How Couples Can Share One Estate Lawyer!
Video Transcript
Ray Hrdlicka – Host – Attorneys.Media
You mentioned several times: who does somebody choose to perform these duties?
Now, we’re obviously talking about people at a later stage of life.
Let’s say that there’s a couple, right? They’re not a single individual; they’re a couple.
So, can both spouses be represented by you, by an estate planning attorney?
Andrew Dósa – Estate Planning Attorney – Tacoma WA and Oakland, CA
The answer—the easy answer—is yes. When I have a couple, I have them sign a conflict of waiver form.
And what that means is that if I’m representing two individuals, I have to give advice to each individual, independent of the other, about the interests that they each have.
Right?
So, the advice I would give to a husband in one situation might be different than the advice I’d give to the wife.
So if I give a conference… if I’m talking about their joint estate plan, I just take the approach that if you’re both not comfortable with me, I can’t represent one of you—or I can only represent one of you—and then the other one has to get an attorney.
And it seems to me that if they want to do a trust together, there’s not a good reason to have two attorneys.
But let’s just talk about when you might have a conflict of interest, right?
When you first get married and you really don’t have any assets except bits and pieces of stuff that you brought in your 20s when you get married, chances are you really don’t have a substantial amount of assets.
Maybe you have minimal—maybe you both just got out of college, and you’re now just beginning your work life.
But let’s switch that up. Let’s suppose that one of the spouses is a little bit older and has a child—or maybe the same age and has a child, right?
So the interest of that spouse and that spouse’s child might not be the exact same as the other spouse who doesn’t have a child.
So I just make sure that they both understand where I’m coming from, and I communicate with both of them. If I give advice to one, I’ll let the other one know what that advice is.
And I will say, using an example, my bias generally is this:
If one spouse comes in and has wealthier parents and has few financial assets, my general bias is that should remain as separate property.
Washington and California are both community property states. And that, short and sweet, means that if one spouse is working, half the salary belongs to the other spouse. It works both ways.
And a separate property asset is something you get by inheritance or you earned before the marriage.
So if one had $100,000 because both parents died when he or she was young, they have $100,000 in assets.
When they get married, that is still a separate property asset belonging only to the one spouse, and the other spouse has no claim against it.
I advise both, my bias is: you keep your own. If you choose to share it, that’s a choice you can make.
But I generally prefer that they keep the characterization the same as it is, and then decide if they want to make a change down the road.
Law Offices of Andrew Dosa – Estate Planning Attorney
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