Venable Law Group PLLC
Kitsap County · Washington
Straightforward writing about how Washington law actually works — what the statutes do when you have not made a plan, and what your options are when you have. Written for people making decisions, not for other lawyers.
Mediation is the most common way Washington divorces settle and the least understood. It is not a hearing, the mediator is not a judge, and nobody in that building is deciding anything for you. Here is how the day really works — and the one structural difference between mediation and collaborative practice that almost nobody explains.
Most people assume divorce means court, because court is the only version they have ever seen. Washington has a second process — one where the two of you make the decisions, the professionals work for both of you, and what you say stays out of the public file.
One page can move everything you own to your spouse without probate. For a lot of Washington couples that is exactly right. For others it quietly dismantles the plan they thought they had.
Washington law revokes an ex-spouse's beneficiary designation automatically. For your 401(k), federal law says otherwise — and the Supreme Court case that settled it started right here in Washington.
Washington writes a plan for everyone who does not write their own. This is what that plan says — and the five places it surprises people most.
In preparation
Publication dates are not fixed. If one of these would be useful to you now, ask us — we are happy to walk through it directly.
Tell us a little about your situation and we will get back to you. Submitting an inquiry does not create an attorney-client relationship — we confirm that no conflict of interest exists first.
