Honors & Activities

Professional Honors and Activities

Included in The Best Lawyers in America^® (currently: Trusts and Estates), 2007–2023
Listed in Washington Super Lawyers^® (Estate Planning & Probate, Nonprofit Organizations), 2003–2022
Listed in Washington Super Lawyers^® in Top 50 Women Lawyers, 2006–2019, 2021–2022
Listed in Washington Super Lawyers^® in Top 100 Lawyers, 2008–2014, 2018, 2021–2022
Listed in Chambers High Net Worth Guide (Private Wealth Law—Washington), 2016–2022
Professional Advisor on Estate Planning Law to the American Law Institute Continuing Legal Education (ALI CLE)
Member, National Association of Estate Planners & Councils’ Estate Planning Hall of Fame^®; recipient, NAEPC Accredited Estate Planner^® (Distinguished) designation
Fellow, The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC); Chair, Family Law Task Force; Member, Digital Property Committee; Member, Fiduciary Administration Task Force
ACTEC Liaison to the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers
Member, Nonprofit Corporations Committee, Washington State Bar Association
Member, Estate and Gift Tax Committee, Taxation Section, Washington State Bar Association
Member, Washington Women in Tax
Adjunct Faculty Member, Seattle University Law School, 2002–2008
Former member, ABA Taxation Section, Community Property Comment Project
Former member, Executive Committee, Estate Planning Council of Seattle
Former member, Executive Committee, Real Property, Probate and Trust Section, Washington State Bar Association
Former member, Editorial Board, Washington State Bar Association, Real Property Probate and Trust Newsletter
“League of Justice,” Washington CEO, 2006

Civic Activities

Member, Planned Giving Advisory Counsel, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
Member, Professional Advisory Council, The Seattle Foundation
Member, African Parks Advisory Council
Member, Children’s Legacy Council, Children’s Hospital Foundation
Coach, Girls on the Run of Puget Sound
Former member, Planned Giving Committee, The Nature Conservancy
Former member, Planned Giving Committee, YWCA
Former member, Board of Directors; Chair, Executive Committee; Member, Planned Giving Committee, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Greater Washington Chapter
Former member, Board of Directors; Co-chair, Grants Committee, Jewish Women’s Endowment Fund
Former member, Jewish Federation Professional Advisory Committee
Former member, Acquisition Committee, Tacoma Art Museum
Former member, Professional Advisory Committee, Northwest Giving Project
Former member, Advisory Committee, Woodland Park Zoo
Former member, Ethics Committee, Northwest Hospital

