13 Mar Divorce and Remarriage – How Your Children Could Be Disinherited and How to Stop It From Happening
The Estate Planning Mistake That Could Cut Your Kids Out Completely
You’ve worked your entire life to build wealth—not just for yourself, but to secure your children’s future. You want your spouse taken care of when you’re gone, but you also want to make sure your kids inherit what’s rightfully theirs.
What if that never happens?
If you’re divorced and remarried, your estate plan has a massive blind spot that could leave your children with nothing.
Here’s how it happens:
You pass away first, leaving everything to your current spouse, assuming they’ll “do the right thing” and make sure your children eventually inherit their share.
But life happens.
Your spouse remarries, blends finances with a new partner, and over time, your wealth is no longer yours—it belongs to their new family.
When your spouse dies, their assets—including everything you left them—are passed to their new spouse or their own children.
Your kids? Completely cut out.
If you think, “That won’t happen to me”, think again. This happens all the time.
How Your Children Get Disinherited—And Why It’s Completely Legal
Most married couples leave everything to each other outright when one spouse dies. This means:
Your surviving spouse gets full control over your wealth.
They can rewrite their estate plan at any time.
Your children’s inheritance is no longer guaranteed.
And if your spouse remarries? The assets you worked for can now legally pass to their new spouse and their family.
This isn’t theoretical. It happens.
Here’s what it looks like in real life:
-Your children expect to inherit but find out they’ve been completely written out of the will.
-They try to fight it in court, but probate favors the current spouse.
-They end up spending hundreds of thousands in legal fees just to get a fraction of what was meant for them.
-Bitterness, resentment, and family feuds explode.
All because the original plan was based on good faith and hope instead of proper legal protection.
How to Protect Your Children Without Leaving Your Spouse Vulnerable
You don’t have to choose between taking care of your spouse and ensuring your children get what’s theirs. You just need the right estate planning strategy.
Here’s how you prevent this nightmare scenario:
–Use a Trust Instead of a Simple Will – A properly structured trust ensures that your spouse has access to income and assets while guaranteeing that your children inherit what’s meant for them—without leaving everything at risk of being diverted elsewhere.
–Set Clear Legal Protections – Your trust should dictate exactly who gets what, when, and under what conditions, rather than leaving it up to the survivor’s “good intentions.”
–Limit Unchecked Control – Instead of giving your spouse total access to all assets, structure the trust to provide for their needs while locking in your children’s inheritance.
– Work With an Experienced Estate Planning Attorney – This isn’t something a simple will or online legal form can fix. This is also not for just any attorney. Further, not even all estate planning attorneys know how to do this level of planning. You need a customized estate plan that accounts for family dynamics, remarriage risks, and long-term asset protection.
But, really, you need more than that . . .
You need an attorney who has done this specific planning countless times for families just like yours.
The Biggest Mistake You Can Make Is Doing Nothing
Most parents assume their spouse will “do the right thing” when they pass away. But life (and money) changes people.
New relationships, financial hardships, and shifting family loyalties can easily erase your children’s inheritance—unless you take steps now to protect it.
Don’t leave your legacy to chance. If you want to make sure your children inherit what you’ve built, it’s critical to put the right legal plan in place.
