06 Jan
It is not unusual for Texas residents and individuals across the country to marry more than once. In many cases, additional marriages often result in individuals gaining step-children and families blending together. Because new family members are gained by marriage and ex-spouses are lost through the process of divorce, individuals may want to ensure that they remember to make estate planning updates.
If an individual had created an estate plan during a first marriage, it is likely that he or she named a spouse as a beneficiary to many accounts and intended for the spouse to inherit a considerable amount of their assets, if not everything. Therefore, if a divorce and/or remarriage has occurred, it is important that an ex-spouse is no longer listed as a beneficiary. If an individual dies with an ex still listed, the ex-spouse might receive the designated assets.
Individuals are often concerned with wanting to make sure their children from previous marriages are not cheated out of their inheritances. In these cases, creating trusts may be a wise step. An individual could designate certain stipulations to the trust and name a trustee to ensure that assets go to the correct individuals.
Estate planning is a versatile tool that can help protect families in many ways, especially when it comes to finances. Therefore, Texas residents may want to consider creating plans of their own or updating their existing plans to ensure that all beneficiary designations are updated. Experienced estate planning attorneys are available to provide reliable information for individuals interested in gaining assistance.
Source: brushnewstribune.com, “CABLE: Estate planning with a blended family“, Edward Jones., Dec. 23, 2016