Estate Planning for Widows and Widowers in Sonoma
After losing a spouse it can be difficult to look past your grief. Unfortunately, it may be necessary to make decisions regarding your finances and your personal estate plan. Estate planning is an ongoing process that accounts for changes like marriage, the birth of your children or grandchildren, divorces, job changes, changes in assets, acquiring or selling a business or business interests, and much more. Perhaps you and your spouse had an estate plan and you know exactly how his or her assets will be distributed.
On the other hand, you may not have had an estate plan, which leaves you with certain issues to deal with. Whether your spouse did or did not have a will, you will have to go through California probate—a process that can be lengthy and expensive. Some spouses—particularly those who left the financial decisions to their now-deceased spouse—may discover assets they were unaware of, or there may be fewer assets than they expected.
As the surviving spouse, there may also be some wealth transfer tools available, however, there is a window of time for such actions. Whatever your situation, you can benefit from speaking to a knowledgeable estate planning attorney from Gullotta Law Group. Since estate planning for widows and widowers can be a complex subject, you need the most experienced, knowledgeable estate planning attorney on your side.
How Can Losing a Spouse Affect Current Estate Plans?
What Are the Estate Planning Needs of a Surviving Spouse?
If your spouse died with no estate plan in place, it can be much more difficult for you to navigate the process. It also gives you an excellent reason to begin working on your own estate plan so your loved ones will not find themselves in the same position someday. You may feel as though you are being bombarded with all the tasks that must be completed. If all your financial information is organized and up-to-date, this is a much simpler process. If it all seems too overwhelming, start simple.
Have a will prepared by an estate planning professional and make sure you have up-to-date information on your own life insurance and retirement funds. From this point, you can add to your estate plan as you feel more able to do so. If you have young children you can name a guardian for them in your will. Death or incapacitation, when there is no level of estate plan, is a disservice to your loved ones. Added to their grief, they also have to deal with the courts only to find out that someone else is interpreting what will happen to your assets.
Stories That Speak
Trusted by Our Community, Proven Through Results
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Ashley’s warm welcome and Eric’s thorough, reassuring approach made estate planning easy. Don’t delay—great service for a better tomorrow!- Tracy S.
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Eric and the GLG team provided empathetic, step-by-step guidance during a difficult time, helping me navigate administering my mother’s trust with care.- Harper D.
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Eric and his team made creating an estate plan easy, answering all questions and accommodating our needs, even during the pandemic. Highly recommended!- Joelle S.
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Committed to Giving BackAs active and involved members of the Sonoma community, we are dedicated to making a positive impact, both professionally and personally, for the people we serve.
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Always Available for ClientsWe believe in making ourselves accessible to clients when they need us most. We are committed to providing responsive support throughout the entire probate process.
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Deep Roots in the CommunityBorn and raised in Sonoma, we are deeply familiar with the local community and its values, allowing us to provide a personalized, compassionate approach to every case.
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Expertise in Complex CasesWe have the knowledge and experience to handle even the most complex probate and estate matters, providing expert solutions tailored to your unique situation.
What Updates Are Necessary for Estate Planning for Surviving Spouses?
Estate planning for widows and widowers is different for each individual. The process will differ according to the level of assets, whether there are minor children involved, age, and many more factors, such as whether you and your spouse had an estate plan at the time of his or her death. If there was no estate plan, then you are essentially starting from scratch. A knowledgeable estate planning attorney can not only help you navigate all the unexpected issues that arise following your spouse’s death but can also help you begin planning for the future with your own estate planning documents.
While everyone’s estate planning needs are different, if you had prior estate planning documents your first task will be to replace your deceased spouse’s name on the documents with another person of your choice. That might be an adult child, a parent, or a close friend. You need to make sure that all your current documents no longer list your spouse as beneficiary, successor trustee, or executor. In addition to planning for your own death, you need to include a plan for a potential incapacitation so there will be a person who can make decisions on your behalf—as you would have yourself. An advance health care directive lets you make your wishes known, including whether you want heroic measures to save your life regardless of quality of life, whether you would want to be put on a feeding or breathing tube, and other equally important decisions.
If you are older or have had any level of medical issues, you and your spouse may have had HIPAA releases which allowed you to access one another’s medical records. You may want to choose a person you would trust to be able to speak to your doctors and inquire about your medical records. For those who had an estate plan in place, now is the time for you—as a surviving spouse—to take a second look at that plan and see if it still fits your life and your wishes. After carefully reviewing all beneficiary designations and ensuring all titles reflect the loss of your spouse, you and your estate planning attorney can look forward and decide what your estate plan should look like.