How to Change Beneficiaries in Divorce

A divorce does not automatically cancel a will or change a trust agreement between you and your spouse. This is why it is essential that you change the legal documents to ensure that the right beneficiaries are included in your will, trusts and insurance policies. You can only change beneficiaries in divorce once the judge has issued the final divorce decree. These changes might mean that your spouse is no longer the primary beneficiary of your assets. Your children and other trusted people such as relatives can take over as the main beneficiaries.

Instructions

    • 1

      Contact your insurance provider to execute a change of beneficiary in the insurance policy. Explain to the insurance agent that you want to change the beneficiaries of your life insurance policy. Fill in the forms provided by the insurance agency by indicating the name of the person you are removing and the names you are including. Sign and submit the forms to the insurance provider.

    • 2

      Add a codicil or an amendment to your current will to revoke parts of the will or to add new instructions. Use this option if the changes are only minor and will not contradict the rest of the document. Indicate any new terms you would like executed by the beneficiaries or executor and then add or remove beneficiaries to the will. Date and sign the amended will in the presence of a notary public.

    • 3

      Make a new will by acquiring the legal forms from your lawyer or downloading them online for free. Choose an executor of the will as the person who carries out the instructions in the will and represents you in case of death. Change the beneficiaries of the will, for example, by removing your spouse and indicating that your children shall be the main beneficiaries alongside any other person you wish to include. Sign the will in the presence of a notary such as an attorney. Destroy the previous wills to avoid challenges to the new will.

    • 4

      Amend or restate a living revocable trust to modify the beneficiaries in the trust. Amend the trust if there are minor changes to be made or restate if the changes are major. Indicate the names of the trustee, grantor and the beneficiaries you want to add or remove from the trust. Change any other instructions in the will. Leave the name of the trust to remain the same. Date and sign the trust in the presence of a notary public.

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