There are few things more important than creating an estate plan that addresses what will happen with your assets, among other critical decisions, in your lifetime. If you’ve already created an estate plan, the hard part is over, however, there are certain triggering events in life that may warrant a person updating their estate plan. Divorce is one of those events. Please continue reading and reach out to our experienced New York City wills, trusts, and estates attorneys to learn more about why it’s so important to update your estate plan after a divorce and how our firm can help you do so.

Here’s Why You Should Update Your Estate Plan After You Get a Divorce

In your estate plan, you will address various things. First and foremost, you will appoint beneficiaries and detail exactly how you will want your assets to be distributed upon your passing. Typically, if a person is married, they will list their spouse as a beneficiary. That said, if you recently got divorced, you most likely wouldn’t want your ex inheriting all of your assets. Instead, you may want your children, other relatives, or even close friends to receive your assets. Taking a trip to a competent estate planning attorney can help ensure your assets go to the right places when you pass away.

Another critical part of any comprehensive estate plan is creating powers of attorney and an advance healthcare directive. If you appointed your spouse to act as a financial or medical power of attorney, it means that your spouse will have a right to make certain medical or financial decisions on your behalf, should you become incapacitated and unable to make those decisions on your own. Similarly, an advance healthcare directive appoints a person to make certain key end-of-life decisions on your behalf, such as whether you’d prefer to be on a ventilator or receive other life-preserving treatments. For obvious reasons, you most likely wouldn’t want your ex in charge of any of these decisions, and instead would probably prefer your children or a trusted relative/friend to do so.

These are just some of the most important reasons why you should consider updating your estate plan after a divorce. If you have any further questions or you would like to get started, please don’t hesitate to pick up the phone and give us a call today. We are here to help you create an estate plan that best reflects your current situation in life.

Contact Our New York City Firm

Zimmet Law Group, P.C. is an experienced team of attorneys guiding clients through matters of estate planning and administration, divorce and family law, real estate, commercial litigation, business law, bankruptcy, and landlord-tenant law. If you require the services of an effective New York City attorney, contact our firm today to schedule a consultation.