Recent News

Did you know that you can get estate planning for free?  That’s right, the Washington State Legislature has done your estate planning for you.  Here is all you have to do to take advantage of this benefit of living in Washington State – Nothing.  Now, the default rules created by the Legislature in RCW Title… Read More

Whether you have been married for one year or thirty years, it is extremely important to update your estate plan following a divorce.  RCW 11.12.051(1) states that “if, after making a will, the testator's marriage or domestic partnership is dissolved, invalidated, or terminated, all provisions in the will in favor of or granting any interest… Read More

January 30th, 2025 Beresford Booth Attorney Sherry Bosse Lueders talk about Washington estate tax planning basics. Read More

Qualified Disclaimers: A tool for when you would prefer not to accept an inheritance A qualified disclaimer is a formal refusal to accept property or assets being distributed from an estate or trust. When a beneficiary disclaims (ie, refuses) an inheritance, it passes to another beneficiary as if the disclaiming person never had ownership of… Read More

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), enacted in December 2017, introduced significant reforms that affected various aspects of federal taxation, including changes to estate and gift tax provisions. One of the most notable provisions was the temporary increase in the exemption amounts for federal estate and gift taxes. However, these increases are set to… Read More

A sometimes-overlooked part of estate planning is charitable giving. End of life gifts to charities can leave a lasting impact on the causes you care about and have the added benefit of reducing the size of your taxable estate. A Donor-Advised Fund (DAF) can be an excellent solution for incorporating charitable giving into your estate… Read More

Federal law imposes a tax on gifts made in excess of a specific amount in a calendar year to a specific recipient (known as a “donee”). That tax is usually paid by the donor (the giver) of the gift. The specific amount is known as the annual gift exclusion. The annual gift exclusion is $18,000… Read More

The “basic exclusion amount” is the amount of a deceased person’s estate that passes free of federal estate tax.  This differs from the unlimited marital deduction that applies when one spouse dies and transfers all of his or her interest in property to the surviving spouse.  There is a basic exclusion amount for federal estate… Read More

Under a power of attorney, one individual, the Principal, grants to another individual or other appropriate agent the authority to take certain actions on behalf of the Principal. Often, a power of attorney is drafted broadly to give the agent authority to act on a variety of types of matters or with respect to the… Read More