How Your Estate Plan Changes When Your Marriage Ends

The end of a marriage can be a difficult time for you. In addition to processing your emotions, it may be necessary to accept the financial realities of a divorce. Furthermore, it will generally be necessary to change your estate plan to reflect your new relationship status.

Review Your Beneficiary Selections

Your former spouse is likely a beneficiary to some or all of your assets. If assets were to be transferred by a will, change its terms to include a new beneficiary or to put them in a trust. If they were to be transferred by a beneficiary designation, change or revoke the designation. It is important to note that beneficiary or other transfer on death (TOD) declarations will trump whatever is in a will.

Revoke Powers of Attorney

It is not uncommon for a person to name their spouse as their financial or health care agent. However, if these powers are not revoked or amended after a divorce, that person could still make decisions for you in the event that you can’t make them on your own.

This could result in a former spouse having access to medical records or other information that could be used to harm you or otherwise cause problems in your life. In the event that you don’t have an adult child or friend to act as an alternate power of attorney, financial or legal professionals may act in that capacity.

You Choose How to Structure an Estate Plan

It is possible to create or amend estate plan documents on your own. However, if you need assistance, an estate planning attorney in Las Vegas may also offer assistance. Having a professional look over your plan may minimize the chances that a document is written or altered improperly. That may minimize legal challenges or other delays in implementing the plan after you pass.

Why Attorneys Make Good Executors

If you are looking for someone to act as executor of your estate, it may make sense to turn to an attorney. One good reason to do so is that an attorney is more likely to act as an objective steward of your possessions. He or she is also more likely to understand the law and make fewer mistakes as a result. Finally, there is generally no need for an attorney to hire an attorney, so that saves the estate money.

Keep Family Strife to a Minimum

By hiring an attorney to be your executor, there is less of a chance that your family members will get upset. In some cases, siblings or cousins of the person chosen to fill this role get suspicious of his or her motives. While this may happen with a professional representing the estate, it is unlikely that there will be a challenge to a will or other estate plan document.

Close the Case in a Timely Manner

By avoiding mistakes, it can make it easier to close a probate case in a timely manner. Furthermore, an attorney may not need to ask questions or ask for more time to get documents together. This is because an attorney is less likely to have personal or professional obligations while serving in this role. If you select a brother or parent to be your representative, this person might have to settle an estate around a major project at work or caring for another family member.

You Won’t Pay Two Different Fees

You won’t need to pay both an executor’s fee and an attorney fee when one person can do both jobs. Typically, a probate attorney in Las Vegas will only charge his or her attorney fee to act as an executor for your estate.

Choosing Between Amending Estate Documents and Creating New Ones

At some point in the future, you may need to add a beneficiary to a will or change the terms of a trust. This can be done through a simple amendment or by creating a whole new document. Here is how you can tell which option will make it easier to have your wishes respected in the future.

When Should You Amend a Document?

It may be best to amend a document when the change is a simple one. For instance, you decide that you want a beneficiary to receive $1,000 annually as opposed to $500 annually from a trust. Amending a will, trust or other estate plan component may also be easier if there only a few amendments already made to it. Your estate planning lawyer in Las Vegas may offer additional insight into when this is the right choice.

When Should You Create a New Document Entirely?

It may be in your best interest to create a whole new document if an amendment could be perceived as fraudulent in nature. For example, a bank may not work with an agent if a power of attorney declaration has been amended as opposed to rewritten entirely. Furthermore, creating a brand-new will or trust could be a good idea if it has been amended multiple times. At some point, it may be difficult for an executor to follow. Therefore, a clean will or trust may increase the chances that your wishes are followed as written.

Consistently Review Your Estate Plan

Over time, your estate plan needs may change as you start a family, or the tax code is overhauled. Therefore, it is a good idea to make sure that you review it annually to make sure that it still does what you want it to do.

What a Special Needs Trust Can Be Used for

When a person has a special needs trust set up, he or she cannot directly receive the money in it. However, the trustee of the fund can use the money to pay for items on the recipient’s behalf. Working with a trust administration lawyer in Las Vegas can help trustees and family members correctly add to and use the trust’s funds for the recipient.

Uncountable Resources

A special needs trust can usually be paid for uncountable resources for the recipient. Uncountable resources are those that do not disqualify a person from Medicaid coverage or Social Security disability income. Some things that qualify for uncountable resources include a home with a value of less than $500,000, one motor vehicle and furnishings for a home, such as a new mattress and box spring set or an upholstered chair to sit on.

Personal Effects

The special needs trust can also be used for the recipient’s personal effects and most of their everyday needs. For example, the recipient may need a new pair of shoes every three months and a few pairs of pants each year. The special needs trust can be used to buy shoes, clothing, toiletries and household products.

Countable Resources

A special needs trust cannot be used to pay for countable resources. A countable resource includes cash, money in a checking or savings account, a vacation home, a rental home, stocks and bonds, retirement investments and other investment accounts. Burial expenses in excess of $1,500 cannot be paid for with a special needs trust. If the person’s burial has already been paid for with other funds, this is okay. The special needs trust cannot pay for a life insurance policy with more than a $1,500 cash value.

Why You Should Talk Openly About Your Estate Plan

Communication is the most important part of creating an estate plan. It is critical that your family members know what they are receiving and why they are receiving it. If a family member is going to be taken out of a will or trust, they should know why that is the case as well. While not everyone may like how you have chosen to distribute your assets, they will likely accept it if you are honest about your intentions.

Reduce the Chances of a Will Contest

If a child is completely written out of a will or trust could, he or she could claim that you made the decision while mentally incapacitated. It may also be possible to claim that you wrote your son or daughter out of a will because of the undue influence of other parties. By sitting down with family members and explaining the thinking behind the plan, it shows that it was created of sound mind and of your own free will.

Put People in the Right Roles

It may be tempting to appoint your best friend or oldest child to serve as your estate’s personal representative. However, this may not be the best idea. You should choose an individual who is best suited for the role and fully understands what it means to serve in such a capacity. The same is true of those who are given powers of attorney or other control over an estate. In some cases, it is best to have a lawyer or another professional act in such a capacity.

Don’t Leave Anything to Chance

Generally speaking, you want to create a legacy while alive that is preserved after death. Consulting with an estate planning attorney in Las Vegas can help you to create a plan that will help you to protect what you worked so hard to build while alive.