When you die, what will happen to your pet? Hopefully you’ve picked out someone to take care of your pet, but how do you know that that person will actually care for your pet the way you want? Another thing to consider is that caring for a pet can be expensive. You’ll likely want to set aside money to pay for your pet’s food, vet bills, etc., but how can you be sure that the money gets spent on your pet, and not on other things? One way to ensure that your pet is cared for is to establish a trust in your will for your pet. Normally, the beneficiary of a trust can only be a person, but Washington law specifically allows a trust to be created for a pet.
When you establish a pet trust, you can specify how the trust’s assets are to be used to pay for your pet’s care.
A trust is simply a mechanism to hold assets that are to be spent for the benefit of the trust’s “beneficiary” (in this case, your pet). In your will, you give the assets to a “trustee” (the person or firm that manages the trust), who spends those assets for your pet’s care.
When you establish a pet trust, you can specify how the trust’s assets are to be used to pay for your pet’s care. You also name the trustee and the trustee’s successors. You can also designate the person who is to care for your pet (your pet’s “guardian”), and the guardian’s successors.
In spite of your careful planning, what if your trustee doesn’t follow the terms of the trust? The statues give the courts authority to enforce the terms of the trust and to remove and replace the trustee.
In a normal trust, the trust beneficiary (who is a person) can ask the court to take these types of actions, but a pet has no legal rights. So, who asks the court to enforce the trust? The Washington statutes that authorize pet trusts set out a list of people who have that power: a person you name in the trust; your pet’s guardian; and a person with “an interest in the welfare” of your pet. A court can also name a person to enforce the terms of the trust.
When you set up your pet’s trust, you may find that you don’t know anyone who is willing to act as your pet’s guardian, or you may have trouble finding someone to act as the guardian’s successor. If that’s the case, you might want to consider contacting either the Seattle Humane Society or PAWS. Both organizations have programs that can take immediate custody of your pet when you die and will find an appropriate home for them.
You can learn more about these programs at the organizations’ websites:
Seattle Humane Society Pet Guardian Program
PAWS Lifetime Care Program
Stephen King
The Eastside's Estate Planning Attorney
Talis Law PLLC is a small Estate Planning firm on the Eastside. We work with people to help them understand what goes on during the estate planning and the probate process. Our firm offers flat fee services so clients feel comfortable asking the questions they need to understand what their documents mean, and what the process does.
Disclosure: While I am a lawyer, I am not offering legal advice. Posts on legal matters are intended to provide legal information and do not create an attorney/client relationship.