diff --git a/weave/trace/objectify.py b/weave/trace/objectify.py
index 541c27d35be0..a4ca915450d2 100644
--- a/weave/trace/objectify.py
+++ b/weave/trace/objectify.py
@@ -32,8 +32,7 @@ def maybe_objectify(obj: WeaveObject) -> T_co | WeaveObject:
         return obj
 
     res = cls.from_obj(obj)
-
     if ref := getattr(obj, "ref", None):
-        res.ref = ref
+        setattr(res, "ref", ref)
 
     return res