When I got divorced I realized that I had a dilemma about how to provide for my sons if something were to happen to me.  I didn’t want the money to go straight to them because then my ex-husband might somehow get control of it.  They were too young to leave it to them directly.  I figured my sister was the best bet.

From what I understand, if you leave your house, your life insurance, etc. to someone who is married, then that inheritance is protected in the event of a divorce.  My life insurance is a term life insurance policy that I think I’ll drop as soon as the boys are in college, but I didn’t even leave that to my spouse!  If we have kids together, then that might change, but all of my big things are things I acquired when my mother died, and I’m guess I’m just practicing protocol in assuming it’s all mine and not under the realm of community property.  And my sister’s a good choice since it was her mother’s stuff, too.  I do trust my sister.  She can be an executrix and distribute the money to my sons when they come of age.  But if I left it to my husband, he might remarry and who knows what it would necessarily be used for?

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