Even love drunk celebrities that jump on Oprah’s couch get divorced. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes who were married for more than 5 years are no longer Hollywood’s picture perfect couple. The painful truth is that divorce in America is an epidemic with one in two marriages doomed to fail.

Estate planning becomes critical during such a major change in one’s life. It is paramount to contact your estate planning attorney so that you can update your Will and all necessary documents to reflect your new marital status. Not doing so is just risky business.

When you married, you probably left a large portion of your estate to your spouse by designating him or her as the primary beneficiary of your Will. You might want to rethink your asset distribution and appoint a new personal representative to administer your estate. Your attorney can redraft your entire Will or prepare a specialized addendum called a “codicil” to reflect these changes.

You may also want to update supplementary documents concerning incapacity such as the Durable Power of Attorney form and the Designation of Health Care Surrogate form. After divorce, the last person you probably want making financial and health care decisions on your behalf is your ex-spouse.

To avoid heading up the creek, you should also thoroughly review any existing Revocable Living Trusts. Most people prefer to remove the name of their ex-spouse as Trustee or beneficiary of the trust. When it comes to amending the terms of a trust, certain tax advantages could be lost so it’s important to consult your attorney as soon as possible.

With respect to life insurance, you will most likely prefer to re-designate the beneficiary of your policy. However, keep in mind that if such a step is taken prior to the final entry of a Divorce Decree, any accumulated cash value may be deemed a marital asset and thus become subject to equitable distribution in a divorce settlement.

The dissolution of marriage is a difficult and painful process; however, in South Florida, modifying your estate plan doesn’t have to be a mission impossible. With the help of your qualified South Florida estate planning attorney, all contingencies will be accounted for to ensure the protection of your assets and proper allocation to your intended beneficiaries.

If you have family, friends or even a charitable intent, the absence of an estate plan is inexcusable. For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?