Clients often come to our Issaquah, WA estate planning lawyer not with confusion about the idea of estate planning, but with confusion about the process: how many meetings, how much time, and what happens when.
Not knowing what to expect is one of the biggest reasons people delay estate planning. So here is our process, laid out clearly, so you know exactly what you are getting into before you schedule anything.
Step one is our intake questionnaire. Before we ever meet, we ask you to complete a detailed questionnaire about your family, assets, goals, and concerns. This is not busywork — it is what lets us use your consultation time efficiently and allows us to give you a more complete picture of your options. The questionnaire typically takes twenty to thirty minutes and covers the information we need to give you real answers in our first meeting rather than spending that meeting gathering basic facts.
Step two is a free one-hour consultation by video. This is where we get to know each other. We review your questionnaire responses, talk through your situation, explain your options, and answer your questions. By the end of this meeting, you will understand what documents you need, why you need them, and what the process and pricing look like. We offer several plan tiers based on complexity — a plan for a married couple with minor children looks different from a plan involving a blended family with multiple business interests, immigration issues, or significant estate tax exposure. We will tell you which tier fits and what it costs, with no ambiguity.
Step three is the planning meeting, also by video. This is where we get into the details: who serves as trustee, guardian, and agent; how distributions work; what happens in specific scenarios like incapacity, simultaneous death, or a surviving spouse who remarries. These conversations are easier from your own home, where you and your spouse can talk openly, pull up financial information on another screen, and take the time you need without watching a clock in someone else’s office.
Step four is drafting. We prepare your documents — typically a revocable living trust, pour-over will, durable power of attorney, healthcare directive, and community property agreement — and send them to you for review before our next meeting.
Step five is the review meeting, by video. We provide an easy-to-read summary of all the key decisions, and we walk you through the documents, so you know what you’re signing. You can ask questions, request changes, and make sure everything reflects your wishes. We revise as needed until you are satisfied. No one signs anything until you are completely comfortable with every word.
Step six is signing. This is the one in-person step. You come to our Redmond office for a signing appointment with a member of our team. By this point, you have already reviewed everything in detail, so the appointment is straightforward — typically thirty to forty-five minutes. We handle the execution formalities, witnessing, and notarization so that every document is properly executed under Washington law.
Step seven is the final post-signing wrap up meeting by video. We meet virtually one more time to walk you through post-signing considerations, whether funding your trust — the critical step of actually transferring assets into it —, storing your documents, notifying family members, find any other follow-up items like updating beneficiary designations. That funding meeting is where often of estate plans go from “documents in a drawer” to “a plan that actually works,” and we do not consider your plan complete until it is done.
From start to finish, the process usually takes one to two months, depending on your schedule and the complexity of your plan. You will have spent a total of two to three hours in video meetings and about thirty to forty-five minutes at our Redmond office for signing. The rest of your life stays undisrupted.
If you have questions about any step, that is what the free consultation is for.
If you are a Washington resident and you want a plan that is built for modern life without being casual about legal formalities, our Redmond practice is structured accordingly. We begin with an online questionnaire, followed by a complimentary one-hour video consultation where we explain options and quote a clear fee range for your situation. Most plans fall between $2,000 and $6,000 depending on complexity. Planning and document review happen by secure video with screen-share; signing takes place in our Redmond office with our assistant so execution is done correctly; and we finish with a final virtual meeting focused on trust funding and post-signing follow-through. Contact Eastside Estate Planning today.
