Surviving Spouse Rights in Washington: The 2024 Basic Award
Your spouse passes away. You grieve. Then you open the will and find out they left nearly everything to someone else. Under Washington State law, that scenario does not have to leave you empty-handed.
Here is what you need to know: Washington gives surviving spouses the right to claim a minimum share of their deceased spouse's estate, even if the will tries to cut them out entirely. That right has always existed, but a 2024 law made it stronger and clearer. In a county like Snohomish, where home values are high, the amount a surviving spouse can claim today is dramatically larger than it was just a few years ago. And the process for claiming it is now better defined, which means fewer disputes and more predictable outcomes.
The Basic Award: A Floor, Not a Ceiling
Washington law recognizes that a surviving spouse deserves something from a deceased partner's estate regardless of what the will says. That protection is called the "basic award," and it is found in Chapter 11.54 of the Revised Code of Washington (RCW 11.54). The right extends not only to surviving spouses but also to surviving registered domestic partners and, in some situations, dependent children of the decedent.
Think of the basic award as a guaranteed minimum. It is the least a qualifying survivor can claim from the estate, and it exists precisely because Washington does not require spouses to leave anything to each other in a will. Without this protection, a person who spent decades in a marriage could legally be left with nothing if their partner chose to write the estate plan that way.
Three Eras of the Law: 2021 Was a Turning Point
To understand why the 2024 amendment matters, it helps to know the history.
Before 2021, the basic award under RCW 11.54.020 was calculated using the same dollar figure as Washington's homestead exemption, a separate law, RCW 6.13.030, that limits how much home equity creditors can take from you. For years that figure had been a flat $125,000, so the basic award was capped at the same amount. The number was modest but predictable.
In 2021, the legislature dramatically expanded the homestead exemption. Instead of a fixed $125,000, the protected amount became the greater of $125,000 or the county median sale price of a single-family home in the preceding calendar year. Because the basic award was calculated using the same figure, this change had an enormous ripple effect. In Snohomish County, where single-family home median prices have run in the high hundreds of thousands of dollars in recent years, the amount a surviving spouse could potentially claim suddenly rose to match those values.
That was a significant increase, and it exposed real problems. The 2021 language was ambiguous about exactly how to calculate the figure and how to handle situations where the estate could not cover the full amount. Probate attorneys across Washington began flagging inconsistencies that risked producing different outcomes in different courtrooms on identical facts.
What the 2024 Law Fixed (Effective August 1, 2024)
In response, a working group of probate attorneys and stakeholders persuaded the legislature to revisit the statute. The result was Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 5589, signed into law and effective August 1, 2024, amending Chapter 11.54 RCW in several meaningful ways.
The 2024 law clarified how the basic award amount is calculated. In plain terms, the starting point is the value of whatever property the decedent owned that was legally shielded from creditors at the time of death, including the family home up to the county median sale price. If that value is lower than $125,000, the award is at least $125,000. And beginning in 2024, that $125,000 floor rises automatically each year to keep pace with inflation. The overall effect is a clearer, more consistent framework that preserves the substantial protections introduced in 2021 while removing the ambiguities that were generating disputes.
The 2024 law also spelled out the steps a surviving spouse must take to claim the award. The survivor files a petition in court, sets out the facts supporting the claim, and identifies the relevant assets. A judge then makes the determination. Courts can adjust the amount up or down from the baseline depending on the specific circumstances of the estate, so the "basic" award is a starting point, not a fixed ceiling or floor for every case.
One important point for blended families: if the decedent had children from a prior relationship who are not also children of the surviving spouse, the court can divide the award between the surviving spouse and those children. This is a common source of complexity, and it is one of the strongest reasons to work with an attorney rather than try to navigate the process alone.
Why This Matters in Snohomish County
Estate planning decisions in Snohomish County communities like Everett, Edmonds, Marysville, and Bothell now carry higher financial stakes than they did even five years ago. A spouse who has been disinherited or nearly so stands in a meaningfully different position today than under the pre-2021 rules.
Consider a simple example. If a Snohomish County resident passes away and the county median home sale price for the preceding year was several hundred thousand dollars, that figure can set the minimum the surviving spouse is entitled to claim, assuming the estate has enough assets to cover it. That is a far cry from the $125,000 that would have applied under the old flat-rate calculation.
For anyone in a second marriage, or any marriage where one spouse's will largely favors children from a prior relationship or other beneficiaries, this law is directly relevant. It does not let the surviving spouse override every estate planning choice the decedent made, but it does ensure the survivor is not left with nothing.
The Connection to Broader Estate Planning
The basic award is just one layer of Washington's protections for surviving spouses, and it does not replace thoughtful planning. A well-drafted estate plan that accounts for both spouses' needs remains far preferable to a surviving spouse having to petition a court after the fact. These proceedings take time, carry costs, and occur during an already difficult period.
But when a plan is silent, inadequate, or deliberately hostile to a surviving spouse's interests, Chapter 11.54 RCW provides a real remedy. Knowing it exists, and knowing the updated framework that took effect in August 2024, is the first step toward protecting your interests or understanding your options.
Speak with an Attorney About Your Situation
If you have questions about your rights as a surviving spouse in Washington, or if you are engaged in estate planning and want to understand how the 2024 changes might affect your approach, the Law Office of Chad Foster is here to help. Attorney Chad Foster serves clients throughout Snohomish County in estate planning, elder law, and probate matters. Contact the firm to schedule a consultation.
Need help with a estate planning matter in King or Snohomish County? Learn about our wills, trusts, and estate planning services, or call 425.785.8679 for a consultation.