Conscientious Florida residents who want to make sure they protect their loved ones create an estate plan. When they draft a will, its contents are based on the circumstances at the time. For example, if they do not have children, they do not need to account for them in the document.
However, people’s lives change. Updating the will based on the current situation is key and knowing how to do so to avoid disputes may require professional help.
A will does not automatically update with life changes
According to state law, when a person writes a will and gets married, has a child or adopts a child after the fact, it does not automatically change the will. That means that just because the testator completed the will and was later married or had a child who would have been mentioned in the will if it was written following the marriage or child coming into their lives, they need to update the will to add the new family members.
However, if they do not change the will, the spouse or child will receive property from the estate after the testator’s death regardless of what it says in the will. It will be viewed as if the person had died intestate and had not written any will at all.
When the person is married at the time of the will’s writing and gets divorced, the will does automatically change and anything the former spouse was left is void. That does not prevent the testator from leaving property to the former spouse if they choose to do so. They simply need to add a provision that says the former spouse should still receive proceeds from the will.
It is important to update a will when changes occur
Whether it is a marriage, a divorce, the birth of a child, a sudden windfall, a business success or any other significant change in a person’s life, it is imperative to account for these changes in the estate plan by updating it. Just as it is vital to have an estate plan, making sure it is current is also key. Having caring and professional guidance is a fundamental part of a well-crafted estate plan and changing it as needed.