Hanlon Niemann Blog | A Freehold, New Jersey Law Firm

A number of years ago, I received a call from a potential client who had the following tale to tell.  The woman’s husband had died leaving a will and some assets, one of which was a 401k. The marriage was a second for her husband, who had 2 sons from his first marriage.  While he was single he had changed the beneficiaries of his life insurance and 401k plan to his sons and had redone his will.
 
After his second marriage, the husband and his new wife bought a new home together.  They asked their real estate attorney, who handled the purchase for them, to draft new wills as well.  The husband listed for his attorney the assets he wanted to pass to his sons and which to his new wife.  The 401k he wanted to go to his wife. Unfortunately, the attorney didn’t understand the difference between probate and non-probate assets.  So when he wrote  a will that specifically left the 401k to the wife, he didn’t know that the will would have no effect on this asset because the beneficiary designations on file with the custodian of the 401k plan still listed the sons from the first marriage.
 
When the husband died, the wife received a big shock when she was told that she had no interest in the $500,000 account.  That’s because a will doesn’t automatically control the distribution of all your assets.  Contract property such as life insurance, annuities and retirement accounts pass in accordance with whom you have designated on the beneficiary forms completed and filed with the life insurance and annuity companies or retirement account custodians.  Other types of property pass by operation of law such as joint accounts with right of survivorship or real estate that is owned by husband and wife.  When one owner dies the property automatically passes to the surviving owner.  It does not matter what the will says.
 
That is what happened in our story.  The 401k is contract property so it passed according to the beneficiary designation form on file, not by the will.  The wife tried unsuccessfully to get a court order directing the funds be paid to her.

The moral of the story is that although many people think drafting a will is simple and often undertake to do it themselves or ask the attorney who did other work for them to handle this task as well, they may miss important steps that must be taken that can save a lot of heartache and money. 

This example is further reason why attorneys should reconsider doing “simple wills” when requested by a client.  Simple does not mean right.  For more information on this post, contact Fredrick P. Niemann, Esq. at fniemann@hnlawfirm.com.

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Seniors who get remarried are often concerned about what will happen to their assets if their new spouse enters the nursing home in the future. They are concerned that their hard-earned assets they saved could be lost. They also want to make sure that when they die their assets will go to their children. Although the prenuptial agreement will protect the senior’s assets from claims of his surviving spouse when he dies, the prenuptial agreement does not protect his assets from his spouse’s nursing home expenses. Seniors who have entered into second marriages are often surprised to learn that the prenuptial agreement that specified that their spouse had no claim to their assets does not prevent Medicaid from counting the assets of the spouse at home in determining Medicaid eligibility.

Medicaid is the governmental program that pays nursing home costs when a senior runs out of assets. Until the nursing home resident has less than $2,000 of countable assets, he must pay his own nursing home costs. When countable assets are less than $2,000, Medicaid will begin paying the senior’s nursing home costs.

However, just because the nursing home spouse has less than $2,000 in assets does not necessarily mean that the nursing home spouse will be eligible for Medicaid. Instead, despite the prenuptial agreement, Medicaid looks at the assets of both spouses. The rules for determining Medicaid eligibility are exactly the same for couples with prenuptial agreements and those without them.

This does not mean that all assets of both spouses must be used up before Medicaid will begin paying nursing home costs. Congress passed “spousal impoverishment rules” to keep the spouse at home from having to be completely impoverished before Medicaid payments kick in.

Under these rules, the amount that the at-home spouse can keep is based on the resources that the couple has at the time one spouse enters an institution. Resources are counted (often referred to as a “snapshot” of resources) as of the date a senior first begins a period of continuous institutionalization. This can be when a senior enters a nursing home or when he first entered a hospital. So, if a spouse first enters a hospital prior to a nursing home, the snapshot is taken based on the date of admission to the hospital, not the nursing home. The spouse at home is permitted to keep half of the couple’s countable assets as of the snapshot date, up to $101,640; but the spouse in the nursing home is limited to $2,000 of countable assets.

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Many families are concerned that if a spouse enters a long-term care facility, then the marital home will be eventually lost. Medicaid has no intention of evicting the at-home spouse (also known as the “community spouse”). Nor does Medicaid require the at-home spouse to sell the home and apply the proceeds toward long-term care costs. However, Medicaid can, under the veil of estate recovery, place a “lien” of claim on the subject premises. When the community spouse passes away or sells the house, then Medicaid can demand to be reimbursed for all monies expended on behalf of the ailing spouse.

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The old saying goes “a little bit older, a little bit wiser.” If your next marriage isn’t your first one, then you have probably learned that marriage is more than romance – it’s finance. You don’t have to be a multimillionaire to consider the benefits of a prenuptial agreement. Think of it as a business arrangement or as an insurance policy to help remove some of the emotional angst of getting remarried. A prenuptial agreement and the earnest discussions that go with it can help ensure the financial well-being of the marriage. Under the laws of New Jersey, the court divides assets based on what it considers a fair distribution. The judge would take into consideration such factors as the length of the marriage, whether there are children born of the marriage, and the couple’s age, health, job skills, the income of the parties, and other factors.

