What Happens When You Marry the Love of Your Life After Inheriting Money from Your Parents?
Finding true love late in life is a beautiful thing. The previous pain you have experienced, whether it is from divorce, the death of your first spouse, or just many years of loneliness and assuming you would never find your perfect match, makes you appreciate your partner even more. Even if you had a happy marriage that lasted for decades before your first spouse died and before you met your current partner, settling down with your partner is even more blissful in your golden years, because you are wise enough not to sweat the small stuff like you used to do when you were young. It is still possible for seniors to have conflicts about money and about their estate plan, though. Even if you are confident that you and your spouse will stay together for the rest of your lives, a prenuptial agreement might be instrumental to avoiding estate-related family conflicts. If you are a senior planning to marry in the near future, a Central Florida estate planning lawyer can help you draft a prenuptial agreement and update your will to match its provisions.
The Difference Between Marital Property and Separate Property Matters for Couples Who Marry Late in Life
The stereotypical prenuptial agreement is signed between a wealthy, divorced man over age 50 and his much younger, never before married wife; it limits the amount of alimony she can receive if they divorce. In practice, prenuptial agreements cover a wide variety of issues, from student debt to Orthodox Jewish divorce declarations to pets. A couple that marries late in life, especially if they both have children from previous marriages, is the ideal candidate for a prenuptial agreement.
The main purpose of prenuptial agreements is to classify certain assets (such as bank accounts, business ownership interests, and real estate properties) and liabilities (such as debts) as separate, meaning that they will continue to belong only to one spouse after the couple gets married. Divorce courts rely on prenuptial agreements when they seek to divide the couple’s marital property, because the agreements specify what is and what is not marital property.
Under Florida law, the default option is for your spouse to inherit your entire estate. A prenuptial agreement can specify that some assets will not become part of your marital estate; this way, your children from your first marriage can have their inheritance, and your spouse’s children can have their inheritance. Of course, you can also accomplish this by specifying it in your will. It is even better if you have a prenuptial agreement that agrees with the provisions in your will. This way, if one of your family members tries to challenge your will, the prenuptial agreement provides additional documentation of your wishes. Furthermore, drafting a prenuptial agreement is a great way to make sure that you and your spouse are on the same page about finances.
Contact Us Today for Help
An estate planning lawyer can help you make a new estate plan now that you have found a partner with whom to share your golden years. Contact Tampa estate planning lawyer David Toback for more information today.
https://www.davidtobacklaw.com/introduction-to-probate-and-estate-law-vocabulary/
