FAQs

A typical community property agreement is a document whereby you and your spouse agree on three basic principles: (1) that all assets that you currently have are community property, (2) all assets that you accumulate in the future will be considered community property, and (3) upon the death of the first spouse, all such community

Washington law generally defines community property as those assets that you and your spouse acquired during your marriage regardless of how the asset is titled. Separate property is defined as property that you acquired prior to the marriage, and property that you inherited or that was gifted to you even if the gift or inheritance

An amendment to a person’s will is called a codicil. A codicil must meet all the requirements of an ordinary will, including being signed by the testator and witnessed by two people. To admit a codicil to probate, the court will require a proper attestation by the witnesses, as the court does with a will.

For probates, a bond is a type of insurance policy whereby a bonding company guarantees that if the personal representative is liable for any wrongful act, the bonding company will pay the harmed party up to the bond amount.

If you have a will or trust, the people whom you name to inherit under these documents are described as beneficiaries. These may or may not be your “heirs,” who are the family members who would inherit under Washington’s default law on inheritance (see “Heirs”).

Your “attorney-in-fact” is the person you name in your power of attorney to manage your financial and/or health care matters. Under Washington law, this person can also be referred to as your “agent.”

A will is valid if it is signed by the testator and two witnesses. However, before it can be admitted to probate, the witnesses must appear in court to provide testimony regarding the will signing ceremony. In the alternative, the petitioner can present the court with a document, in which the two witnesses swear or

Your “agent” is the person you name in your power of attorney to manage your financial and/or health care matters. Under Washington law, this person can also be referred to as your “attorney-in-fact.”

A probate is a legal process that comes to the forefront in the wake of someone’s death. A person is designated by the court to sell or transfer a deceased person’s belongings, pay off their bills, manage tax issues, distribute the remaining assets according to the person’s will, and then properly close the probate. If