Laws vary on dealing with digital assets of deceased

  • By Tim Grant Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
  • Thursday, January 29, 2015 12:13pm
  • Business

In an age when social media websites record so many life experiences and so much personal information is stored online, financial advisers and estate lawyers are increasingly advising clients on handling their digital estates as well as their financial legacies.

Laws on the books address the transfer of financial assets, such as real estate, bank accounts, stocks and even physical items like furniture and silverware. But federal and state regulations are — for the most part — in catch-up mode when it comes to digital assets.

To date five states have passed laws that give executors of estates the authority to handle the decedent’s digital assets — including online accounts such as Facebook, LinkedIn and email — as they would any other assets.

Washington is not one of them, according to The Digital Beyond website.

David Walters is a financial adviser at Palisades Hudson Financial Group and author of the chapter on planning a digital estate in Palisade Hudson’s new book, “Looking Ahead: Life, Family, Wealth and Business After 55.”

“Because there are not laws in many states now addressing digital assets, executors often do not have legal authority over these assets,” Walters said. “In most cases, that means the original agreement between the online vendor and the person dictates what happens when that person dies.

“Usually what the online vendor will do is shut down the account.”

For that reason, as part of estate planning documents, Walters recommends including a list of all online accounts and passwords. The individual can stipulate what should be done with email and other online accounts upon death.

“Think about what would happen if you were to die unexpectedly or become disabled,” he said. “If your spouse or other loved one doesn’t have your user names and passwords, he or she may find it awkward at best and impossible at worst to manage your affairs.”

Pittsburgh lawyer E. David Margolis said he makes a point to discuss the issue of digital assets with clients. He asks them to fill out an “important information inventory,” which is a road map into the client’s personal affairs such as a list of financial accounts with account numbers and information about all online accounts.

“This is not something we do formally in a will. It’s for their own purposes, but some clients ask me to keep a copy,” said Margolis, a trusts and estate attorney.

A digital asset rarely has monetary value, “but it’s a window into your life,” Margolis said. “It’s a question of preserving access to the information.”

For more state-by-state status of laws on digital assets, see: www.thedigitalbeyond.com/law/

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Business

Black Press Media operates Sound Publishing, the largest community news organization in Washington State with dailies and community news outlets in Alaska.
Black Press Media concludes transition of ownership

Black Press Media, which operates Sound Publishing, completed its sale Monday (March 25), following the formerly announced corporate restructuring.

Maygen Hetherington, executive director of the Historic Downtown Snohomish Association, laughs during an interview in her office on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, in Snohomish, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Maygen Hetherington: tireless advocate for the city of Snohomish

Historic Downtown Snohomish Association receives the Opportunity Lives Here award from Economic Alliance.

FILE - Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs poses in front of photos of the 15 people who previously held the office on Nov. 22, 2021, after he was sworn in at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Hobbs faces several challengers as he runs for election to the office he was appointed to last fall. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
Secretary of State Steve Hobbs: ‘I wanted to serve my country’

Hobbs, a former Lake Stevens senator, is the recipient of the Henry M. Jackson Award from Economic Alliance Snohomish County.

Mark Duffy poses for a photo in his office at the Mountain Pacific Bank headquarters on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Mark Duffy: Building a hometown bank; giving kids an opportunity

Mountain Pacific Bank’s founder is the recipient of the Fluke Award from Economic Alliance Snohomish County.

Barb Tolbert poses for a photo at Silver Scoop Ice Cream on Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Barb Tolbert: Former mayor piloted Arlington out of economic brink

Tolbert won the Elson S. Floyd Award, honoring a leader who has “created lasting opportunities” for the underserved.

Photo provided by 
Economic Alliance
Economic Alliance presented one of the Washington Rising Stem Awards to Katie Larios, a senior at Mountlake Terrace High School.
Mountlake Terrace High School senior wins state STEM award

Katie Larios was honored at an Economic Alliance gathering: “A champion for other young women of color in STEM.”

The Westwood Rainier is one of the seven ships in the Westwood line. The ships serve ports in the Pacific Northwest and Northeast Asia. (Photo provided by Swire Shipping)
Westwood Shipping Lines, an Everett mainstay, has new name

The four green-hulled Westwood vessels will keep their names, but the ships will display the Swire Shipping flag.

A Keyport ship docked at Lake Union in Seattle in June 2018. The ship spends most of the year in Alaska harvesting Golden King crab in the Bering Sea. During the summer it ties up for maintenance and repairs at Lake Union. (Keyport LLC)
In crabbers’ turbulent moment, Edmonds seafood processor ‘saved our season’

When a processing plant in Alaska closed, Edmonds-based business Keyport stepped up to solve a “no-win situation.”

Angela Harris, Executive Director of the Port of Edmonds, stands at the port’s marina on Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024, in Edmonds, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Leadership, love for the Port of Edmonds got exec the job

Shoring up an aging seawall is the first order of business for Angela Harris, the first woman to lead the Edmonds port.

The Cascade Warbirds fly over Naval Station Everett. (Sue Misao / The Herald file)
Bothell High School senior awarded $2,500 to keep on flying

Cascade Warbirds scholarship helps students 16-21 continue flight training and earn a private pilot’s certificate.

Rachel Gardner, the owner of Musicology Co., a new music boutique record store on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024 in Edmonds, Washington. Musicology Co. will open in February, selling used and new vinyl, CDs and other music-related merchandise. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
New Edmonds record shop intends to be a ‘destination for every musician’

Rachel Gardner opened Musicology Co. this month, filling a record store gap in Edmonds.

MyMyToyStore.com owner Tom Harrison at his brick and mortar storefront on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Burst pipe permanently closes downtown Everett toy store

After a pipe flooded the store, MyMyToystore in downtown Everett closed. Owner Tom Harrison is already on to his next venture.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.