Washington state recently enacted some changes that may impact married couples and registered domestic partners. Under the new Spousal Personal Residence Exclusion, when a spouse/partner passes away on or after January 1, 2025,…
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/ Real Estate - Residential, Taxation
Residential construction contracts will often contain technical terms or jargon that leave many homeowners with uncertainty. Homeowners should be cautious of implicitly agreeing to language they do not understand when entering a…
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/ Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), Construction Law, Real Estate - Residential
If your business has taken a hit because of tariffs or market volatility, the law may offer a path to modify your spousal support obligations—but it’s not automatic. A client runs a successful U.S.-based fashion brand that…
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/ Business Organizations, Family Law, International Law & Trade
In Washington, sellers of commercial property are required to complete and timely provide a buyer with a seller disclosure statement (commonly known as the Form 17 Comm) containing specific information about the property…
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/ Commercial Law & Contracts, Environmental Law, Real Estate - Commercial
Springtime is a great time to review your current estate plan or consider creating one. This year brings a number of opportunities for creating an estate plan, pursuing gifting strategies, and considering philanthropic goals. …
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/ Taxation, Wills, Trusts, & Estate Planning
The job of parenting can be consuming with the drive to protect children in all circumstances, including the unthinkable. However, the topic of estate planning for children still looms large on the mind of most parents. Estate…
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/ Health, Privacy
Per the U.S. Treasury Department announcement below, FinCEN is now dead except for some limited foreign entity reporting. Despite the many turbulent things happening in the U.S. government right now, this still came out of left…
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/ Administrative Law, Elections & Politics, Finance & Banking
The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction is an international treaty that established a uniform set of laws for countries with respect to child abduction. Countries that are signors to the…
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/ Civil Procedure, Family Law, International Law & Trade
In today’s complex litigation landscape, many individuals and businesses are turning to alternative methods to resolve disputes as a way to avoid the time, expense, and unpredictability of traditional lawsuit. Pre-litigation…
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/ Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), Civil Procedure, Commercial Law & Contracts
If you find yourself involved in civil litigation of any kind, the case will take up a significant part of your life. While your attorney will take on the heavy lifting, he or she will require your help to gather the facts and…
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/ Civil Procedure, Electronic Discovery
Recently, the Washington Supreme Court held that noncompete agreements for employees earning less than twice the minimum wage must be reasonable and narrowly construed. The court found that prohibiting employees from providing…
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/ Antitrust & Trade Regulation, Commercial Law & Contracts, Labor & Employment Law
If you and your spouse are undergoing a divorce with children, there’s a good chance you are thinking about what kind of custody arrangement you will end up with. In Washington, we refer to these as “Residential Provisions” or…
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/ Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), Civil Procedure, Family Law
Liens provide a means of recourse for contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers who have not been paid. In Washington, there are specific disclosure requirements that must be met before a licensed and registered contractor is…
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/ Commercial Law & Contracts, Construction Law, Real Estate - Residential
Divorce is often an emotionally charged and challenging experience. Beyond the personal heartbreak that may be involved, the legal and financial aspects can feel overwhelming. One of the most difficult tasks in the divorce…
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/ Family Law
Many savvy estate plans include the use of an irrevocable trust that was established many years ago. However, the very nature of an irrevocable trust means that once the trust agreement is finalized, the terms of that trust…
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/ Taxation, Wills, Trusts, & Estate Planning
