What Happens If a Washington Probate Estate Goes “Unclaimed”?

Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson recently announced the state recovered over $5.2 million in unclaimed property in the form of uncashed checks issued by MoneyGram. Under Washington law, such unclaimed property is turned over to the state’s Department of Revenue, which maintains a registry that anyone can freely search. If you have unclaimed property on the registry, you can file a claim and recover it.

Absentee Distributees and Escheated Estates in Washington

Unclaimed property is something that also comes up sometimes in the process of probate administration. Consider a scenario where a person dies and leaves a will naming a beneficiary to inherit their property–but the beneficiary cannot be located. How does Washington law address this situation?

The legal term for such a beneficiary is an absentee distributee. If the personal representative (executor) of a Washington estate cannot locate an absentee distributee, they must inform the court overseeing the probate. The court will then appoint an agent to represent the absentee distributee.

The agent can hold the absentee beneficiary’s inheritance from the estate for up to 3 years. If the beneficiary does not appear within that time to claim the estate, the court will order any non-cash assets (such as real estate) sold. The cash representing the estate is then deposited with the treasurer in the county where the estate was administered, which is typically where the deceased individual died.

The county treasurer will then hold onto the unclaimed inheritance for up to 4 years and 90 days. If it still remains unclaimed, the county will turn the funds over to the Washington Department of Revenue. At that point, the funds are essentially escheated (forfeited) to the state treasury.

One other thing to note here: If the beneficiary of a will dies before the person who made the will, in most cases any gift made will lapse. If your will does not provide for such a contingency, then whatever you left them will pass as part of your remainder or “residuary” estate.

Contact a Spokane Estate Planning Lawyer Today

Another possible, but rare, scenario that may occur is where a person dies without leaving a will or any apparent heirs to inherit their probate estate under Washington law. If this occurs, the entire estate may be escheated to the Washington Department of Revenue. Keep in mind, a person’s legal heirs may include any living descendants of their grandparents. So, if you die without a will, as long as you have at least one cousin still living with a common grandparent, your estate will not be turned over to the State of Washington.

Of course, the easiest way to avoid this worst-case scenario is to create a valid will and other necessary estate planning documents. Our Spokane estate planning attorneys will be happy to advise and assist you in this area. Contact Moulton Law Offices, P.S., today to schedule a free consultation. We serve clients throughout the Spokane, Kennewick, and Yakima area.

Sources:

atg.wa.gov/news/news-releases/ag-ferguson-s-lawsuit-returns-more-52-million-uncashed-checks-washingtonians

dor.wa.gov/taxes-rates/other-taxes/escheat