Golden Romance Is an Act of Estate Planning
When young people fall in love, there are monsters lurking in the shadows. Which monsters you fear the most depends on your own situation and those of people you know. Some people fear teen pregnancy, followed by a lifetime of financial stress and co-parenting conflict with your ex, your parents, and eventually your own children. Others fear a lifetime of micromanagement by their in-laws, where even divorce cannot free them from the tyranny of the relatives of their former spouses. Once you are on the far side of 50, though, the monsters of your youth can no longer scare you, much as the movie monsters of the Hollywood studio system era now seem quite tame. You might approach golden romance with a fearless attitude. You and your new love are free to conduct your relationship in the manner that suits you. Societal expectations and your biological clock are a distant memory. Of course, third act monsters are just as scary, and even more surprising. Late in life romance can be a MacGuffin that sets in motion decades of family drama. It’s all fun and games until one of the two amorous seniors becomes ill or dies. This catastrophic ending is not inevitable, though. You can avoid a tragic ending to your golden romance with a well-crafted estate plan and a Bronx estate planning lawyer.
The Mature Way to Get Remarried
Until recently, young couples did not sign prenuptial agreements unless at least one spouse was fabulously wealthy. If you get married after 50, you have enough of a financial history that it is important to put in writing which of your property will become marital and which will not. Stepparent drama is not just for temperamental teenagers. Disputes between a surviving spouse and his or her stepchildren in probate court can be even uglier. The best thing to do is to draft a prenuptial agreement and update your will, so that the two documents match and do not contradict each other, when you remarry.
It’s Not Fear of Commitment; It’s an Estate Plan
Some seniors who find love choose not to remarry. They want each other’s companionship without all the financial entanglements. They want to relate to their partner’s children as friends and not as stepparents.
If you choose this path, you still need a detailed estate plan. Do you want your partner to speak on your behalf about healthcare decisions in the event of your serious illness, or does that role belong to one of your children or siblings? What, if anything, will your partner inherit from you if he or she outlives you? There is no universally correct answer, but whatever you choose, you should indicate it clearly in your will and other estate planning documents.
Schedule a Confidential Consultation With a Bronx Estate Planning Attorney
An estate planning lawyer can help you update your estate planning documents accordingly when you enter a marriage or romantic relationship late in life. Contact Cavallo & Cavallo in the Bronx, New York to set up a consultation.
Source:
leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0732/Sections/0732.201.html