In King County

This packet contains the forms and instructions needed to request access to a safe deposit box to retrieve a will stored there.

The instructions are for informational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. If you do not understand this information, please contact an attorney. If your specific situation is beyond the scope of this packet, please contact an attorney.

If someone who has died left their Will in a safe deposit box and the bank will not allow you to open the box to retrieve the Will, then you may request a court order to allow you to open the box to get the Will. 

Washington law requires any person who possesses a Will of someone who has died to either:

deliver the Will to the person named as the Personal Representative (sometimes called the “executor”); or

file the Will with the Superior Court Clerk in the county the Decedent was a resident of when the Decedent died.

If you are in possession of a Will and are not the Personal Representative, then you must file it with the Superior Court Clerk or deliver it to the Personal Representative within 30 days of learning of the Decedent’s death. 

If you are in possession of a Will and are the Personal Representative, then you must file it with the Superior Court Clerk within 40 days of learning of the Decedent’s death. 

The instructions and forms in this packet may help with requesting a court order to make a bank open a safe deposit box so that you can retrieve a Will.