If you are planning to remarry, or have already remarried, are you aware of the issues that may arise? We would like to share with you three essential points about estate planning and remarriage that you may need to understand and discuss with your future partner. We also recommend you hire a Florida attorney with experience in estate planning and remarriage so that you can be sure that the wishes of you and your future spouse are protected and will be carried out.
1. You can protect your children from prior marriages. A very common and sensitive subject regarding estate planning and remarriage is how can the parties ensure that children from prior marriages are protected in the event that their parent dies and is survived by the new spouse. If no appropriate estate planning is in place, you can imagine a scenario where one spouse with children from a prior marriage dies and, after inheriting the entire estate, the surviving spouse disinherits those children by leaving everything only to the natural born children of the surviving spouse.
2. You can protect your new spouse. Estate planning will ensure that the new spouse is protected after remarriage. After remarriage, if one spouse dies before updating his or her will and beneficiary designations to include his or her new spouse, it is possible the new spouse is left without the inheritance his or her spouse wanted. For example, if the life insurance policy was not updated to replace the ex-spouse’s name with the current spouse’s name, it is possible the life insurance proceeds will be paid to the ex-spouse.
3. You can protect your health care wishes. It is important to have an advanced health care directive and/or living will in place. Many times a remarriage can increase the possibility that there will be some internal disagreements within the family as to the medical decisions being made by one spouse when the other is incapacitated. By having the appropriately drafted and completed legal documents, spouses can communicate their specific wishes regarding healthcare decisions and medical treatment and eliminate the potential for conflict.
If you have remarried or are planning to remarry, our office can help you reevaluate your estate plan to reflect your change in life circumstances. Please get in touch with us today to schedule an appointment. At the Perlin Estate Planning & Probate our credentials enable us to provide a multi-disciplinary approach to our legal services. By building relationships with our clients, we are also able to understand each client’s needs and desires, and we support such goals through thoughtful, comprehensive planning techniques. We encourage you to contact us and schedule a meeting.