If you are in the middle of a divorce, you may be looking forward to the day it is over … to relaxing on your couch, on your own, with a celebratory glass of wine. No more courts, no more assets to calculate, no more legal documents to sign and no more visits to your attorney’s office.
There is one more job you still need to do: Revise your estate plan. The one you had will no longer be relevant once you and your partner have ended your marriage. Your assets will have changed, and so may your relationships with various people.
The best way is to revoke the old estate plan and write a new one.
Consider who you will leave in charge of things if you die or if you are incapable of making decisions. Who will have guardianship of your children, who do you want to execute your will? Who will you give power of attorney to if it is ever needed?
Consider how you will pass on your estate. If you hold fewer assets than before, you may no longer meet certain tax thresholds around which you based earlier decisions.
Consider who you want to pass your estate on to. Divorce can change your outlook on life. Perhaps you blame your divorce on money and wish to give money away to charities rather than burden your children with too much money, which could harm their lives. Maybe your spouse had children from another marriage, to whom you no longer wish to leave anything.
Failure to revise your estate plan could result in your assets going to your ex-spouse.
