Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Washington

Does Washigton Law require a Living Trust to keep your estate from going to probabte? Thank you


Asked on 1/07/10, 8:17 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Ann Sattler Aiken, St. Louis & Siljeg, P.S.

I'm not sure what you're asking so will write a general answer. A living will is the same as a health care directive, which tells medical personnel what a person's desires are in regards to lfie support. It is what a person wants in regards to medical care when they are near the end of life. A revokable living trust is a trust that a person puts in place during their lifetime that he/she can revoke at any time prior to death. If you want to avoid probate you typically put your assets into a trust (either revokable or irrevocable) but often people don't put everything into the trust or forget to transfer things so there is still often a probate. Probate in Washington is not like it is in California, for example. It is generally not very costly and not time consuming, assuming no disputes among beneficiaries/heirs. Hope this helps some.

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Answered on 1/13/10, 9:47 am


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