THIS WEBSITE INCLUDES GENERAL INFORMATION & THE OPINIONS OF CHRISTOPHER S. MULVANEY. IT IS INTENDED TO STIMULATE A BASIS FOR QUESTIONS RELATED TO YOUR PARTICULAR FACTUAL CIRCUMSTANCES — BEFORE YOU ACT. THIS WEBSITE DOES NOT CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE. IF YOU WANT LEGAL ADVICE, PLEASE MAKE A ZOOM APPOINTMENT TO SPEAK WITH ME.
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Gonzaga University School of Law – Spokane, Washington – Class of 2002 – Cum Laude The Latin phrase “Deo patriae, scientiis, artibus” translates to “For God and country through sciences and arts”. The initials A.M.D.G. on the seal of Gonzaga Law School stand for Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam, which is Latin for “For the Greater Glory of God” the Motto of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits): a Catholic religious order founded by St. Ignatius of Loyola.
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A Revocable Living Trust is a notarized document creating a legal entity which can hold property to be flexibly distributed to beneficiaries by the appointed successor of the creator of the Trust without probate.
Trusts can also help avoid the issue of a youthful beneficiary because if a beneficiary is 18 years old, that beneficiary is entitled to whatever share they are given. The Trust, if named as beneficiary, would allow the Successor Trustee to care for the beneficiary until distributing the balance of the funds at age 25.
You may also wish to distribute gifts to young people over time (a common age for distribution of gifts to young people is 25) or distribute gifts for the benefit of elderly or vulnerable people who may be disabled or have drug, alcohol, gambling or shopping addiction issues or be in the midst of a divorce or bankruptcy. A Revocable Living Trust used in conjunction with a Will can accomplish these goals. When you create a Trust, you are the Trustor and the Trustee. This means that you are giving your assets to yourself to be used for the remainder of your life. After you pass, your Successor Trustee administers your estate for the benefit of the beneficiaries you name.
As a practical matter, this means that young people who go to expensive schools or remain in school longer, may use their inheritance faster than a child who does not go to college or has a scholarship, but each receives the same amount of money, just at different times according the circumstances. Sometimes a beneficiary will be quite a bit more affluent than other beneficiaries. In this case, it is not unusual for the better off beneficiary to disclaim the inheritance so that other beneficiaries receive a larger share.
There are also circumstances where a beneficiary may be inadvertently disinherited (a Trust makes this less likely). If that happens I encourage the beneficiary who is legally entitled to the gift to make it right and share with the omitted beneficiaries to preserve family harmony. A common way that inadvertent disinheritance occurs is a situation where, for example, there are two adult children listed as beneficiaries of a life insurance policy and each has two children of their own. If an adult child predeceases the parent who owns the policy, then the grandchildren of the predeceased beneficiary would not share in the proceeds because the surviving adult child would receive the whole gift. If the Trust was named as beneficiary, then the grandchildren would share equally in the predeceased parent’s share of the life insurance proceeds.
Why unmarried couples especially
need estate plans.
If you choose not to be legally married, you can contract for some of the same rights as married people in a manner that is much easier to change than divorce. Through your estate planning, you can give your significant other the right to handle financial and medical matters for you. This can be especially important if your partner is hospitalized and unable to communicate with health care providers.
Separate Property Trusts can be used in conjunction with pre-nuptial agreements to establish rights regarding separate property businesses or inheritance for example. Separate Property Trusts can be used to protect one partner from the other partner’s creditors. Community Property Trusts can be used to contract for many community property rights in a way that protects partners in the event of untimely death, but is easy to amend or revoke if circumstances change. Generally, no probate is necessary for married couples or for couples who hold their real property and the majority of their estate in a Trust.
