Revocable Trust for Individual with Partner
(Trust for Partner) (WA)

Summary

This template is a revocable trust for use in Washington by an unmarried individual with a life partner (including a same-sex couple) that includes a trust for the surviving partner and the individual's issue. This template includes practical guidance, drafting notes, and alternate and optional clauses. This template provides for the residuary estate to pass to a trust for the benefit of the surviving partner or, if the trustor's partner does not survive the trustor, the trust assets pass into separate share trusts for the benefit of surviving issue who have not yet reached age 30, and outright to surviving issue who are over age 30. A revocable trust (also known as a "living trust" or "inter vivos trust") is typically used as a will substitute to avoid probate. The revocable trust also includes elements of disability planning as assets can be managed by the successor trustee without an adjudication of incapacity. However, because the trustor retains power over the trust assets, revocable trusts do not provide asset protection or estate tax savings. In addition to the creation of the trust, the trustor will need to fund the trust with all of their individually owned assets in order avoid probate. To assist your client with funding, once they give you a completed questionnaire, you should provide a checklist and/or letter to help them understand the additional action required to coordinate the estate plan beyond executing the documents. This includes, for example, recording new deeds for real property, updating beneficiary designations with investment, retirement, checking, and savings accounts, and more. Drafting and funding a revocable trust is a multi-step process, as summarized in the image below: Visualization of Revocable Trust Drafting and Funding Flowchart For a letter to a client regarding the importance of funding a revocable trust, see Letter to Client (Funding of Revocable Trust) (WA). To ensure that all of the trustor's assets are properly transferred to the intended beneficiaries, a revocable trust should be used together and coordinated with a pour over will (see Will for Individual with Spouse or Partner (Pour Over to Inter Vivos Trust) (WA).