We have been writing these Estate Tax Newsletters since the Fall of 1988, and hope they have been some help to you. In our Spring 1991 Newsletter ("Should You Have a Living Trust?"), we discussed the pros and cons of Living Trusts and concluded their benefits were often overstated. Yes, Living Trusts avoid probate, but for most of our clients, probate is not such an onerous process. And yes, a Living Trust can provide for continued management of one's affairs in the event of disability, but a Durable Power of Attorney is often a simpler way of doing this.

Our opinion of Living Trusts has been enhanced by recent experience. Please note the following:

1. A Living Trust may be the right tool if you own property in another State. Probate in California, for example, is very expensive.

2. The process of putting assets into the name of the Living Trust (an important but sometimes-overlooked step) can be very useful in forcing you to take an inventory of your assets, and clear up problems with titles. We sometimes run into difficulty with real estate titles in an estate, for instance, which could have been avoided if addressed during lifetime.

3. Some of our clients have had trouble using Durable Powers of Attorney, the "simpler" alternative to the Living Trust for continued management of one's affairs. Some of the national brokerage firms are reluctant to accept a Durable Power of Attorney done properly under Washington law, particularly if it is more than a year or two old.

4. For those with religious or philosophical notions of "stewardship," holding one's assets in trust may seem consistent with the idea each of our estates is neither everlasting, nor solely for our own benefit. let us know if you want to talk further about Living Trusts, or any other aspect of your estate planning. We wish you good health and happiness in the coming new century.