What Is TEDRA and How Does It Resolve Estate and Trust Disputes?

Your stepmother is the trustee and will not say what the trust owns. Or your brother is the personal representative, and you and he read the same paragraph of your father's will two different ways. Someone tells you to "file a TEDRA," and you have no idea what that means.

TEDRA is the Trust and Estate Dispute Resolution Act, chapter 11.96A RCW. It is the set of procedures Washington uses to resolve almost any disagreement about an estate, a trust, or property that passes at death. RCW 11.96A.010 states the purpose: to gather the rules for resolving trust and estate disputes into a single chapter, to provide nonjudicial methods such as mediation, arbitration, and agreement, and to provide for judicial resolution if those methods are unsuccessful. That gives three paths: a binding written agreement with no judge involved, mediation followed by arbitration, and a petition in superior court.

What Kinds of Disputes Does TEDRA Cover?

The reach of the statute comes from two definitions in RCW 11.96A.030. A "matter" includes any issue, question, or dispute involving who the heirs or beneficiaries are, directing a personal representative or trustee to do or not do something, and any question arising in the administration of an estate or trust. The statute lists examples: the construction of wills, trusts, and community property agreements, a change of personal representative or trustee, an accounting, and the determination of fiduciary fees. It also reaches nonprobate assets, including joint tenancy property and accounts with a pay on death or transfer on death designation.

A "party" is any person who has a legal or equitable interest in, or holds a power or claim with respect to, the subject of the matter. That includes trustees, personal representatives, heirs, trust beneficiaries, and, for community property, each spouse.

Because both definitions are broad, TEDRA is the vehicle for most of the fights families actually have, from removing a trustee to settling what an unclear will means.

Path One: A Binding Agreement Without a Judge

Under RCW 11.96A.220, if all parties agree on how to resolve a matter, they can put it in a written agreement signed by all of them, and that agreement is binding and conclusive on all persons interested in the estate or trust. The agreement must identify the subject matter of the dispute and the parties.

Filing is optional. RCW 11.96A.230 allows any party to file the agreement, or a memorandum summarizing it, with the court. Once filed, it is deemed approved by the court and is equivalent to a final court order.

A minor or unborn beneficiary cannot sign, so RCW 11.96A.120 lets certain people sign for others when there is no conflict of interest, such as a parent for a minor child who has no guardian. Where that does not fit, RCW 11.96A.250 allows the court to appoint a special representative for a party who is a minor, incapacitated, unborn, or unknown. One limit is in RCW 11.96A.220 itself: the agreement procedure does not apply to matters under the guardianship and conservatorship chapter, chapter 11.130 RCW. The procedure also generally excludes a trust created at its inception by a court judgment or decree for a minor or incapacitated person, unless that judgment or decree permits its use.

Path Two: Mediation, Then Arbitration

When the family cannot agree, any party can require the others to try. RCW 11.96A.300 lets a party trigger mediation by serving a written notice of mediation on all parties. If no court hearing has been set yet, a party who objects must file a petition with the superior court and serve it on all parties or their virtual representatives within twenty days after receiving the notice. At the hearing, the court must order mediation to proceed except for good cause shown. If a hearing is already on the calendar, the notice has to be filed and served at least three days before it.

Each party then furnishes a list of acceptable mediators within thirty days of receiving the notice, or within twenty days after the court rules that mediation applies, whichever is later. The mediation must last at least three hours unless the matter is resolved sooner. The costs of mediation, including the mediator's pay, are borne equally by the parties, and a settlement is written up as an agreement under RCW 11.96A.220.

If mediation fails, RCW 11.96A.310 allows a party to commence arbitration by written notice served no later than twenty days after the mediation concludes. The arbitrator issues a written decision within thirty days after the final arbitration hearing ends. A party who disagrees can appeal within thirty days after being served with the decision, which leads to an entirely new trial in superior court. That appeal carries a risk: the prevailing party in the new trial must be awarded costs, including attorney fees.

Under RCW 11.96A.280, once a party presents the matter for mediation and arbitration, a court decision is available only by complying with those provisions.

Path Three: A Petition in Superior Court

RCW 11.96A.090 treats a TEDRA case as a special proceeding that must be commenced as a new action, although the court can consolidate it with an existing proceeding. RCW 11.96A.100 requires a petition and a summons, and RCW 11.96A.110 requires notice to all parties at least twenty days before the hearing unless a statute or the court sets a different period. An answer must be served and filed at least five days before the hearing.

The procedure is designed for prompt resolution. Under RCW 11.96A.100, witness testimony may be given by affidavit, and unless a party asks otherwise in the petition or answer, the first hearing is a hearing on the merits to resolve all issues of fact and law. For families in Snohomish County, these petitions are usually filed in Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett.

What TEDRA Does Not Do

TEDRA does not replace the specific deadlines found elsewhere in the probate code. RCW 11.96A.080 says the chapter supplements, and does not supersede, other procedures in Title 11 RCW, and it names the will contest chapter specifically. A challenge to the validity of a will still has to be filed within the four months allowed by RCW 11.24.010, as explained in how to contest a will in Washington. RCW 11.96A.080 also says TEDRA does not apply to wrongful death actions.

RCW 11.96A.070 also requires a claim against a personal representative for breach of fiduciary duty to be brought before the personal representative is discharged.

As for cost, RCW 11.96A.150 gives the court broad discretion over costs and fees, which is covered in who pays the attorney fees in a trust or estate dispute.

A Worked Example

Suppose Karen is trustee of her late husband's trust, which benefits her for life and then his two children from his first marriage. The children, Josh and Emily, believe Karen is paying herself too much. Josh serves a notice of mediation under RCW 11.96A.300. Karen does not object within twenty days, and the three go to mediation. They agree that Karen will provide annual statements and that a bank will serve as co-trustee. The terms go into a written agreement under RCW 11.96A.220, a memorandum is filed under RCW 11.96A.230, and the dispute ends without a trial.

Choose the Path Before You Start

Which TEDRA path fits depends on who the parties are, whether they are still speaking, and what deadlines are already running. The Law Office of Chad Foster represents beneficiaries, trustees, and personal representatives in these matters. Call 425.785.8679 to talk with a Snohomish County probate attorney about a trust or estate dispute.