Changes that Require a Review of Your Estate Plan
If any of the following events occur, you should review the possible effect of the change on your estate plan to determine whether it should be amended or revised. While this list is not all-inclusive, here are the major changes to watch for:
A. Changes in Family Relations:
1. Dissolutions of your marriage.
2. Death of your spouse.
3. Marriage (yours).
4. Changes regarding children or other beneficiaries:
a. Birth of a child to you.
b. Marriage of a child.
c. Dissolution of a child’s marriage.
d. Adoption of a child.
e. Serious illness of a child.
f. Economic change (good or bad).
g. A child’s attitude change toward you.
h. A child’s serious irresponsibility (money, sex, drugs).
B. Changes in Your Economic or Personal Condition.
5. Drastic change in your asset value (devalue of your home or a portfolio crash).
6. Change in insurability (death insurance)
7. Change in employment (changes in retirement plans and other benefits).
8. Change in business interests (e.g. new corporation or LLC – new investments should always be checked to see where they fit into your plan).
9. Property acquired in a different state (which needs to be probated there).
10. Drastic change in your health.
11. Retirement of you or your spouse.
C. General Changes
12. Changes in laws: federal or state income, estate or gift taxes; property tax; probate or trust laws or fees.
13. Change of residence to a different state (that may have different tax or probate laws).
14. Death of an executor, trustee, guardian or agent under an Advance Health Care Directive or power of attorney.
Let us know if we can help.
JWH 7-‘08