An estate plan is an important document that every person should have in Minnesota. This document can help to ensure that your assets are distributed in the way that you want after your death. However, it’s important to know how a divorce can affect your estate plan to stay prepared.
Beneficiaries
One of the most important aspects of estate planning is naming beneficiaries. If you get divorced and you had named your ex-spouse as a beneficiary, you may want to consider changing that. Otherwise, your ex-spouse may end up inheriting a portion of your estate even if you don’t want them to have it.
It’s also important to update your estate plan if you get remarried. If you die while married to someone else, your new spouse will automatically inherit everything unless you specify otherwise in your estate plan.
Trusts
The terms of a trust can be affected by a divorce, so it’s important to make sure that the trust still reflects your wishes. For instance, if you had established a joint trust with your ex-spouse while estate planning in the past, the trust would likely need to get dissolved or changed after a divorce.
Powers of attorney
If you have granted your ex-spouse a power of attorney, such as a health care power of attorney, this will likely need to change after a divorce. Powers of attorney mean that the maned person would be able to make decisions for you if you are unable to do so yourself. For instance, if you were to become incapacitated, your ex-spouse would be able to make decisions about your finances. This is if you gave them durable power of attorney.
Will
If you get divorced, your will in general may need to get updated. Your ex-spouse could inherit a part or all of your estate if you don’t change your will after a divorce depending on the terms of your will. If you want to make sure that your ex-spouse doesn’t inherit anything from you, you’ll need to update your will accordingly.
It’s important to review all of your estate planning documents after a divorce and make any necessary changes. This way, you can ensure that your estate plan still reflects your wishes and goals.