Free Estate Planning for Police-Fire-EMTs
Posted Friday, September 18, 2015 by John S. Palmer
It looks like the First Responder Will Clinic is becoming active again. It has a new website and has scheduled a clinic in Seattle for October 10, 2015.
The clinic provides basic estate planning documents— wills, powers of attorney, and healthcare directives— for free to Washington police officers, firefighters, EMTs and other first responders (and their spouses or registered domestic partners).
Only Washington residents are eligible to participate, and there is an asset limit of $750,000 for single individuals and $1.5 million for couples. However, the program broadly defines “first responder” to include both current and retired members of the LEOFF 1, LEOFF 2, WSPRS 1, and WSPRS 2 retirement systems, as well as the surviving spouses and domestic partners of deceased members. It also includes current and retired reserve police officers and volunteer firefighters and their spouses or domestic partners.
Because the number of clients who can be served at each clinic is limited, preregistration is required; see the website for details. On the day of the clinic, participants must fill out a questionnaire designed to provide the volunteer attorneys with the information they need to help draft the documents, such as the names of proposed beneficiaries and information about the value of real estate, financial accounts and other assets. Each client has the opportunity to leave the clinic with a fully executed estate plan in place.
The First Responder Will Clinic is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization; contributions are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. Attorneys, paralegals, notaries, and persons willing to act as witnesses or help with registration are encouraged to volunteer.
If you have any questions or would like to schedule an appointment, please call us at (425) 455-5513, toll free at (877) 455-5513, or info@palmerlegal.com.