Estate planning is a bit different during current times than it was several generations ago for a number of different reasons. There have been advances in medical science that have impacted the field of elder law, and the family dynamic itself in the United States has changed a great deal. There is a “meme” of sorts out there that over half of all marriages end in divorce, but when you seek out the statistics it is difficult to find a truly definitive number. However when you look for a consensus it would seem safe to assert that at least four out of every 10 marriages end in divorce. Most people who get divorced get remarried, and there are usually children from the previous marriages involved and this leads to blended families.
From an estate planning perspective people who become a part of a blended family oftentimes want to make sure that their children from their previous marriages are provided for come what may. The prenuptial agreement sometimes carries a stigma, but it isn’t necessarily just to protect the individual involved; the motivation behind a prenup could also be to protect your children. If you were to simply allow your spouse to absorb ownership of all the property that you brought into the union, there are no guarantees with regard to how he or she will choose to distribute these assets when the time comes. As noted above, remarriages are common, and your children and your surviving spouse may not have an especially good relationship.
So this is something to think about when you have children from a previous marriage and you are getting remarried. One course of action that many people choose is the execution of a prenuptial agreement along with a trust of some sort, and you have a number of different options. The best way to become apprised of them would be to consult with an estate planning attorney who has a wealth of experience handling blended family scenarios.
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