Lots of us are part of blended families. Sometimes that comes with a whole lot of blended problems in estate planning.

There are a few ways to avoid making your estate a Jerry Springer episode after you pass away. Of course, one of those ways is a notarized will here in Louisiana and Mississippi. But are you writing the right stuff in it?

Are there other ways you can handle your estate so there isn’t a free for all when you’re gone?

Gather ‘round: it’s time to learn from a Louisiana and Mississippi lawyer.

What Are Blended Families?

You can think of blended families in a few ways:

1. ‍The married kind, like the Brady Bunch. There’s stepchildren, half-siblings, stepparents, adopted adults, and on down (or up) the line. Everyone knows who everyone is. ‍
2. The “separated” but not divorced kind. Yall want out of the marriage but neither of you have filed a divorce proceeding. Too bad- you’re still married.
3.  The Jerry Springer kind. You find out later that Dad had a secret life, or just a few other kids, and no knew about them until he passed away.‍
4. The “we filed for divorce but aren’t divorced yet” kind. This depends on what state you’re in. And, yes, it even matters if you filed a community property partition but didn’t finalize the divorce yet. Whoopsies. ‍
5. The adopted kind. Now, yall know we do a ton of Louisiana adult adoptions and children adoptions. I don’t even like putting this here as a type of blended family, because it my eye (and my clients’), they are just family. However, in Louisiana the adoptee can still inherit from the bioparents and family members.‍
6. The “we got divorced but they’re my best friend” kind. Yall got divorced, but you didn’t update the will to say we got divorced, but I still want ex-spouse to get XYZ. In Louisiana, if you don’t have that in writing, then the Court may take out any bequeaths to your ex and ex-stepkids since the will was pre-divorce. Whoopsie daisy.
7. The “I divorced my ex, not my step kids” kind. Same as #6. If you don’t have a will leaving them what you want, they ain’t gonna get it.
8. LGBTQIA. Again, like adoption, I don’t like listing this, but as of the date I’m writing this, the law is not clear for my LGBTQIA+ family folx. There are terms like “biological” and “legal” parent, adoptions, and other things we seriously have to consider and make sure our wills and powers of attorney are gone over with a fine-toothcomb.

Set Up or Update Your Wills

You need clear and specific language in accordance with your state’s law to avoid ambiguities in your wills. Don’t be afraid of using (appropriate) disclaimers and beneficiary designations to protect assets.

If you want your blended family members to get property (remember, legal property isn’t just a house. It’s everything you possess like bank accounts, cash, cars, pets, and jewelry too), list them and say that!

If you have filed a will with your Clerk of Court and you update it, make sure to file that one to replace it! It makes life a lot easier on your loved ones and lessens the arguing or potential for folx saying it was forged.

It sounds cliché, but in my experience, do not expect people to play nice or act nice. When it comes to property, as the kids say, people can go feral. If you want an amount of funds or a particular asset to go to someone, spell it on out in a will.

List out your first, second, and third choice for Executor and any Trustee or Guardian. Don’t forget about your pets and you can set up a pet trust, too.

Disinherit that Person

Don’t leave it to chance if you are estranged from someone. Disinherit them, appropriately, in your will. We have often seen adult children come out of the woodwork or after using DNA tests like 23 And Me.

We can include language to leaves portions to who you want, even if someone comes along later.

Consider a Louisiana Trust or Mississippi Trust

You can avoid an all-out brawl over your assets by creating a trust before you pass away. There are a few variants:

1. ‍Testamentary Trust. This is a trust that is “automatic” upon your death. A testamentary trust creation must be listed in your will and lay out the beneficiaries, the property to include, and a whole bunch of legal jargon. Folx use this when they have minor children, special needs family members (who can’t inherit large sums or it’ll harm their insurance benefits and SSI), or they want to leave property to someone…but maybe they think they need someone to manage it for them. They name a trustee and lay out who gets what and when.‍
2. Living Trust. This is made when you’re alive.
3.  Revocable Trust. This is a trust that can be modified or, you guessed it, revoked
4.  Irrevocable Trust. This is a trust that cannot be modified or revoked without beneficiary permission. This means if you set it up during your lifetime, you can’t change it unless the folx you leave stuff to say ok to it.

Get That Prenuptial or Postnuptial Agreement

Marrying later in life or for the second (or third, fourth, fifth) time? Get a prenuptial agreement before you are married. This can protect your assets and keep all property “separate” so that only your children or heirs get the full portion of it without splitting it.

Don’t fret if you didn’t have a pre-nup. You can draft one now and submit it to a court to approve. Even as a Louisiana Northshore lawyer, we still have to draft post-nups for folx.

Know Your Wishes For Your Remains

I know, I know. It sounds so morbid, but if you want to donate your body to science, you need to fill out paperwork before you’ve passed away. Families love to argue over this. The same applies to organ donation.

Don’t Forget About Your Life Insurance and Retirement Benefits

Yall forget about this one all the time and you don’t even need a lawyer to do it. You can always purchase a life insurance policy for members of your blended family payable upon your death. Make sure you’ve listed beneficiaries with your pension and retirement plans too.

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Remember to Have Your Louisiana Business Will  and Mississippi Business Will Handled

Ok, a business will isn’t a real term. However, if you are an LLC, then this happens in your Operating Agreement. If you are a corporation, it should be in your bylaws. A “business will” allows the company to keep operating, but it’s your actual will that lists who gets a share in it, too. You want both to line up.

Don’t forget to include who owns your intellectual property like trademarks and copyrights.

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Louisiana and Mississippi Specific Considerations

Look, I get it. You aren’t out here just googling wills and trusts for blended families. You may not even be searching for a Slidell lawyer, but here you are.

If you need a Louisiana lawyer that also doubles as a Mississippi lawyer, then you’ve come to the right spot. As a dual licensed lawyer, I’m able to help guide you with your trust administration and estate planning on both side of the state line. We come up with a strategic plan that takes care of the Louisiana probate process and Mississippi probate process too.

Our firm has experience in multiple parishes like St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Orleans, Jefferson, and St. Bernard and Harrison County, Pearl River County, and more. It’s my job to try to think of the scenarios I’ve seen and make sure that doesn’t happen to you.

Need Help with Slidell Wills and Estate Planning?

Contact us at Sheppard Law at 985-326-1656 (call or text) to schedule a paid consultation ($350) or request an estate planning packet.

Our estate planning package includes Body Donation form along with will, living will, durable power of attorney, and medical power of attorney in a discounted package. To make your life easier, we do offer traveling will services for our clients.