Admitted to the bar in 1977, Washington and U.S. District Court, Western District of Washington; U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit, 1979; U.S. Supreme Court, 1981. Stanford University - A.B., 1974 University of Washington - J.D., 1977 Deputy Prosecuting Attorney, Snohomish County, 1977-1979 Office of Regional Counsel, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 10, 1979-1982; President, NW Washington Estate Planning Council, 1989-1990. Member: Whatcom County, Washington State, and American (Real Property, Probate and Trust Section) Bar Associations. Legal Expertise in Estate Planning, Probate, Business, and Municipal Law.

Probate, Trusts, Guardianships & Estate Planning

Probate is the distribution of assets after death based upon a will or based upon the law if there is no will. A will is the document entered into during a person's lifetime indicating the desired distribution of the property and assets of that person.

Trusts can be established during a person's lifetime or at death if included in a will. There is a lot of information about revocable living trusts, not all of which may be applicable to your situation. A revocable living trust is primarily used to avoid probate. Under a revocable living trust, the client establishes the trust during their lifetime and transfers their property out of their own name and into the name of the trust. The trust document states who takes over management of the property if the client later dies or becomes disabled. After the client dies, the trust also specifies how the property is disposed of, as would a client’s will. Since the trust owns the property and it did not die, the property in the trust does not need to be probated.

Trusts also allow for the management of assets in a variety of other contexts, such as trusts established for persons other than the client, where that person may be inheriting money from the client, and is or could be incapacitated or on public assistance that is “needs-based.” Trusts can also be used to minimize or avoid estate taxes, whether they are part of a revocable living trust or are established under the terms of a will.

An estate plan usually incorporates a will and power of attorney, and may include a trust, a community property agreement, and other documents, such as a living will, which in Washington is referred to as an advance directive or health care directive. More specific instructions regarding end of life issues are best expressed in a document which the Washington State Department of Health and State Medical Association have collaboratively standardized, called a “Physicians’ Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment,” or POLST. That document is to be completed with the doctor’s assistance, and is completed based upon the patient’s expressed preference. If the patient is unable to express a preference, then the estate planning documents the client has executed are to be used.

Guardianship is the legal process of assigning a caretaker over someone to make decisions (both financially and medically). This person may care for an incapacitated person or child as in third party custody's, persons of advanced age and those people with disabilities who are shown to be unable to care and make decisions for themselves. The court may assign a family member, third party individual or professional Guardian or agency to be the guardian of the incapacitated person. The term of a Guardianship may be until a minor becomes an adult, until a person is no longer disabled, or until a person passes away, all based on circumstances of that individual case.

An estate is the total sum of property, including real estate, tangible personal property, stocks and other investments left by an individual at the time of death. Many such assets are disposed of by beneficiary designations, and any estate planning work should take into consideration the beneficiary designations which the client has made or may plan to make as to such assets. A good estate plan also takes into account future living expenses, pension benefits, and long term care arrangements, such as insurance.

Since estate planning takes into account a great deal of unique family and financial circumstances, we have developed an estate planning questionnaire which clients should review and attempt to complete before coming in. It is titled estate planning questionnaire and you can click on it, download it, and bring a completed questionnaire in when you meet with the attorney. You do not, however, need to do so in order to meet with the attorney.
Brian Hansen is past president and current board member of the Northwest Washington Estate Planning Council and handles all of these matters for clients of Resick, Hansen & Follis.

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