Can You Exclude Someone from Your Will?
Yes, you can exclude natural heirs from your estate in your will, as long as you explicitly state this in your Last Will and Testament. However, certain family members, such as spouses and minor children, may still have rights to a portion of your estate depending on your state's law. In many states, for example, a spouse is entitled to a share of the estate (often called an “elective share” or “forced share”) regardless of what’s stated in the will. While you can exclude adult children and other family members in the family section of your will, it’s important to understand that laws vary by state. In either case in the event of intestacy (dying without a will), your state law will always determine inheritance rights and assign beneficiaries through probate court. This also count’s for assigning Guardianship for any underaged minors in your care, so either way having a will is key, but there are several steps you can do to protect your estate from undesired heirs.
Can My Ex-Husband or Ex-Wife Inherit My Estate If I Die?
Yes, they may, but it really depends on how far along you are in your divorce proceedings. If you’re separated but not yet divorced and die before the divorce is finalized, they may be the legal heirs to all or part of your estate. In most states, a spouse by marriage or biological children will be favored when your estate passes through probate.
How can I protect my estate after Separation or divorce.
Once you’ve separated from your husband/wife or initiated divorce proceedings, it’s crucial to solidify your wishes when it comes to your estate. To protect your estate and ensure that your assets are passed to the beneficiaries of your choosing. Many people make the mistake of believing that filing for divorce or being legally separated is enough to prevent an ex-spouse from inheriting, but the reality is that until a divorce is finalized, your spouse may still have a legal claim to your estate.
How To avoid unintended inheritance, here are steps you can take:
- Update Your Will and Trusts: The obvious is to log into your wills.com account and update your will or trust. Make sure it clearly stipulates your updated wishes now that you are no longer with your partner. If there is still any mention in your will or trust, your ex-spouse may very well inherit part or all of your estate. So step one is to update your estate planning documents.
- Revoke Powers of Attorney: If your ex-spouse is designated as your financial or healthcare power of attorney, revoke these powers and assign new individuals to make decisions on your behalf. By creating a new one.
- Change Beneficiary Designations: Don’t forget to update beneficiaries on life insurance policies, retirement accounts, and payable-on-death bank accounts. These are typically not covered by your will and may pass directly to your ex-spouse if not updated.
- Investment and Stock Accounts: Investment and Stock Accounts: If you and your spouse have invested in digital assets such as cryptocurrency, it’s wise to update the account permissions and clearly define what happens to these assets. Many digital platforms, including cryptocurrency wallets, require specific access credentials or private keys that aren’t automatically accessible through traditional estate processes.
- Joint Bank Accounts and Property: Close or sever joint accounts and review joint tenancy property. Assets held in joint tenancy may pass directly to your ex-spouse if you pass away, regardless of what your will states .
- Consider a Trust: Setting up a trust can help ensure that your assets are distributed according to your wishes and prevent an ex-spouse from inheriting. A trust allows you to control how, when, and to whom your assets are distributed.
Whether it's due to a change in relationship status or personal reasons it is of course entirely within your right to disinherit someone. While it may be a tough decision it's a necessary one, to ensure that your estate is distributed exactly as you intend.
There are many valid reasons for disinheritance, divorce, financial independence or perhaps a desire to leave your estate to a charitable cause. It’s entirely up to you and one you should give ample thought to, but don’t delay too long. Life can be fragile and even if you wish to think about it’s a smart move to stipulate the basic changes (exclusions) in a simple will right now as you can return to your wills.com account at any time and make changes free of charge as each purchase comes with lifetime free changes.
How to Update Your Will to Exclude Someone
You probably have a copy of your will at home and used a pen to simply cross someone’s name off your will - But unfortunately this won’t suffice. You will need to formally update the document to ensure that your exclusion is legally recognized.
- Create a New Will
The easiest, fastest and most affordable way to exclude someone from your will is to create a new one. If you are already a Wills.com member you can update your will or create an entirely new estate plan at any time, through our lifetime free membership guarantee which comes with each purchase. Wills.com is the easiest online will creation tool that walks you through each step of the process. This allows you to ensure that any changes you make are legally binding.
- Name the Excluded Party
You do not need to include any reason as to why you’re disinheriting someone, You do have to specifically name the individual in your will and the state they reside in and mention they will not receive any part of your estate. This helps prevent legal challenges down the road. - Update Beneficiaries on Accounts
For other financial accounts, such as IRAs, 401(k)s, and especially life insurance policies, you can name beneficiaries directly. Updating these designations may offer an extra layer of protection, as they often bypass probate and are handled privately.
What Happens if Someone Challenges Your Will?
Even if you follow all the proper steps to exclude someone from your estate, they may still challenge it in court. This happens more frequently in cases of disinheritance, particularly if the individual feels they were wrongfully left out. These people can challenge your estate plan:
Spouses generally have the strongest legal claim, as state laws often protect a spouse’s right to a portion of the estate.
Children can sometimes contest, especially if they believe the disinheritance was unintentional.
Cohabitees or other dependents may also have grounds to challenge.
To reduce the risk of disputes, consider getting your will notarized online through Wills.com’s partnership with BlueNotary, which provides added legal protection.
Preventing Conflict with a Clear Estate Plan
Ultimately this is your estate we are talking about, your final wishes and legacy. Not everyone has to like it but everyone does have to respect it. To reduce the likelihood of a will being contested, it’s important to be as transparent as possible in your estate plan. Some strategies include:
Discussing your wishes with your family ahead of time, so that your decisions aren’t a surprise.
Offering a token gift to those being excluded, which may discourage them from contesting the will.
Setting up a living trust for added privacy and control over how your estate is distributed. Learn more about wills and trusts in our estate planning guide.
Disinheriting someone from your will is a personal and sometimes difficult decision, but with the right steps, you can ensure that your estate is distributed exactly as you wish. By using Wills.com’s online will creation service, you can easily update and manage your will to reflect your current circumstances and prevent future conflicts.
Start creating your state-specific will today on Wills.com—it’s easy, affordable, and state specific.
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