Estate Planning for Expecting Moms

If you are expecting your first (or second, or third) child and are thinking about getting your estate plan together – good idea! Estate planning, especially for expecting moms, is an important part of our motherhood “duty” and a great gift to give your unborn child.

Last Will and Testaments for Expecting Moms

With minor children, an important piece of your estate plan is a last will and testament that outlines the distribution of your assets upon your death. While most moms want their assets to go to their children, and while your child(ren) are generally the ones to inherit any of your assets through Florida law, if you do not have a will (or as discussed below, a trust) in place, this can be more complicated than you may think. Minor children cannot often own assets (or know how to use them to their benefit!).

Therefore, you will need to make specific provisions to ensure someone you trust will manage the assets for your children. This can be your significant other, a family member, or friend. Who you choose can have big ramifications, so this is something we discuss during our planning meeting.

Trusts for Expecting Moms

As alluded to above, a revocable living trust can be beneficial to an expecting mother. Generally, we execute a living trust in addition to a will. A trust allows you to put some or all of your assets into it and upon your death, a successor trustee will come in to manage those trust assets. This will ensure that your children (or whomever you choose as beneficiary) are entitled to the benefits of the trust.

By executing (and fully funding!) a revocable living trust as part of your estate plan, you can avoid the delay that often happens with probate. This will help reduce (or altogether eliminate) the gap in access to resources for your child(ren).

Health Care Surrogate for Expecting Moms

Another important estate planning document for expecting moms is the health care surrogate. By appointing a health care surrogate, you allow a trusted friend or family member to act on your behalf with respect to medical matters if you are otherwise unable to do so. This can be helpful if something happens during labor and delivery (or at any other point before or after the birth of your child!) and you are unable to communicate your wishes but the doctors need someone to make an important decision with respect to your treatment and care.

Jacksonville Estate Planning Attorney

The above list is not exhaustive, but it highlights some of the reasons expecting moms need to consider estate planning. If you are in Florida and are interested in discussing whether a will is right for you, contact us today. If you are ready to get started on your Florida estate plan, you can do so here.