With those facts in mind, it is easy to see why a prenuptial agreement could be one of the best decisions that you make in your life. Here are some tips to successfully deal with some of the thorny issues that surround a prenuptial agreement:

a. Discuss the subject early. The mention of a prenuptial agreement shouldn’t come as a surprise if you and your companion have been open with each other as the relationship became more serious.

b. Ask your attorney at the first meeting what the anticipated charges will be.

c. Hire separate attorneys. To help ensure that a prenuptial agreement will be legally enforceable, both spouses must hire separate lawyers. Use only matrimonial lawyers who are familiar with prenuptial agreements. Moreover, make sure that your lawyer has at least ten years of experience.

d. Make sure the agreement is in writing and ensure that the signing is witnessed by a lawyer.

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Many widows and widowers simply do not like living alone after their beloved spouse dies. As widows and widowers increasingly meet and decide to get remarried, they need to be aware of important estate planning considerations. As the life expectancy of people in the United States dramatically increases, the reality of second and third marriages becomes more likely. Widows and widowers are increasingly likely to meet and decide that a second marriage is an excellent way to avoid spending their golden years alone.

A remarriage can be one of the best parts of a senior’s life. However, a remarriage later in life often creates a unique set of legal questions. For example, many older clients take for granted that their adult children will inherit from them when they pass away. The reasoning behind this assumption is because the majority of their property and life have been spent with their previous spouse, who was often a co-parent to those children, and the one who helped to build or sustain the family assets.

However, a new marriage means that the marital property is governed by the laws of the new marriage. If there is no prenuptial agreement, then the surviving spouse would, under the laws of New Jersey, inherit at least one-third of the estate. This means that the adult children from the first marriage might be in for a rude awakening. A large part of the children’s inheritance might be “swallowed up” by the second spouse’s right to inherit one-third of her new husband’s estate.

The problems that are created by second marriages should not be taken lightly. It is important to talk these things through with your future spouse. Chances are, he or she also wants to make sure that adult children receive assets. If you don’t have a frank discussion with your would-be spouse, you may end up causing your loved ones a great deal of heartache and confusion as they struggle to figure out what would be best and what you would have wanted.

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Due to an increased life expectancy, a 50% or higher divorce rate in the United States, and an increasing amount of second marriages, prenuptial agreements are now widely accepted. It is very important for seniors to approach the idea of a prenuptial agreement with an open mind. It must be emphasized that a prenuptial agreement does not mean that you are planning to get a divorce, or that you do not trust your new spouse. Instead, senior couples are now recognizing the seriousness of their upcoming commitment of marriage. Moreover, senior couples are now communicating their concerns for the future financial security of their other relatives, and are expressing their respect for the hard-earned assets and accomplishments of their future spouse.

Although many people look at a prenuptial contract as rather “unromantic,” the reality is that individuals in middle and later life are likely to have more significant assets than younger couples. Additionally, seniors often have important financial obligations in the form of alimony or child support payments, hard-earned estates they wish to leave to their children, and emotional baggage from their previous marriages. In order to provide a solid foundation for their future marriage, seniors should consider sorting through their finances. They should also create a plan for how they will merge their economic as well as their emotional lives.

Seniors should not jump into the serious business of marriage. There are some very harsh consequences that can occur if a senior does not carefully plan for economic ramifications. Life is not a romantic experience. If seniors came with me to divorce court for a week, then at least half would choose not to get remarried. At this later stage of life, seniors should carefully prepare a detailed and comprehensive prenuptial agreement that addresses every aspect of their financial life.

APPELLATE DIVISION RULES ON SPOUSAL ELECTIVE SHARE RIGHTS UNDER A PREMARITAL CONTRACT

The New Jersey Appellate Division on June 20, 2007, decided that a widow’s premarital waiver of an elective share to the Estate of her late husband was void when the underlying premarital contract was found unenforceable.

In a case between a step-parent and the children of the decedent, the issued involved the enforceability of the steps-parents’ rights to inherit a portion of her late husband’s estate, even though she had waived her rights to the estate before her marriage. The Court found that because of the requirements of N.J.S.A. 3B:8-10 and N.J.S.A. 37:2-30, the premarital agreement could not be enforced and, therefore, plaintiff’s waiver was unenforceable.

Fredrick P. Niemann, Esq. of Hanlon Niemann, a Freehold New Jersey law firm commented that this decision points out the extreme caution and adherence to form and substance that must be followed by individuals who contemplate second and/or successive marriages and who want to protect their estate for the benefit of their children. Mr. Niemann cautions that without a carefully prepared pre-marital agreement, “Older, financially successful men and women must be aware of the significant, almost enormous risks to them should the marriage fail. By consulting with a qualified attorney, the individual can take meaningful steps to protect their life’s savings for the benefit of all who are intended to receive it.”

Mr. Niemann is a partner of Hanlon Niemann, P.C. and directs the firm’s business and estate/elder law practice group. The case referred to is In The Estate of Shenn, A-3819-05T5.