Another benefit of Trusts is protecting separate property. Many parents want to empower their kids to have a separate property account to put gifts both during life and inheritance for their adult married children. Doing so is a hedge against divorce as well as a hedge against an adult child with children of their own predeceasing parents and inadvertently disinheriting grandchildren because the surviving spouse remarries someone who likes their own kids better. This is what happened to Cinderella. When her dad died, her step-mom favored her step-sisters and abused her. If Cinderella’s dad would have had a separate property revocable living trust that would have become irrevocable when he died then the story would have been very boring because Cinderella would have been empowered. Empowerment is bad for drama, but great for your kids.
THE POST PANDEMIC WAY OF DOING THINGS
In the post pandemic way of doing things, I have to have an image of a driver’s license for each person, and I also have to have a separate email address for each person.
All discussions about estate planning are via recorded ZOOM meeting, even if at some point in the future it becomes safe enough that people want to come into the office in person again.
All signing is electronic via a DocuSign in a recorded ZOOM meeting. I do not use paper and ink signatures on any estate planning documents anymore.
Clients must have time to review the documents before the ZOOM meeting and make notes about questions. Clients must take the time after the ZOOM meeting to check the documents for accuracy before giving the OK to sign.
Because of the pandemic, I may send a Legal Services Agreement to be electronically signed. Since no notary is required, you can sign whenever is convenient without an appointment for a recorded video meeting. However, I do have to have the driver’s license image and separate email for each person first.
One popular reason for creating a Trust is avoiding probate on business interests.
For example, the member interest in an LLC can be held as Trustee of a Revocable Living Trust in order to avoid probate of all assets held by the LLC.
After formation there is a checklist you can use to stay on top of everything:
Get EIN number from IRS
Open bank account
Get business license
Open WA DOR account for payment of 1.5% gross receipts tax if needed (not needed for rental income)
Pay federal estimated tax
Medicaid Asset Protection Trusts (MAPT)
I don’t do Medicaid Asset Protection Trusts (MAPT) because what the websites are not telling you is that these trusts are disfavored and vigorously challenged and may not work. Notice that the 5 year reach back avoidance is a requirement. You don’t need a Trust for that.
To Always Be a Human Being First, and My Role Second. To First, Do No Harm, then to provide the best legal outcome, smoothest process, best value, and to make a positive difference in the life of every client.
Christopher S. Mulvaney’s Mantra:
May I be filled with loving kindness for all life. May I be safe from dangers within and without. May I be healthy in body, mind, socially, and spiritually. May I be at ease and happy, doing good in the world.
May You be filled with loving kindness for all life. May You be safe from dangers within and without. May You be healthy in body, mind, socially, and spiritually. May You be at ease and happy, doing good in the world.
I am an experienced solo estate planning, debtor bankruptcy, and real estate attorney. At my law firm in Bellevue, Washington between Eastgate and Factoria, I do things a little differently. I am passionate about helping people take control of their lives.
One of my primary practice areas is urgent (bankruptcy), and the other is important, but not urgent (estate planning). Not letting the urgent crowd out the important is key. I have made a choice to include the positive difference I make in the life of each client in how I calculate profit. This means I have higher job satisfaction, and happy clients who confidently give referrals.
My goal is that my work is transformative for people during a challenging time in their lives. At Mulvaney Law Offices, PLLC (MLO), you will not find a gatekeeper. There are no forgotten cases hiding on an associate’s cluttered desk. It’s just me, working with each one of my clients one-on-one to resolve their legal concerns as favorably as possible.
As your lawyer, I will personally handle every aspect of your case. My office is not a factory churning out thousands of filings per year, where each case matters little. You, and your case, matter to me. You can see what clients have said about me, and leave your own reviews at these links.
Mulvaney Law Offices, PLLC is located in Bellevue, Washington, representing estate planning & chapter 7 and chapter 13 bankruptcy, clients in all 39 Washington Counties.
Washington State residents can meet with me in Zoom/DocuSign from anywhere in the world, and I can notarize their electronic signatures because I am a remote online notary. Just email me an image of your photo ID.
