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E-filing system to change

The Clallam County Clerk’s Office is changing their document management and E-filing systems in April, 2026. During the transition, no E-filing will be possible from April 6 through April 10, 2026. Information from the Clerk’s Office is below.

Clallam County Clerk – Document Management System Transition

Transition to Enterprise Justice DMS

The Clallam County Clerk’s Office will transition from the current OnBase Document Management System (DMS) to the Enterprise Justice (EJ) Document Management System.

  • Go-Live Date: April 6, 2026
  • After this date, the Clerk’s Office will no longer add records to the OnBase DMS.
  • We are currently working to convert existing OnBase records to the Enterprise Justice DMS.

Access for Current OnBase Subscribers

If you currently hold an OnBase subscription:

  • You will continue to have access through the OnBase WebClient for the remainder of 2026 only.
  • You may register for an Odyssey Portal subscription at no additional cost for the remainder of 2026 only, fees will apply for 2027 forward.

Access for Non-Subscribers

For users who do not currently have an OnBase subscription:

  • You will have the option to subscribe to the Odyssey Portal for a fee to access records.
  • The Clerk’s Office is updating its fee schedule, and subscription costs will be finalized soon. The Clerk’s Office will send out additional information on Odyssey Portal subscriptions.
  • The Odyssey Portal will still be available for public use without a subscription, though some features may be limited.

New E-Filing System: e-FileWA

As part of this transition, the Clerk’s Office will implement a new e-filing system.

Temporary E-Filing Downtime

Because of the system transition:

  • No e-filing will be available for Clallam County Superior Court from
    April 6, 2026 – April 10, 2026.

Please plan accordingly during this period.

Questions

If you have any questions about the transition, please contact the Clallam County Clerk’s Office.

Brian Parker terminated from position of Clallam County Family Court Commissioner – effective immediately

Brian Parker, Clallam County Superior Court Family Court Commissioner, was abruptly terminated from his position on February 10, 2026. The Superior Court announced his appointment to the position in September, 2024, and he took the bench on January 13, 2025.

The Clallam County Superior Court has not offered an explanation for the unusual and abrupt termination.

Previously, Parker worked as a lawyer and part time Court Commissioner in Snohomish County.

The Clallam County Superior Court judges will now begin the search for a new Commissioner. It will likely take 1-3 months before a new Commissioner can take the bench. Until then, the Superior Court Judges will take turns handling matters in the Family Court. Changes to the Family Court schedule are not expected.

In Clallam County Superior Court, there are three elected judges, and one Family Court Commissioner who is appointed by the judges. The judges are responsible to search for a suitable candidate and appoint them. They do so in a closed process without oversight, supervision or input from voters or any other government official.

Family Court Commissioner history

The Clallam County Family Court has existed for about 37 years. There have been 5 Commissioners, and soon there will be a sixth.

30 years and 2 Commissioners

During the first 30 years since the Family Court was created, it was fill by two Commissioners.

William Knebes, a Port Angeles lawyer, established the Family Court system in Clallam County and was the first Family Court Commissioner. He served for about 19 years and was awarded the honor of Jurist of the Year. He worked tirelessly and closely with community leaders to develop the Family Court into something that became a blessing for the county.

Port Angeles lawyer Brent Basden next filled the position. He was appointed to replace the retiring Commissioner Knebes in January 2008, and served for 11 years before being appointed as a Clallam County Superior Court Judge in 2019.

7 years and 4 Commissioners

Jefferson County lawyer Brandon Mack took over from Commissioner Basden on January 19, 2019. He served in the position for four years, and then moved back to Jefferson County after being appointed by the Governor to be the Jefferson County Superior Court Judge. He replaced Judge Keith Harper who retired.

Elizabeth Stanley took over the position on February 27, 2023. She left the position two years later, on January 13, 2025, after she won the election for the position of Clallam County Superior Court Judge. Ms. Stanley was originally from New York where she practiced corporate law, then worked for the Arizona Attorney General practicing dependency law before moving to Washington.

Brian Parker took the position on January 13, 2025 when Commissioner Stanley became a judge. Parker served for a total of 13 months.

A fourth Commissioner will take the bench likely before May 2026.

Maria Malkasian is the new Courthouse Facilitator

The Clallam County Court Facilitator is Maria Malkasian. Her office is now in room 3003 at the courthouse, across the hall from Courtroom 3, the Family Court, 223 East 4th Street, Port Angeles, WA 98362. (The office used to be in room 212 in the historic courthouse.)

Office hours are Monday-Thursday, 9:00 a.m. to noon, and 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

On the last Thursday of each month, the Facilitator is in Forks.

To schedule an appointment, see the Court Facilitator web page.

CLE: Managing parent child contact problems WA AFCC

Parent child contact problems (PCCP) is one of the most difficult challenges in family law cases. The Washington Chapter of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC) is holding it’s 10th annual conference to address the PCCP topic over Friday and optionally on Saturday, April 25-26, 2025.

Conference speakers are national experts Leslie Drozd and Barbara Fidler. They will focus on intermediate and advanced concepts and solutions to teach how to recognize the problem and intervene. They will also look at the complex challenges PCCP cases pose for family courts, family attorneys, parent educators, GALs, and mental health specialists who work with resist/refuse dynamics (RRD).

This session is for lawyers, judicial officers, forensic professionals, mental health specialists, and other people working in family law and dependency cases.

