This recent New York #probate case is a good example of why we should review our #wills and trusts, and our #estate plan, each year – – – and, certainly after any major event like a #divorce.
#EX SPOUSES DON’T INHERIT AFTER A DIVORCE – BUT THEIR PARENTS CAN !
- There was this guy and this woman who lived in Texas.
- They got married.
- She made a Texas #will leaving everything to her husband if he was alive; but, if he wasn’t, then everything went to husband’s father – her father in law.
- They moved to New York.
- They divorced.
- She died, but she never revoked the will – – – never changed the will. Could she have removed the father-in-law as #estate beneficiary? Yes.
PARENTS VERSUS PARENTS IN #ESTATE LAWSUIT
She died in March, 2010. Her parents asked the #probate court for #letters of administration which were issued in May, 2010.
She was divorced – – no surviving spouse. No widow.
So, her family should inherit, shouldn’t they? Not so fast. She never #amended her will. She never revoked her will.
So, her ex-father-in-law, the father of her ex-husband, filed papers with the #probate court. He claimed that he was the sole #estate beneficiary and also the #estate executor or #personal representative.
#TEXAS WILL WAS NEVER REVOKED
She had a Texas will which she never revoked. The will left everything to her spouse but because she was divorced prior to death, the #inheritance under her #last will in favor of her spouse was revoked by law.
In most states, if you get divorced, you lose your inheritance rights. #Florida estate law has a similar law which says that a #beneficiary designation, or a #Florida will provision, in favor of a divorced spouse is void. In most of these #estate laws, you treat the ex-spouse as if he or she died before the person who made the will.
!!! But, a divorce doesn’t void the rest of your will !!
Here’s the problem: in her Texas will, there was an #alternative provision. If the spouse didn’t inherit, the spouse’s father did. In other words, her Texas will said give everything to my ex-husband’s father. Needless to say, the woman, the ex-wife, had siblings and parents who objected to this.
Had the ex-spouse simply #revoked her will, or signed a #codicil, or an #amendment to the will, this could have all been avoided. Or, she could have created a #revocable trust and placed all of her assets into the #revocable living trust.
#POOR ESTATE PLANNING AFTER DIVORCE
This could have all been avoided if she merely reviewed her will during the divorce or after the divorce. The take away, more or less, is: #review your estate plan upon every major event, like the purchase of a house, marriage, thinking about divorce, birth of a child, death of a loved one.
FOR REFERRAL SOURCES, LAWYERS AND LITIGATORS
We help you with Florida estate and trust administration and trials, and #probate appeals.
Our #Florida probate law firm
- does not prepare estate plans
- does not draft wills and trusts
- does not steal your clients or your probates
Our #West Palm Beach, Florida #probate litigation firm :
- hands your clients back to you at the conclusion of the #Florida matter—after all, they are YOUR clients
- we try cases & handle appeals
- our practice is restricted to #Florida probate disputes & contested guardianships
- we work with you on #Florida estate administration, #Florida probate
- we litigate for and protect beneficiary rights
- we represent #Florida personal representatives or executors, and #Florida trustees
- we receive approximately 95% of our clients from other lawyers
- we take contingency fee cases
Who are we? Our firm is comprised of
- serious Florida litigators, with an outstanding reputation in our legal community
- focused probate lawyers,
- experienced paralegals and support staff.
We have been involved in high profile, nine figure, multi-million-dollar #Florida estates, including Madoff matters, old # Palm Beach money and complex trusts and multi-party #Florida probates. We also handle “small” or “simple” matters. All we do is litigate and help you with #Florida estate and trust administration. #Tortious interference with an inheritance and allegations of #undue influence, and #will challenges and trust challenges are a unique subspecialty of the law. Does your client know which ones to file, when to do that, and why? Do you know the different ways to prove each case? How about quantifying or assessing damages? It would be our pleasure to work with you and to serve your clients. For a complete copy of this very recent legal opinion please email michelle@pankauskilawfirm.com.
John Pankauski, www.johnpankauski.com, is the author of The Trustee’s Book – An Individual’s Guide To Money, Misfits, Marriages, and Mismanagement, and the upcoming The $41 Trillion Inheritance War. He is an estate and trust litigator in West Palm Beach, Florida, www.pankauskilawfirm.com and has been featured on the CBS Evening News, in The Wall Street Journal, MarketWatch, NBC, ABC and Fox networks.