Will and minor child

[Bimmerbill]

I am wondering how anyone else set up their will when they have minor children and an ex-spouse.

If I leave all my beneficiaries as they are, ex-wife gets my estate if I die. I am not entirely OK with doing this despite the fact that ex-wife will also get the kid.

I am considering setting up a trust for the kid tho. I am not sure ex-wife could handle the $ and provide for the kid.

I could set up a special needs trust, but unsure if that would meet all of my needs.

Are there other options I am missing? I am court ordered to leave my life insurance to ex-wife, but that leaves my pensions, 401K, work benefits, social security, etc.

 

[brewer12345]

I would imagine that your question would best be discussed with an estate attorney, but it isn't obvious to me why you could not set up a springing trust for the kids and choose someone other than your ex to be trustee.

 

[SecondCor521]

I am in the same situation as you, Bimmerbill.

In my case, my will has my estate going into a testamentary trust (i.e., created by my will) for my three kids. My sister is the trustee, and has latitude to pay for whatever expenses she approves of from the trust while they are minors. The kids get 1/3 of their portion of the trust at age 30, 35, and 40.

It's not complicated; all the stuff for the trust is directly in my will. My attorney treated it as all very run-of-the-mill stuff.

FYI, in my state, there is a specific state law that says if you're divorced, your ex is treated as pre-deceasing you for the purposes of interpreting your will. I dunno if your state has a similar provision.

2Cor521