Hi there, Bridget Mackay of the Law Offices
of Bridget Mackay.
This is my video blog.
I practice estate planning
and elder law here in Petaluma,
California.
And today I want to talk about
the nine things you need to know
about your estate planning after a divorce.
A
lot of folks are trying to get their divorce finalized
before the tax law changed in
2018.
One of the most important tax law changes
you need to know about is
if you pay alimony.
It's no longer going to be able
to be deducted on your income
tax. And if you are a recipient
of any alimony it's no longer
going to be included in your income.
So those of you who are paying it,
you may want to look at that because you're going
to have to be paying more taxes.
Maybe it means a reduction in your alimony.
So what are the other nine things you need to think
about about your estate plan
after a divorce
or disillusion.
They're very important.
Number one is
get that disillusioned
or divorce agreement to your
estate planner if you have one
and hopefully you have an estate plan because it's very
important you do.
If you do you're going to need to revamp some
things. Obviously if you don't,
you need to get, you need to get
one.
The first thing you're going to want to do is make
sure you update your health care agents.
Because, if you don't do that
and your spouse is still your decision
maker when you can't make your health decisions,
that may not be something you want to
have happening.
Along those same lines,
the second is.
or the third.
Is if you also have a
durable power of attorney
and your ex-spouse is name you might want
to change that to someone else
because that's the person who has control
over your finances.
If you can't control them
or even if you can,
that someone can step in financially for
you.
Then you also,
and this is number four.
You want to revise those wills
and those trusts you're going to have different
executors.
You're going to have different trustees.
It's no longer going to be your ex-spouse.
And you don't want them hanging on there if
something happens to you
and your ex-spouse is now in charge of all your
assets.
Number five.
If you have minor children,
look at the guardianship.
In some cases your spouse
might have been abusive or,
you know,
on drugs
or alcohol and you don't really want them
to have physical care of your minor
children if something happens to you.
If you don't name anything then the kids will probably
automatically go to that ex-spouse.
So look at that
and talk to your estate planner about
changing that.
Number six is also
provide a financial
trust for your children within your
documents, within your trust
or your will,
so that their money is controlled
by someone other than your ex-spouse.
If you don't want that to be the case.
Someone you trust
and someone who will take care of their assets.
Otherwise,
if you don't
and your spouse will be
the guardian of your children,
can apply to be the financial guardian of your children
and manage all that money until they're 18.
For some people that's a scary prospect.
Number seven is,
check your beneficiary designations.
Redo those on your
IRAs,
your 401k's,
your deferred comp if you're in
some kind of government work.
Make sure it's the right person who's going to
inherit those assets if something
should happen to you.
Number eight is life insurance
requirements. A lot of dissolutions
require if there's minor children
that the spouse,
or one of the spouses,
or both have life insurance policies
and name the ex-spouse as the primary beneficiary
for the benefit of the kids.
But if that's the case, be aware
of that and don't change if you remarry
or decide to put your
brother or sister on that life insurance policy
because you don't trust your spouse
or ex-spouse.
And if you change it without complying
with the dissolution order
there could be litigation.
And finally, if you decide to get remarried,
get a prenup.
Prenups sometimes are done by estate
planners but they can often
also be done by a family law attorney.
So, those are the nine things to really be
aware of and clean up your
finances
and your estate for the benefit of you
and your children
and save everybody a lot of heartache
and make things clear.
Find a qualified a state planner to help
you do that today.
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