It seems like it’s the new normal — blended and extended families — are more commonplace today than ever before; and with them comes a variety of considerations in estate planning that more traditional families don’t need to deal with.
Typical estate planning does not work for the modern family. Traditionally, when a parent dies the living parent inherits everything, and later the assets are inherited by the children. However, the new landscape of diverse family structures complicates what was once a simple process.
Unmarried couples (or throuples) do not have the same rights and entitlements as married couples, so if you want your partner to be able to make decisions for you in an emergency, or to receive your assets after you pass away, you need to plan accordingly.
When couples have separate children, a longer conversation is required to discuss what the goals and desires are, in terms of how to divide, or not divide, assets, and ensuring that the right assets go to the right person, as traditional default rules might not work for you.
Let us help you take a modern approach to planning for a modern family.