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Insights & Presentations

View Wendy Goffe’s Social Science Research Network (SSRN) publications at http://ssrn.com/author=471238
“When Estate Planning and Marital Agreements Collide (Part 1)” (co-author), 68 No. 5 Prac. Law. 26, October 2022
“Making Gifts this Year and Next,” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, October 2022
“Planning for College Kids and Young Adults,” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, July 2022
“Agreements by Estate Planning and Family Law Lawyers,” Trust and Estate Talk podcast, ACTEC Foundation, April 2022
“Estate Planning for the Modern Evolving Family” (co-author), Estate Planning Course Materials Journal, ALI CLE, January 2022
“Gift Planning in 2022,” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, January 2022
“Trusts for Beneficiaries with Addiction and Mental Illness Issues (with Sample Provisions)” (co-author), The Practical Lawyer, ALI CLE, October 2021
“Planning for Transgender Clients and Family Members (with Forms),” Estate Planning Course Materials Journal, ALI CLE, October 2021
“Gifts to Irrevocable Trusts Under Proposed Tax Legislation,” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, September 2021
“Proposed Legislation to Change Estate and Gift Tax Planning,” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, September 2021
“Drafting Trusts for Beneficiaries with Addiction Issues” (co-author), WSBA Real Property, Probate & Trust Section Newsletter, Spring 2021
“Opinion: Is now the time to make a large gift?” Puget Sound Business Journal, March 2021
“Post-Inauguration Estate Planning: Should Large Gifts Be Made Now?” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, January 2021
“After Passage of Prop 19, Consider Transferring California Real Property to Avoid Property Tax Reassessment,” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, November 2020
“Drafting Trusts for Beneficiaries with Addiction Issues,” Steve Leimberg’s Estate Planning Email Newsletter, November 2020
“Gift-Giving and Other Planning Under the New Political Landscape,” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, November 2020
“Using Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts to Lock in High Estate Tax Exemption Amounts,” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, August 2020
“Four Weeks to Undo Your RMD,” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, August 2020
“College Kids and Young Adults—What Planning Documents Do They Need?” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, August 2020
“Is Now the Time to Use Your Lifetime Exemption?” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, June 2020
“Planning for Your Estate in a Time of Social Distancing,” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, May 2020
“Low Interest Rates Create Planning Opportunities,” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, April 2020
“Estate Planning and Income Tax Updates You Need to Know,” Stoel Rives LLP legal alert, March 2020
“Planning for the Unmarried Couple,” Chapter 17, WSBA Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Administration Deskbook, March 2020
“Do I Really Have to Have it Appraised?” 44 Tax Management Estates, Gifts, and Trusts Journal 1, July 2019
“INSIGHT: When Cannabis and Estate Planning Intersect: Make Sure Your Client’s Plan Doesn’t Go Up in Smoke,” Daily Tax Report^®, Bloomberg Tax, March 2019
The Tools & Techniques of Estate Planning for Modern Families, Third Edition (co-executive editor and contributing author), National Underwriter Company, January 2019
“Planning For Unique And Regulated Assets: Wine And Planes (With Form),” 25 Est. Plan. Course Mat’l J. 3, 2019
“Clients and Cannabis: Do Not Let an Estate Plan Go Up In Smoke,” 45 Estate Planning Journal 21, May 2018
“Alcohol, Guns and Cannabis: Planning With Regulated Assets,” Estate Planning Council of Portland, Portland, OR, May 2018
“Planning for Cannabis and Other Regulated Assets: Don’t Let Your Client’s Estate Go Up In Smoke,” Southwest Washington Estate Planning Council, Vancouver, WA, April 2018
“Planning for Unmarried Couples,” ALI-CLE Estate Planning in Depth, Madison, WI, June 2017
“Planning for Unique, Illiquid, Illegal and Unusual Assets: Good Grief, Grandma’s Got a Gun Collection! (Part 2),” 32 ALI-ABA Estate Planning Course Materials Journal, October 2016
“Planning for Cabins to Cannabis—Identifying the Issues and Creative Solutions,” Alaska Chapter, American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, September 2016
“Planning for Unique, Illiquid, Illegal and Unusual Assets: Good Grief, Grandma’s Got a Gun Collection! (Part 1),” 32 ALI-ABA Estate Planning Course Materials Journal, August 2016
Panelist, “Practical Planning for Truly Unique Assets: From Snowflakes to Marijuana,” 2016 RPTE Spring Symposia, Boston, MA, May 2016
“Estate Planning for Unmarried and Non-Traditional Families,” Northern Trust Master Series, Santa Barbara, CA, March 2016
Quoted in “Keeping a Vacation Home in Your Family,” AARP Magazine, March 2016
