Blended Families and Estate Planning in Connecticut: Common Pitfalls

For many Connecticut adults in their 40s and beyond, a second marriage brings together not just two households, but two entirely separate sets of financial goals, children, and expectations. If you have remarried and have children from a prior relationship, your estate plan requires far more care than a plan for a first marriage typically demands. Without updated documents that reflect your current family structure, Connecticut law may distribute your assets in ways you never intended. Our Connecticut estate planning attorney can explain in more detail.

Why Blended Families Face Unique Estate Planning Risks

When you remarry, any prior will you created is not automatically void, but it may no longer reflect your wishes, and in some circumstances, Connecticut law provides your new spouse with rights to your estate regardless of what an outdated will says. At the same time, if you die without any will at all, Connecticut’s intestacy statute determines how your assets are divided between a surviving spouse and children, and that formula does not distinguish between children from a current marriage and children from a previous one. This can create unintended results, such as a share of your estate passing to your spouse’s children rather than your own, or your biological children receiving less than you intended.

Common Pitfalls Blended Families Encounter

One of the most frequent issues in blended family estate planning is failing to update beneficiary designations on life insurance policies, retirement accounts, and payable-on-death accounts after a remarriage. These designations typically override what is written in a will, so an outdated designation naming a former spouse can defeat even a carefully drafted estate plan. Another common pitfall involves leaving all assets outright to a new spouse with the expectation that the spouse will later provide for children from a prior marriage. There is no legal obligation for a surviving spouse to do so, and life circumstances, including a subsequent remarriage by the surviving spouse, can result in children from the first relationship receiving nothing. Finally, many blended families overlook the importance of clearly defining separate property brought into the marriage versus assets acquired jointly, which can create confusion and disputes during estate administration.

Tools That May Help Address These Concerns

Trusts are often used by blended families to provide income or use of certain assets to a surviving spouse during that spouse’s lifetime, while ultimately preserving principal for children from a prior relationship. Prenuptial and postnuptial agreements can also clarify how certain assets will be treated for estate planning purposes. Because every blended family’s circumstances differ, the right combination of tools depends on the specific assets, relationships, and goals involved.

Contact a Canton Estate Planning Attorney to Discuss Your Blended Family’s Needs

Blended families face estate planning considerations that a one-size-fits-all will or outdated plan often cannot address. If you have remarried, or if your family structure has changed since you last reviewed your estate planning documents, working with experienced Canton estate planning attorneys can help you understand the options available for balancing the needs of a current spouse with those of children from a prior relationship. Contact the Law Office of Brian S. Karpe today to discuss your family’s estate planning needs.

Source:

cga.ct.gov/2023/pub/title_45a.htm