Certification of Trust Requirements in Washington

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Washington requires seven fact groups and a no-change statement

Under RCW 11.98.075(1), the trustee may give a person other than a beneficiary a certification instead of the trust instrument. It must state the trust's existence and execution date, the trustor's identity, the current trustee's identity and address, relevant trustee powers, revocability and any revocation-power holder, cotrustee authority, and either the trust's name or the titling of trust property.

Subsection (3) adds the statement that no revocation, modification, or amendment makes the representations incorrect. The section does not list a tax identification number, governing law, or situs as a required item.

A trustee or the trust's attorney may authenticate

Section 11.98.075(2) permits any trustee or an attorney for the trust to sign or otherwise authenticate the certification. The certification section states no separate oath, acknowledgment, witness, or notarization form.

That signer rule is separate from subsection (1)(f), which requires the certification to state cotrustee authority and whether all or fewer cotrustees must exercise trust powers.

The recipient's information right is broader than excerpts alone

Section 11.98.075(4) says the certification need not contain dispositive terms. Subsection (5) permits the recipient to require excerpts from the original instrument and later amendments that designate the trustee and confer transaction power.

Washington then adds “or any other reasonable information.” A certification form or summary that describes only the excerpt right leaves out that broader statutory phrase.

Reliance is protected, and bad-faith demand damages include fees

Under RCW 11.98.075(6), a person relying without knowledge that the certification is incorrect is protected from liability and may assume its facts without inquiry. Possession of all or part of the instrument does not alone establish knowledge of its terms.

Subsection (7) makes a good-faith transaction enforceable against trust property as if the certification were correct. Subsection (8) makes a court-determined bad-faith demand for the full instrument liable for damages, including reasonable attorney fees. Subsection (9) preserves access in a judicial proceeding concerning the trust.

The certification section states no recording effect

RCW 11.98.075 permits the certification to identify how trust property is titled, but it does not itself authorize or require recording or assign a recorded certification any notice, priority, conveyance, or other real-property effect. A separate deed or other transaction instrument may have its own rules.

What trips people up

• An attorney for the trust is an authorized signer. Subsection (2) is broader than statutes that restrict authentication to one or more trustees.
• The recipient may ask for more than targeted excerpts. Subsection (5) adds “any other reasonable information”; omitting that phrase understates the recipient's statutory request right.
• Attorney fees are express here. Subsection (8) includes reasonable attorney fees within bad-faith-demand damages, unlike statutes that say only “damages.”

Common questions

Must the certification include a taxpayer identification number?

Not under RCW 11.98.075. A tax number is not among subsection (1)'s seven listed fact groups, though a separate lawful transaction request may still matter.

Does possessing the trust instrument prove knowledge of an error?

No. Subsection (6) says knowledge of the trust terms may not be inferred solely because the relying person holds all or part of the instrument.

Can the complete instrument be obtained in court?

Potentially. Subsection (9) preserves the right to obtain a copy in a judicial proceeding concerning the trust.

Statutes and sources

• RCW 11.98.075(1)–(5) — required contents, trustee-or-attorney authentication, no-change statement, omitted dispositive terms, excerpts, and other reasonable information. Official Revised Code of Washington (accessed 2026-07-31).
• RCW 11.98.075(6)–(9) — knowledge-based reliance, good-faith enforceability, bad-faith demand damages including reasonable attorney fees, and judicial access. Official Revised Code of Washington (accessed 2026-07-31).