by default before Letters issue, though a will can waive it.

Estates under $75,000 in Oregon may qualify for a simplified procedure that avoids a full appointment entirely. The self-file probate assessment carries an Oregon cost comparison.

SimplyTrust Editorial·Updated September 8, 2026

Legal Sources

Data sourced from Oregon statutes and official state code. How we research.

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