When a parent passes away, his or her estate usually goes to their spouse. Then, when the spouse dies, the estate is distributed among their surviving children. However, this plan doesn’t work with blended families, as reported in a recent Wall Street Journal article entitled “The Brady Bunch Breaks Down: Estate Fights Tear Stepfamilies Apart.” The article detailed horror stories about what can happen to blended families after a loved one passes.

One married couple featured in the article, Barbara and James, established a joint trust for their biological children and respective stepchildren. However, when Barbara passed, James moved all of the assets into a new trust and named his biological son sole beneficiary. When Barbara’s biological children found out about it after James died, they filed an appeal. The courts ruled that James was not entitled to withdraw all the funds, and a trial is scheduled to identify what assets must be returned to the other children.

In other cases, adult biological children of deceased persons are shocked to learn that they inherited nothing while a stepparent got it all. A scenario like this often ends in hard feelings, fights, and estrangement.

How can this be avoided? Better estate planning and better premarital planning, including:

A prenuptial or postnuptial agreement: Marriage automatically gives spouses legal protections in addition to property rights. A prenup or postnup can be a crucial estate planning document for blended families to help a spouse ensure his or her separate property goes to biological children upon death.
Separate inheritances: Separate trusts outside of the main estate plan can guarantee biological children the inheritance their parent intended.
Outsiders as executors/trustees: This can help provide a more objective viewpoint than giving the role to the child of one parent.

Every scenario is different, and it is beneficial to consult a family law attorney for specifics of your situation.

If you are seeking a top Bucks County attorney for prenuptial agreements, contact us at 215-340-2207 or email info@bucksfamilylawyers.com.