Wendy S. Goffe

BAR ADMISSIONS

Washington, 1992

Wendy's practice focuses on estate planning, estate and gift taxation, probate and trust administration, charitable giving and non-profit trusts and corporations; and family-owned business succession planning.

Wendy speaks regularly on a number of issues related to her practice.  Recently, she has given a number of presentations on the legal implications of changing laws regarding same gender partnerships.  Specifically, Wendy was involved in the drafting of the Washington State Domestic Partnership Bill.

Wendy is also an expert on the legal nuances related to charitable giving.  She has given presentations on the implications of charitable giving to the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle, PRIDE Foundation, and Washington Women in Tax amongst others.

Wendy has been involved with a number of charitable organizations, including the Acquisition Committee of the Tacoma Art Museum, Northwest Hospital Ethics Committee, and the Professional Advisory Boards of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Northwest Giving Project, and the Woodland Park Zoo.

PRESENTATIONS AND PUBLICATIONS

Wendy is a frequent speaker and presenter on estate planning related topics.  Following is a selection of her most recent publications and presentations.  A complete list is available upon request.

Quoted in Deborah L. Jacobs, Estate Planning as a Family Conversation, The New York Times (March 4, 2010).

Quoted in Dukeminier, Jesse, Robert H. Sitkoff & James Lindgren, Wills, Trusts, and Estates (Aspen Publishers 8th ed. 2009).

Quoted in Deborah L. Jacobs, Wherever You Go, the Taxman Goes, The New York Times (April 2, 2009). 

Co-Author with Joan M. Burda, Patricia A. Cain & Tamara E. Kolz, Estate, Tax, and Benefits Planning for Unmarried Couples, American Bar Association (2009).

Speaker, Marriage, Domestic Partnerships, and Meretricious Relationships:  Washington's Developing Landscape, WSBA 53rd Annual Estate Planning Seminar, Seattle, Washington (November 4, 2008). 

Quoted in Jane Bennett Clark's, Blended Family Finances, Kiplinger's Personal Finance (August 2008).

Panelist, Washington State Bar Association Board of Governors Forum on Marriage, Domestic Partnerships, and Meretricious Relationships:  Washington's Developing Landscape (April 25, 2008).

Quoted in Ashlea Ebeling's, The Second Match:  Should you remarry or just shack up? Forbes (November 12, 2007).

Author, Preparing Effective Cohabitation Agreements for Unmarried Couples, 34 Estate Planning 7 (September 2007).

Author, Joint Ownership and Use: Keeping the Cabin in the Family, 41st Annual Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning, Chapter 18 (LexisNexis Matthew Bender 2007).

Quoted in Détente at the Cottage, Strategies for Keeping a Co-Owned Vacation Home from Tearing the Family Apart, BusinessWeek (June 11, 2007).

Speaker, From NASCAR Condominiums to Private Mausoleums: Keeping the Vacation Home in the Family, 41st Annual Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning (January 12, 2007).

Chair and Panelist, Death, Dirt & Duties: Estate Planning for Real Estate Transfers, 41st Annual Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning (January 11, 2007).

Speaker, Cohabitation Agreements, 51st Annual Estate Planning Seminar (November 7, 2006).

Co-Author with J. William Zook, Jr., Estate and Charitable Gift Planning for Unmarried Couples, The Journal of Gift Planning 5, Vol 10, No 2 (2nd Quarter, 2006).

Speaker, Estate Planning for the Nontraditional Family, Professional Advisors Roundtable, Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle, Seattle, Washington (September 27, 2005).

Quoted in Albert B. Crenshaw's Divide the Cabin and Plan for War, Washington Post (September 25, 2005).

Speaker, Allocation of Taxes and Expenses in the Estate, Washington State Bar Association. (July 21, 2005).

Speaker, Planning for Alternative Lifestyles, 41st Annual Advanced ALI-ABA Summer Program, University of Wisconsin, Madison (June 24, 2005).

Co-Presenter, GLBT Estate Planning for the Charitably Inclined, PRIDE Foundation (June 13, 2006).

Speaker, Same-Sex Marriage and the Defense of Marriage Act, American College of Trust and Estate Council (May 14, 2005).

Speaker, Estate Planning for the Unmarried Adult/Non-Traditional Family and Panelist, How to Motivate Clients to Take Action, Children's Hospital Foundation Continuing Education Seminar, Charitable Planning for Same Sex Couples (May 5, 2006).

Author, Estate Planning for the Nontraditional Family, 31 ACTEC Journal 177 (2005).

Author, Advisors and Planned Giving Officers:  Serving Together in Philanthropy, 12 Planned Giving Today 2 (December, 2004).

Speaker, Estate Planning for the Unmarried Adult/Non-Traditional Family, 49th Annual Estate Planning Seminar (November 16, 2004).

Speaker, Trust Agreements in Divorce Settlements, Relationship Agreements Seminar (October 8, 2004).

Speaker, An Ideal Partnership Between Charities and Professional Advisors, Advances at Children's Fifth Annual Luncheon (October 4, 2004).

Author, Estate Planning With Trusts for Divorcing Spouses, 38 ABA Family Law Quarterly 157 (Spring 2004).

Author, Estate Planning for Blended Families:  Yours, Mine and Ours, 24 Wisconsin Journal of Family Law 41 (April, 2004).

Author, Twenty-First Century Philanthropy: Creating a Virtual Endowment, Charitable Gift Planning News (May 2002).

PROFESSIONAL & COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES

Executive Committee Member, Estate Planning Council of Seattle
Fellow, The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel
Estate and Gift Tax Committee Member, Washington State Bar Association, Taxation Section
Adjunct Faculty Member, Seattle University Law School
Member, The Seattle Foundation Professional Advisory Council 
Member, Washington Women in Tax
Member, Children's Legacy Council of Children's Hospital Foundation
Former Board Member, Executive Committee Member and Chair, Planned Giving Committee, National Multiple Sclerosis Society Greater Washington Chapter
Former Board Member, Women's Endowment Fund
Former Member, Tacoma Art Museum Acquisition Committee
Former Member, Northwest Giving Project Professional Advisory Committee
Former Member, Woodland Park Zoo Professional Advisory Committee
Former Member, Northwest Hospital Ethics Committee
Former Editorial Board Member, Washington State Bar Association Newsletter
Former Executive Committee Member, Washington State Bar Association, Real Property, Probate and Trust Section

RECOGNITION

Best Lawyers, "Best Lawyers in America," 2009
Washington CEO, "League of Justice," 2006
Washington Law & Politics, "Super Lawyer," 2001 - 2010
Washington Law & Politics, "Rising Star," 2000 - 2001

EDUCATION

J.D., University of Washington School of Law, 1992
B.A., cum laude, University of Washington, 1986