As a caring parent, you have probably made an estate plan and allocated your assets to your children. However, you might be a bit uncertain whether your son or daughter married the right person and if what you leave them with will someday be given to their ex-spouse. Each state in the US is different, but when assets are inherited by your child, the assets typically do not become part of the marital estate. It is important to understand how properties are divided during a divorce in order to know how to protect your child's inheritance in the event of a divorce. Here is everything you need to know about your estate plan and whether it can protect your children in the event of a divorce.
Estate Plan and Divorce
It is commonly stated that inherited assets are separate property, and they are not subject to a divorce. However, while this is true on the surface, it can easily become slippery down the road. Once your child inherits the property, it will depend on what they do with the property. Mostly, your child will mix the money and other assets with marital assets. They might use the money to pay for mortgages or decide to use marital assets to renovate inherited properties. When the spouse is filing for divorce, they will claim that inherited assets have been converted to marital assets because marital funds were used for renovations or other purposes.
