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<p class="MsoNormal">Howdy (RP)PT Hivemind:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I have an interesting situation:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We drafted a will for decedent earlier this year. Decedent’s daughters were both closely involved in the drafting. Decedent died a month or so ago. Our off-site storage company could not find the original will we sent to them for safekeeping,
so we drafted a declaration regarding the “lost” original (with a copy attached) and provided it to the daughters so that they could use that in an effort to initiate probate proceedings with their new attorney.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The storage facility finally found the will, so we now have the original. We told daughters (there was some controversy between the two daughters at the time of execution about the provisions of the will) that we would file the original
as a will only filing with the Court, unless their attorney had already opened a case number. The attorney responded with a case number, and to our surprise, the docket reflects that they used a prior will (with different provisions) to open the estate, and
did not file our declaration re: the lost will. Both daughters verified in the petition that an earlier will was their father’s last will and testament.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The (King County) clerk has told us that we must file the found will under as a will only filing under a new case number.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Questions:<o:p></o:p></p>
<ol style="margin-top:0in" start="1" type="1">
<li class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left:0in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1">Wouldn’t it make way more sense for the found original to be filed under the existing case no?
<o:p></o:p></li><li class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left:0in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1">How would you bring that will to the Court’s attention, regardless of whether its filed under the existing case number or a new one?<o:p></o:p></li><li class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left:0in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1">What of the strangeness that the daughters knew of a new will but probated the old one? Do we bring that to the Court’s attention?<o:p></o:p></li></ol>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In my 13 years of practice, I’ve never dealt with a situation like this, and thought that some of y’all could provide some valuable insight.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Thanks,<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">James<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white">James W. Spencer<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Attorney at Law<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Brothers & Henderson, P.S.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white">2722 Eastlake Avenue East, Suite 200<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white">Seattle, Washington 98102<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white">Phone: (206) 324-4300 x106<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white">Fax: (206) 324-3106<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:black">e-mail: </span>
<a href="mailto:jamess@brothershenderson.com"><span style="color:blue">jamess@brothershenderson.com</span></a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><a href="http://www.brothershenderson.com/"><span style="color:blue">www.brothershenderson.com</span></a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><img border="0" width="196" height="56" style="width:2.0416in;height:.5833in" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image003.jpg@01D492C4.707B6F90" alt="cid:image001.jpg@01D33AF1.1F3913C0"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">The information transmitted in this e-mail message and attachments is attorney-client information, is privileged or confidential material and is intended only for the use of the individual or entity named above.
You are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution, review by or taking of any action in reliance on the contents of this e-mail information by unauthorized persons is strictly prohibited. All personal messages are solely the views of the sender
and are not to be attributed to Brothers & Henderson, P.S. If you have received this transmission in error, immediately notify the sender by reply e-mail and permanently delete this transmission and all copies including attachments.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
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