Updating Your Estate Plan After a New Child or Grandchild in Oklahoma

Estate planning should not be viewed as a “one-and-done” activity. Your estate plan should be flexible, and you should revisit your estate plan and corresponding legal documents on a regular basis. One of the most common times to update an estate plan is after the birth of a child or grandchild. Keep reading below to learn more about this important process.

What Is an Estate Plan?

An estate plan is a comprehensive approach to planning how your assets will be handled after your death. Many estate plans also address a person’s wishes about potential end-of-life medical treatment. A thorough estate plan considers your overall personal, family, and financial situation. Estate plans commonly include multiple legal documents, such as:

• Wills
• Trusts
• Powers of attorney
• Advance health directives

Your estate plan is personal to you, and you may decide to change or update your estate plan at any time.

How Do I Update My Estate Plan?

Updating your estate plan does not have to be complicated. The specific steps you should take to update your plan depend on your existing documents as well as what changes you plan to make. After the birth of a child or grandchild, you should:

• Review existing documents: Perform a thorough evaluation of your existing estate documents, such as wills, trusts, and beneficiary designations, and identify where potential gaps exist.
• Name a guardian: After the birth of a child, you will want to be sure you name a guardian for that child in the event of your death before they become an adult. Remember that you cannot name a guardian through a trust, so you must have a will in place to do this.
• Change distributions as necessary: Make sure that you add the new child or grandchild to your will or trust documents by name to avoid any legal confusion. This avoids ambiguity and ensures that the child receives exactly what you intended.
• Update beneficiaries: Remember that things like investment accounts, retirement accounts, and life insurance policies are also part of your overall estate plan. Review your beneficiary designations and make adjustments as necessary.
• Get help from an attorney: Changes to your estate plan must be done according to the rules of Oklahoma law. If you are unsure of how to formally and legally make these changes, make sure you get help from an experienced attorney who can ensure that the changes you wish to make are legally valid.

In most cases, you should destroy all prior versions of wills and other estate documents to avoid confusion once a new version has been executed.

Get Help Making Updates to Your Estate Plan

If you have recently welcomed a new child or grandchild, contact the team at Helton Law Firm. We can help you perform a thorough review of your estate plan and identify any changes that might be necessary. Call us today to schedule a consultation and let us help ensure that your estate plan remains up-to-date with your changing family.