- posted: Nov. 01, 2022
Not really. A couple of state statutes create a "legal fiction" that an ex-spouse is deemed to have predeceased their former spouse. RCW 11.12.051 automatically writes an ex-spouse out of a will executed during the marriage. RCW 11.07.010 similarly applies to non-probate assets such as pensions and insurance contracts.
However, such disputes can give rise to ERISA issues and the effects of other states' laws. Children of the "fictionally-deceased-spouse" might start litigating, claiming to be next in line for your assets as opposed to a current spouse or more recent children.
Here is an easy solution: Do a new will. Set out explicitly where your estate goes. Change your beneficiaries on life insurance, financial accounts and bank accounts. True estate planning entails preventing fights before they start. See Burns Law for pragmatic, affordable estate planning.
Call Strong International Law for an estate planning overview today.
Strong International Law Group, LLC Building and Protecting Your Empires….one case at a time…. [email protected] 253-221-0285