“Regulated Assets: What Do You Do When You Find Out Grandma Had a Gun Collection, Wine, Planes and Marijuana,” North Central Washington Estate Planning Council, Wenatchee, WA, December 2015
Panelist, Wrap Up Panel, 60th Annual Estate Planning Seminar, Seattle, WA, November 2015
“Do I Have to Get Artwork Appraised? Art as an Asset Class,” 60th Annual Estate Planning Seminar, Seattle, WA, November 2015
Panelist, “Planning for Regulated and Illegal Assets,” ACTEC Fall Meeting, Monterey, CA, October 2015
“Administering Unusual Assets with Purpose Trusts: What To Do When You Find Out Grandma Had a Gun Collection,” San Francisco Estate Planning Council, San Francisco, CA, May 2015
“Nascar Condominiums to Private Mausoleums: Planning for Family Cabins and Vacation Homes,” Denver Estate Planning Council, Denver, CO, May 2015
“When Cannabis and Estate Planning Intersect, Make Sure Your Client’s Plan Doesn’t Go Up in Smoke” (co-author), LISI Estate Planning Newsletter, October 2015
Quoted in “What Every Investor Needs to Know About Basis,” Morningstar.com, March 2015
“Estate Planning for Premarital, Cohabitation, Tax and Estate Planning Matters,” Portland Estate Planning Council Annual Seminar, Portland, OR, January 2015
“Gift Planning for Same-Sex Couples,” Partnership for Philanthropic Planning, Anaheim, CA, October 2014
“Estate Planning for Non-Traditional Families,” Advanced Wealth Management Conference, San Diego, CA, October. 2014
“Planning for Same-Sex Couples,” Skills Training for Estate Planners, ABA Section of Real Property, Trust & Estate Law, New York, NY, July 2014
“Planning for Same-Sex Couples,” 50th Annual ALI-ABA Estate Planning in Depth, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, June 2014
“The Fall of DOMA: Now What, After Windsor and Referendum 74?” WSBA Real Property Probate and Trust Mid-Year, Tulalip, WA, June 2014
“Community Property Interests,” Estate Planning Essentials for Medium-Sized Estates: Practical Strategies for Estate, Gift and Tax Planning, Philadelphia, PA, March 2014
“Changing Laws Complicate Planning For Gay Couples,” Puget Sound Business Journal, March 21–27, 2014
“Ways to Leave Your Loved One—And What You Might Want to Leave Behind,” Probate Practice Reporter, March 2014
“Update on the Repeal of SOMA, FPA of Puget Sound Annual Symposium, Seattle, WA, February 2014
“50 Ways To Leave Your Loved Ones,” MarketWatch, Wall Street Journal, January 2014
“Estate Planning for “Things with Wings,” LISI Estate Planning Newsletter, January 2014
“Estate Planning for Liquid Assets of the Vintage Varietal,” LISI Estate Planning Newsletter, December 2013
“Estate Planning for New Biology,” 58th Annual Estate Planning Seminar, Seattle, WA, October 2013
“Planning for Same-Sex Couples,” Idaho State Bar Annual Advanced Estate Planning Seminar, Sun Valley, Idaho, September 2013
“Adoption: Effect of Adoption on Inheritance is Not Child’s Play,” 40 Est. Pl. 32, September 2013
“Estate Planning Questions in Light of DOMA’s Unconstitutionality,” Probate Practice Reporter, August 2013
“Postmortem Conception Quandary: When Must an Heir Be Here?” Estate Planning Magazine, July 2013
“Fighting for Flex Time,” HuffPost Live Hosted by Nancy Redd, July 11, 2013
“I Love Being a Working Mom But I Didn’t Always,” Panelist, HuffPost Live Hosted by Nancy Redd, March 22, 2013
“Working Moms Speak Up,” Panelist, HuffPost Live Hosted by Nancy Redd, February 1, 2013
“Tax Consideration for Registered Domestic Partners and What Happens if DOMA is Repealed,” Washington CPA, November/December 2012
Quoted in “Supreme Court Nears Gay Marriage Decision Over DOMA-Related Cases,” Karen McVeigh, Guardian.co.uk, November 2012
“Marijuana Laws in Washington: A Growing Problem?” Washington State Bar News, October 2012
“How I Became The Straight Lady for Gay Marriage,” Forbes.com, June 2012
“How to Quit Your Job Without Burning Your Bridges,” Forbes.com, April 2012
“A Working Mom Defends the Lululemon Stay-at-Home Mother,” Forbes.com, April 2012
“Same-Sex Marriage Law Broadens Estate Planning Options,” Puget Sound Business Journal, Estate Planning and charitable Bequests Supplement, March 2012
“You’re What? With Whom? But Have You Thought About...?: Marriage, Domestic Partnerships, Civil Union—The Developing Legal Landscape,” 46th Annual Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning, Orlando, FL, January 2012
“Charitable Planning for Same-Sex Couples” (co-chair and panelist), 46th Annual Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning, Orlando, FL, January 2012
“An Estate Planner’s Roadmap To The Valley Of The Shadow Of Death: Health Care Directives From Religious Perspectives,” Fear No Evil, WSBA 56th Annual Estate Planning Seminar, Seattle, WA, November 2011
“Should I Stay or Should I Go? What Religion Says About Pulling the Plug,” Forbes.com, November 2011
Quoted in “Married, With Complications,” Forbes.com, April 2011
“From Zoom to Doom? Risks of Do-It-Yourself Estate Planning” (co-author), Estate Planning Magazine, April 2011
Quoted in “The Case Against Do-It-Yourself Wills,” Deborah L. Jacobs, Forbes.com, September 2010
Quoted in “Estate Planning as a Family Conversation,” Deborah L. Jacobs, The New York Times, March 2010