EliAt Elise Buie Family Law, our Kent will and trust attorneys help King County families build thoughtful, personalized estate plans that protect the people they love most with the clarity, care, and white-glove service every family deserves.

Key Takeaways:

• A well-crafted estate plan goes beyond simply distributing your assets to protect your children, honor your values, and give your family clear direction during life’s most difficult moments so they can focus on each other instead of navigating court proceedings.

• Wills and trusts serve distinct but complementary purposes, and most Kent families benefit from having both; together they create layered protection that a single document simply cannot provide on its own.

• Our team brings over 50 years of combined experience to every estate planning engagement, paired with the kind of genuine, compassionate service that makes a complex process feel approachable and manageable.

The Protection Your Family Needs Doesn’t Wait for a Convenient Moment

Life in Kent moves fast. Between careers, kids, and everything pulling at your attention on any given day, estate planning is easy to defer. It feels distant. Abstract. Something you will get to eventually.

The families who plan ahead give their loved ones something that cannot be recreated after the fact: clarity when it matters most. And the families who wait often leave behind confusion, conflict, and burdens that fall on grieving people who are already struggling.

If something happened to you tomorrow, would your family know exactly what to do? Would they have access to your accounts without months of court proceedings? If you have young children, would they be cared for by the people you would choose or would a judge who has never met your family make that call based on state guidelines?

At Elise Buie Family Law, our Kent will and trust attorneys help you answer these questions before they become emergencies. We create practical, deeply personalized plans built around your family rather than a generic template, so that the people who depend on you today are protected no matter what tomorrow brings.

Contact us today to schedule your consultation and take the first step.

Wills and Trusts: Understanding How They Work Together

One of the most common misconceptions about estate planning is that a will is enough. For most Kent families, it isn’t, and understanding why changes the way you approach the entire process.

• A will is the foundation. It establishes who inherits your assets, and for parents, it does something even more critical: it names the guardians who will raise your children if you are no longer able to. Without a will, Washington State law makes that determination for you. A judge who has never met your family, your children, or the people you trust most will make one of the most consequential decisions of your children’s lives. That alone makes having a will non-negotiable.

• A trust builds on that foundation in ways a will cannot. A living trust allows your family to bypass probate entirely—no waiting months for court approval, no legal fees eating into what you intended to leave behind, and no public record of your assets and beneficiaries for anyone to access. When your family is grieving, the last thing they need is a drawn-out legal process standing between them and the resources they need.

Trusts also provide flexibility that matters in real life. Blended families can protect children from previous relationships. Parents of children with special needs can provide for their care without jeopardizing access to government benefits. Business owners can protect both their company’s and their family’s financial stability with structures designed for continuity. 

Our Kent will and trust attorneys help you determine the right combination of documents for your specific circumstances, because your family is not like every other family, and your plan should not be either.

What Kent Families Often Overlook

Modern life has created new planning challenges that traditional estate planning frameworks do not always address.

Your digital life has real value. Financial accounts, investment portfolios, cloud storage, and online assets all require deliberate planning to ensure your family can access them. Without clear documentation and secure systems in place, significant value—financial and sentimental—can simply disappear.

Family structure matters more than ever. Blended families, unmarried partners, and non-traditional households all require customized solutions that standard templates were never designed to handle. Our team creates plans that reflect your actual family, not outdated assumptions about what families are supposed to look like.

And estate planning is never truly finished. As your family grows, as laws change, and as your circumstances evolve, your plan needs to evolve with them. Our Kent will and trust attorneys build lasting relationships with clients, providing ongoing guidance so your plan stays current and your family stays protected.

Our Kent Will and Trust Attorneys’ Approach: White-Glove Service, Genuine Care

Estate planning requires you to think about things no one wants to think about. We understand that, and we approach every engagement accordingly.

From your first conversation through document signing and beyond, our team takes time to understand your family, your values, and your goals before recommending a single document or strategy. Our devoted hospitality coordinator ensures every detail is handled with care and that you always know exactly where things stand. We respect your time, answer your questions directly, and make sure you feel genuinely supported throughout the process—not rushed, not overwhelmed, and never treated like just another case file.

Over 50 years of combined experience means we have guided Kent and King County families through every kind of estate planning situation imaginable. What has not changed across all of those years is our belief that this work is personal and that the families who trust us with it deserve our very best.

Give Your Family the Gift of Certainty

The plan you put in place today is one of the most meaningful things you will ever do for the people you love. It removes the burden of impossible decisions from grieving family members. It protects your children. It honors your wishes. And it gives everyone who depends on you the clarity they need to move forward.

Do not let another day pass without taking this step. Contact our Kent will and trust attorneys today to schedule your consultation and discover what thoughtful, personalized planning can do for your family’s future.

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