Photo of Professionals at McCoy Fatula, APC
Photo of Professionals at McCoy Fatula, APC

Impact of Divorce On Estate Planning

On Behalf of | Aug 16, 2016 | Divorce, Estate Planning

The road to getting a divorce finalized is different for every person. Whether your divorce was quick and efficient because you and your spouse were able to be amicable and cooperative or the divorce was drawn out for two years through intense divorce litigation, you are finally done with it. However, it is very important to understand that a finalized divorce can have legal implications on other areas of the law. One of them is estate planning.

While this may not be the first thing on your mind after finalizing your divorce, it should be. Just because you are divorced does not mean your now former spouse (if named in any of your estate planning documents) is not entitled as a beneficiary. If you fail to properly amend any relevant estate planning documents, you could leave a very big legal mess.

So what steps should you take after your divorce? The very first thing is to discuss estate planning implications with an experienced estate planning lawyer. Many times your divorce attorney also practices estate planning. Your attorney can review your estate planning documents and give you recommendations as to what documents need to be amended. In some cases, it may be in your best interest to create new estate planning documents.

What type of documents are impacted? Everything from wills, trusts, advanced health care directives, living wills, power of attorney, retirement accounts as well as life insurance policies. You deserve to designate who you want as your beneficiary. This likely is no longer your ex-spouse. Do not make the mistake of skipping this very important step in your divorce.

As you can see, having a seasoned divorce lawyer is very important in making sure your divorce has taken care of every detail. Even the smallest detail left unattended can make a huge difference as you can see in estate planning. Talk to a skilled divorce attorney today in California.

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