When thinking about estate planning, the word “children” can be more nuanced than one might realize. The phrase, “my children” may appear to be an obvious reference to your biological children, however there are many other definitions of “child” especially in modern society.
For example, adopted children are typically treated equally with biological children in most places. Therefore, using the phrase “my children” in a will or trust would apply to those adopted children as well as biological children. However, with divorce and remarriage becoming more common, step children are being included in estate planning more than ever. But in most cases, step-children are not considered to be “children” under the law. As a result, using terms such as “children” may unintentionally disinherit one’s step-children.
These are only a few of the ways in which the word “children” can be an inadequate way of referring to your beneficiaries in your estate planning documents. This illustrates just another reason why it is so crucial to be selective in choosing a financial advisor to help navigate the complicated waters of estate planning.