Speakers

Dr. Drozd is a licensed psychologist who works clinically and forensically with families in the various stages of divorce, including families with parent-child contact problems, co-parenting therapy, family therapy, reintegration therapy, and parent coordination. She is part of a group of experts producing a 16-hour training for the AFCC: Advanced Issues in Family Law: Parent-Child Contact Problems.

Dr. Fidler is a psychologist in private practice who has more than 38 years of experience working with divorcing families. She has authored four books and many chapters and peer reviewed papers, including as guest co-editor of two special issues of the Family Court Review (FCR) on alienation (January 2010 and April 2020). She served on the AFCC task force that developed the Guideline for Parenting Coordinators in 2019.

Conference details

Friday, April 25, 2025. 8:45-5:15. $325 for AFCC members, $375 for nonmembers, $225 for full-time WA county court personnel.

Saturday, April 26, 2025 9:30-12:30. $75. Topic is advanced interventions and solutions for PCCP cases. Friday conference registration required.

Both sessions at the Washington Athletic Club, Seattle

Hope Card: easy carry protection order information

Washington Hope Card Program

The new Washington Hope Card is an easy to carry version of a domestic violence protection order. Anyone who has obtained a protection order may request the credit card sized Hope Card from the Washington Court administrative office in Olympia. More information and an online application form is available at the Washington Court’s web page for the Hope Card, https://www.courts.wa.gov/hopecard/.

The Hope Card makes it easier to carry proof of an order you have obtained from a county court, such as the Clallam County Superior or District Courts It eliminates the need to carry a copy of the full protection order.

There is no charge for the Hope Card. It is valid so long as the protection is valid. Most protection orders last for one year, but they can be shorter or longer, The length of an order is usually stated on the first page of the full order.

Please note, applying for a Hope Card is not allowed until after a protection order is obtained from a judge. Hope Cards are not available for Temporary Protection Orders, and applying for a Hope Card will not start the process of getting a protection order. To get a protection order you need to file a Petition for a Protection order, or file a petition and motion for an order in an existing law suit such as a divorce, parenting plan, or child support case. Forms are available at the Washington Courts web page and any domestic violence agency can help you fill out the forms and offer help for free. Any domestic violence agency can serve in Clallam County. Local agencies include Mariposa House, Healthy Families, Lower Elwha Klallam Domestic Violence Program, and Dove House.

Hope Cards are available for:

  • Domestic Violence Protection Order (DVPO)
  • Sexual Assault Protection Order (SAPO)
  • Stalking Protection Order (SPO)
  • Vulnerable Adult Protection Order (VAPO)
  • Anti-Harassment Protection Order (AHPO)

In Washington, “domestic violence” includes physical and emotional violence or aggression and coercive control.

For more information about Hope Cards, go to https://www.courts.wa.gov/hopecard/.

Peace Discipline – one minute videos

Peace Discipline is a parenting website offering a rich source of free and state-of-the-art parenting tools, tips, video how-to’s, and the results of their 5-year research study. Peace Discipline is owned by Karen Quail. She offers parenting classes, some are general and some are specific, such as for parents of children with ADHD or ASD. You can watch their videos on their YouTube channel, or sign up for their email newsletter and get their very cool 1-minute videos delivered right to you every week.

Karen Quail is also available for private parent-coaching.

Click here to go the Peace Discipline sign email sign-up page: https://www.peacediscipline.com/#footer

Immigration clinic: Free legal advice in Forks WA

A free legal aid clinic will offer immigration (and also on general legal) advice and information on November 18, 2023, at the Peninsula College office, 481 South Forks Avenue, Forks WA. The clinic is from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Anyone interested in obtaining free advice may attend and should bring any paperwork they would like help with. The clinic will be in spanish and Man.

Attorneys from Avelar Immigration Law will talk about immigration rights from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m., and the free legal advice clinic will be from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Attorneys will be on hand to answer questions about other legal issues such as landlord-tenant, divorce, child custody, child support, and other issues.

Reservations are necessary, just show up!

This clinic is hosted by the Forks Human Rights Group, the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, Avelar Immigration Law, PLLC, and by the Clallam-Jefferson County Pro Bono Lawyers.

As far as ClallamCountyBar.com knows, this is the first such clinic in Forks, so a big shout out to everyone putting this together!

Free legal advice Saturday November 18 2023

n Saturday, November 18, 2023, the Clallam-Jefferson County Pro Bono Lawyers will provide a free legal aid clinic from 10-noon, by phone or zoom.

It helps the pro bono office if clients register in advance, but it is not necessary. Contact information is below.

Legal topics which can be discussed in these pro bono sessions may include:

  • Divorce, custody, child support and other family law matters
  • Landlord-tenant issues
  • Domestic violence and sexual assault
  • Creditor issues and bankruptcy
  • Estate planning
  • Employment
  • Foreclosure
  • Expungement / vacate criminal convictions

Registering in advance is required by calling 360-504-2422, or emailing [email protected].

This is the last scheduled pro bono clinic for 2023. Event will resume in 2024

Free legal advice Saturday September 23 2023

n Saturday, September 23, 2023, the Clallam-Jefferson County Pro Bono Lawyers will provide a free legal aid clinic from 10-noon, by phone or zoom.

It helps the pro bono office if clients register in advance, but it is not necessary. Contact information is below.

Legal topics which can be discussed in these pro bono sessions may include:

  • Divorce, custody, child support and other family law matters
  • Landlord-tenant issues
  • Domestic violence and sexual assault
  • Creditor issues and bankruptcy
  • Estate planning
  • Employment
  • Foreclosure
  • Expungement / vacate criminal convictions

Registering in advance is required by calling 360-504-2422, or emailing [email protected].