Everett Estate Planning Lawyer

Trusted Everett estate planning lawyers with over 10 years of experience.

If you're looking for an Everett, WA estate planning lawyer to help with wills, trusts, powers of attorney, or probate, our firm can help. We've drafted estate plans for Washington families for over a decade. Robert Franco founded our firm and focuses his practice on estate planning and probate, with a graduate-level tax background that shapes how we approach Washington estate tax planning. We bill on a flat-fee basis, so you see the cost before any drafting begins, with no surprise invoices and no clock running on phone calls. Contact us to talk through what you need and where to start.

Estate Planning Lawyer Everett, WA

An estate plan is a coordinated group of legal documents that direct what happens to your assets, your minor children, and your medical care when you can't make those decisions yourself. For most Everett residents, that includes a will, a power of attorney, a health care directive, and often one or more trusts. The right combination depends on what you own, who relies on you, and what you want the plan to accomplish.

Estate planning isn't just for the wealthy. Washington's estate tax kicks in at a much lower threshold than the federal one, which catches many Everett families off guard. A skilled Everett estate planning attorney can reduce that tax exposure, keep your estate out of probate where possible, and put documents in place that hold up when they're needed. Washington's intestacy rules fill the gap when there's no plan, and those default outcomes rarely match what someone would have actually chosen for their family.

Types of Estate Planning Cases We Handle in Everett

Estate planning covers a range of services, and most clients need more than one document. Below are the matters we regularly handle for Everett families.

• Wills. A will controls who inherits your property and who raises your minor children if both parents pass. We draft wills that meet Washington's witness and signing standards so they hold up if anyone challenges them.
• Revocable Living Trusts. A revocable living trust keeps your estate private, avoids probate, and lets you stage distributions to beneficiaries over time. These work well for parents of young children, blended families, and clients with property in multiple states.
• Irrevocable Trusts. For clients who need asset protection or significant tax planning, an irrevocable trust may fit. Once signed, they're harder to modify, which is the tradeoff for the protections they offer.
• Special Needs Trusts. A family member receiving Medicaid, SSI, or other government benefits can lose eligibility from an outright inheritance. A special needs trust holds the inheritance for their benefit without disrupting the benefits they rely on.
• Powers of Attorney. A durable power of attorney lets someone you trust handle financial and legal matters if you can't. We draft documents that go beyond the standard form to address gifting authority, trust management, and digital accounts.
• Health Care Directives. A health care directive records your wishes for medical care when you can't communicate them yourself. It removes guesswork from the hardest moments and gives family members clarity about what you want.
• Estate Tax Planning. The Washington estate tax catches many married couples who never expected to owe it. Planning options exist that use both spouses' exemptions, but those structures have to be in place before the first death.
• Trust Administration. When a person dies with a trust in place, the successor trustee has responsibilities to carry out. We advise trustees on their fiduciary duties, asset distributions, and the tax filings that follow.
• Probate. Snohomish County Superior Court handles probate for Everett residents. When probate is required, we represent personal representatives from the initial petition through final distribution.

Why Choose Eastside Estate Planning for Estate Planning in Everett, WA?

Depth of Tax Law Training

Robert Franco has practiced estate planning law for more than 10 years. He earned his J.D. from Lewis and Clark Law School in 2013 and then completed an LL.M. in Tax Law at the University of Washington in 2018. The LL.M. is an advanced post-J.D. degree that very few estate planning attorneys hold. In a state where the estate tax catches families well below the federal threshold, that level of tax training has a real impact on how plans get built.

Robert is licensed in Washington and serves on the Tax Section of the Washington State Bar Association. He's also a member of the Cardozo Society of Washington State. Our firm pays close attention to changes in Washington tax law, which the state has revisited in recent legislative sessions and which directly affects how plans should be structured today.

Flat-Fee Pricing You Can Plan Around

The hourly model creates friction every step of the way. Clients hesitate to call with questions, drafts get rushed, and the final invoice is anyone's guess. Our flat-fee approach is the opposite. We publish pricing openly, set the fee before any drafting begins, and don't bill again for follow-up calls. Most clients tell us the predictability is what makes the difference.

Understanding Estate Planning Cases

Key Estate Planning Documents and What They Do

A complete plan generally rests on the same handful of documents, each handling a specific role. When families come to us after a loss, the problems usually trace back to missing or inconsistent pieces.

• Last will and testament. Directs distribution of probate assets and names guardians for minor children.
• Revocable living trust. Holds assets during your life, avoids probate at death, and can stage out inheritances over time.
• Durable power of attorney. Names a financial agent if you lose capacity.
• Health care directive. Records your medical wishes for incapacity and end-of-life situations.
• HIPAA authorization. Gives named individuals access to your medical records.
• Beneficiary designations. Retirement accounts and life insurance pass by designation, not by will, and need to be coordinated with the rest of the plan.

Important Aspects in Your Estate Planning Case

Estate size matters less than people expect when it comes to plan design. Family structure and asset complexity drive most of the decisions. Two Everett clients with similar net worth can end up with very different documents, depending on their families and goals.

• Whether you own real estate in more than one state
• Whether you have children from a prior relationship or a blended household
• Whether anyone in your family has special needs or capacity issues
• Where your estate falls relative to Washington's estate tax threshold
• Whether you own a business, rental property, or other complex assets
• How you want children's or grandchildren's inheritances structured

Estate Planning Case Timeline

The process tends to move faster than clients expect once decisions are made. Most plans take a few weeks from first meeting to signed documents. Larger or more complicated estates take longer, but the steps remain the same.

• Initial consultation to discuss goals and family circumstances
• Review of assets, account titling, and beneficiary designations
• Drafting based on the agreed plan
• Review meeting to walk through every document
• Signing appointment with required witnesses and a notary
• Funding instructions for any trust, including retitling assets

What to Bring to Your Estate Planning Consultation

You don't need to come prepared with an elaborate file. A few items make the first conversation more productive.

• A general list of your assets and approximate values
• Current beneficiary designations on retirement accounts and insurance policies
• Any existing estate planning documents, even older ones
• Names of people you might appoint as executor, trustee, or guardian
• Specific questions or concerns about your family situation

Plan on the consultation taking about an hour. By the end, you'll have a clear picture of what your plan should contain and what it will cost. Older plans often need updating after major life events such as a marriage, divorce, birth, death, business sale, or substantial change in assets. We review existing documents during a consultation and tell you whether revisions make sense. There's no expectation of a same-day decision, and we expect clients to take their time with these choices before moving forward.

Washington Legal Resources for Estate Planning

Everett residents who want to do their own research have several reliable starting points. These don't replace a consultation, but they help answer general questions about how Washington handles estates, probate, and the documents that make up a plan.

• The Washington State Legislature publishes the Revised Code of Washington, where state statutes are searchable.
• The Washington Courts self-help center provides general information for people working through legal matters without an attorney.
• The Washington Department of Revenue maintains a page on the state estate tax.
• The IRS estate tax overview covers the federal framework that runs alongside the state tax.
• The Washington State Bar Association offers public legal resources and a lawyer referral service.

Reach Out to Eastside Estate Planning to Schedule a Consultation

We offer free initial consultations and flat-fee pricing on estate planning matters. Your first meeting covers your family, your assets, and what you want your plan to do, and you leave with a clear sense of cost and next steps. Contact us to schedule a time.