How Do I Include My Stepchildren in My Estate Plan?
Your stepchildren may have been a part of your life for many years, to the point you may consider them as your own children. Well, even if you see it this way, Pennsylvania estate planning laws may not. This means that you may have to make extra efforts to ensure your stepchildren receive a portion of your estate when you, unfortunately, pass on. Continue reading to learn how to incorporate stepchildren into your estate plan and how one of the experienced Butler County estate planning & probate attorneys at Heritage Elder Law & Estate Planning, LLC can help execute this.
Why is it important to make an estate plan, especially with stepchildren?
At Heritage Elder Law & Estate Planning, LLC, we encourage just about everyone to make an estate plan for themselves. But we especially drive this message home to individuals who are part of blended families. These are families where one or both spouses have children from a previous marriage and possibly children with one another. This is because blended families may run into more complex estate planning issues than, let’s say, traditional families. For example, without an estate plan, children and stepchildren may be pitted against each other and driven to fight over what assets they are entitled to inherit. What’s more, the spouses from previous marriages may jump into the mix and claim they are privileged to something.
Ultimately, you must understand that stepchildren may not be included in Pennsylvania’s observed intestate succession. That is, intestate succession is the order in which assets will be passed down if an estate plan is nonexistent, or otherwise invalid and unenforceable. Unfortunately, stepchildren are not granted the same benefits as adopted children, posthumous children, and children born outside of marriage.
How do I incorporate my stepchildren into my estate plan?
Without further ado, the most straightforward way to incorporate your stepchildren into your estate plan is through your Last Will and Testament. Within this crucial estate planning document, you must clearly name your stepchildren as your designated beneficiaries. You may even go on to detail the exact assets you wish to land in their possession upon your unfortunate passing.
Second to your will is an irrevocable life insurance trust. This may allow you to financially support your stepchildren through a life insurance policy, all while inhibiting your spouse from disinheriting them in the future. An alternative to an irrevocable life insurance trust is a bloodline trust. This may allow you to keep your financial support exclusively with your stepchild, all while inhibiting them from redirecting these assets to their new spouse, new children, or new stepchildren in the future.
If you find yourself at a crossroads, please seek the sound advisement of one of the skilled Butler County estate planning & probate attorneys. Someone at Heritage Elder Law & Estate Planning, LLC will stand by your side at a moment’s notice.
