PRACTICE AREAS:
I. ESTATE PLANNING:
The term “Estate Planning” covers a wide range of legal planning services and devices. As your attorney, we will work with you and your family members, accountants, financial advisers and other relevant professionals, to develop a plan that best suits you and the needs of your family. The following is a list of the estate planning devices typically used by our office and a brief explanation of each of them.
Will. Also known as a “Last Will and Testament”. A Will controls what happens to the majority of your property after your death. In a Will, you designate the people you want to perform important family and financial tasks after your death. Your Will may include planning for federal and state death taxes, trusts to protect and assist your children or a family member with special needs, children’s education, and other issues of importance to you.
You can revoke and rewrite your Will at any time. You can make simple changes to an existing Will by drafting and executing a codicil.
If you die without a Will, Washington State law determines who receives your estate.
Testamentary Trusts. Testamentary Trusts are included in a Will and do not take effect until your death. One of our most common Testamentary Trusts is a “Special Needs Trust” which provides protection for a family member with special needs while preserving eligibility for critical public and private disability related benefit programs.
Community Property Agreement. A Community Property Agreement is a contract that transfers all of the community and separate property of one spouse to the surviving spouse, avoiding probate. However; it does not take the place of a Will and should only be used in certain specialized situations which we review with our clients individually.
Intervivos/Living Trust. A Living Trust is a document which controls the management of the assets transferred into the Trust during lifetime. This differs from a Will which only takes effect after your death. A Living Trust may be used for a wide variety of purposes such as tax planning and real property management.
Intervivos Special Needs Trust. An Intervivos Special Needs Trust” is a specialized type of Living Trust that protects the access of an individual with special needs to asset sensitive government benefits. This Trust provides a source of funds to pay for extra and supplemental needs during the individual’s lifetime.
Power of Attorney. A Power of Attorney (“POA”) allows you to grant certain specific powers to a person you designate to act for you if you are unable to act on your own behalf. In a POA, you can grant your surrogate specific or broad powers as you deem appropriate such as managing your financial affairs, making decisions regarding your medical care, arranging for your acute and long term care, and making other important decisions for you. A POA may be made effective upon signing, or effective upon disability. You can revoke your POA at any time as long as you have capacity.
Gifting. Lifetime Gifting is an option we often recommend to reduce the size of a taxable estate at death. Tax planning through gifting is highly dependent your situation.
II. PROBATE / NON-PROBATE ESTATES:
The probate process in the State of Washington is a streamlined, simple procedure in the vast majority of cases and there is minimum court involvement.
Probate. Probate is the process of administering the estate of a deceased individual. Probate may be required when the deceased person’s assets are over a certain dollar amount regardless of whether or not there is a Will. If there is a Will, the Court admits it into probate and the terms of the Will decide how the estate will be distributed. The Court generally confirms the appointment of the Executor (“Personal Representative”) named in the Will. If there is no Will, or the persons named in the Will are unavailable or unwilling to act, an Administrator may be appointed to distribute the estate according to the laws of Washington State.
Non-Probate Estate. There are a number of situations in which specific assets are not subject to probate. For example, when: (1) The deceased person held an asset with another person who had a right of survivorship (i.e. property held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship - JTWROS); (2) The deceased person has a surviving spouse and they executed a Community Property Agreement; (3) The deceased person left assets with a beneficiary designation, i.e. life insurance, IRA’s, 401Ks; (4) The assets held in the deceased person’s name are valued at less than $60,000.00.
III. GUARDIANSHIP SERVICES:
Guardianship is a court process in which a guardian is appointed for an individual who cannot take care of his or her personal or financial affairs. A guardianship can be tailored to meet the needs of an individual. Options range from a Full Guardianship of the Person and Estate where broad authority is granted to the guardian, to a Limited Guardianship of the Person or Estate where only specific authorities are granted. The court evaluates if there is a less restrictive alternative to guardianship and what is in the “best interests” of the individual. A Guardian ad Litem (“GAL”) is appointed in all new guardianship proceedings to investigate the appropriateness of appointing a guardian. The GAL files a report to the court with his or her recommendations.
Once a guardianship has been established, the guardian must file regular reports to the court on all financial activity in the guardianship estate and on the status of the Incapacitated Person (the person who is the subject of the guardianship).
IV. ELDER LAW:
Elder law incorporates most of the other practice areas of our firm including Medicaid, Medicare, guardianship, powers of attorney, real property transactions, planning for long term care and other legal issues faced by aging adults and their families. Our goal is to develop an individualized plan to assist our clients in maintaining personal choice, quality of life and dignity as they age.
V. SPECIAL EDUCATION:
We represent parents of children with special needs in resolving conflicts with school districts over appropriate educational programs. This includes assisting parents in all stages of dispute resolution, attendance at Individualized Education Plan (“IEP”) conferences, mediation, due process hearings, state level review and civil action in Federal Court. In addition, our attorneys are available to serve as a mediator in special education cases.
VI. BENEFIT ADVOCACY:
Social Security Claims. We represent individuals with special needs in obtaining and maintaining Social Security benefits such as Supplemental Security Income (“SSI”), and Social Security Disability Insurance (“SSDI”). We assist with initial applications, case reviews and benefit appeals at all levels. We advocate directly with the agencies, or we provide information to assist our clients in becoming effective advocates on their own behalf.
Benefit Advocacy. There are also a wide variety of local, Washington State, and federal public benefit programs available to individuals with special needs. The eligibility requirements for these programs vary. We represent individuals with special needs in obtaining and maintaining these benefits. We advocate directly with the agencies, or we provide information to assist our clients in becoming effective advocates on their own behalf.
In Washington State agencies such as the Department of Social and Health Services (“DSHS”), the Division of Developmental Disabilities (“DDD”), and the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (“DVR”), administer programs for aging adults and individuals with special needs. These programs include the Community Options Program Entry System (“COPES”), Medicaid Care Providers, and the Home and Community Based Waiver Program (this program recently replaced the Community Alternatives Program or “CAP” Waiver Program). In addition, there are a wide variety of social services programs such as supervised housing, day programs, independent living programs, work training and job counseling, housing cost assistance, and other services. In order to qualify for some of the public benefits programs individuals or couples must meet the income and asset limitations established by the agencies administering these programs.
For some individuals, public benefits are not appropriate or meaningful. Therefore, other options may be considered to meet long term care needs. We offer substantial experience in creating and implementing individually designed plans with alternative funding sources.
VII. SETTLEMENT PLANNING:
Our office is nationally recognized in the area of personal injury settlement planning. We consult with personal injury attorneys representing both plaintiffs and defendants and their clients regarding all aspects of settlement planning. This planning may include analyzing proposed structured annuities, drafting trust documents, assessing and preserving benefit eligibility, reviewing solutions to allocation issues between parties (including potential conflict of interest issues), reviewing settlement documentation and reviewing possible ethical and malpractice compliance issues for the attorney.
Our attorneys serve as Litigation and Settlement Guardians ad Litem in personal injury cases.