An audience member at one of our estate planning talks asked a good question: “If I die and a guardian is appointed for my child, what happens if that guardian dies a couple years later?”
In Washington, when the court approves a guardian for a child, that guardian has 90 days to appoint a successor guardian. That successor guardian would take over for the original guardian, if he or she were no longer able to care for your child. For this reason, it’s important that 1) you choose more than one potential guardian for your children, and; 2) your named guardians know who is next in line to serve as a potential successor.
Colin Ley is a Seattle estate planning attorney. He is also the co-founder of LayRoots along with his wife, Shreya.
