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When to Review Your Estate Plan: Upon the Birth of Child

On Behalf of | Oct 12, 2010 | Estate Planning |

We’ve discussed the estate plan as an evolving document in previous posts. While an invaluable tool for mapping the future, estate plans cannot take into account all of the changes you are likely to go through in your life.

These life-changing events might include a marriage or divorce, certain debilitating conditions or the birth of a child.

In a recent Q&A for the Northwest Indiana Times, business columnist Christopher Yugo spoke to the importance of updating your estate plan upon the birth of a child.

One of the biggest considerations you will want to undertake revolves around the question of guardianship. In the tragic event of your passing, who will take care of your child? These aren’t questions any new parent wants to think about and for most they will never come into play.

However, a large part of planning your estate is accounting for various “what ifs.”

Therefore, it is extremely important to take the question of guardianship seriously. Yugo also cites the medical power of attorney, which could be invoked if you were to leave your child in someone else’s care for a brief time and the child suffered an injury.

Then, there are the more obvious questions, such as those regarding the distribution of assets. Setting aside provisions for your child’s well-being is the goal most parents come in with when updating their plans.

Don’t forget the others though. Estate planning is a nuanced, complicated area of the law. It’s important to do it right the first time, but it’s also important to recognize when “the first time” no longer fits your present situation.

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