It’s one of those scenarios you hope never plays out—but it happens more often than you’d think. You set up a trust. Your spouse is the primary beneficiary, and after they’re gone, your kids are supposed to receive what’s left. Simple, right?
Then life happens. Your spouse remarries. And suddenly you’re left wondering: Is there any way to make sure the new spouse doesn’t end up with everything you worked to leave your family?
How Remarriage Can Unravel Your Estate Plan
If you created a trust years ago and didn’t include any protections against this kind of thing, the hard truth is probably not. The good news? If you’re alive to read this, there are ways to fix it moving forward.
We’ve helped clients update their trusts to include remarriage restrictions. These provisions allow a surviving spouse to keep access to the trust assets for life—unless they get remarried. At that point, if they still want access to the assets, the trust forces their hand to sign a prenuptial agreement.
Now, you might wonder—who’s that really for? Is it about controlling what my spouse does with the money?
No. It’s not about controlling spending; it’s about protecting the people you originally intended to benefit. These remarriage provisions aren’t trying to make life harder for your surviving spouse. They’re designed to keep outside influences—like a new spouse—from redirecting your assets away from your kids or other intended beneficiaries.
Why This Protection Matters
We’ve seen this go sideways for those who assumed a clause like this would never be needed. If someone remarries, the trust doesn’t have these protections, and suddenly the money becomes joint property. (See our last blog for a few thoughts on joint property.)
Fast forward: both spouses have passed away, and not a single dollar flows to the children from the first marriage. The entire estate ends up in “the new family’s tree.”
It’s a scary outcome, but it happens. Unless you’re mindful of this possibility, it could happen to your family.
Real-Life Example: A Cautionary Tale
One case still stands out to us. A client’s father passed away a decade ago, and his mother eventually remarried. The new husband was a nice guy, had plenty of his own money, and everything seemed fine.
Nothing seemed out of line until the mother recently passed and the unexpected happened.
Despite having the financial means, the new husband left nothing—literally zero—to our clients. Everything went to his own children. As one client joked (with more than a little bitterness), “Not even a peck on the cheek.”
The Bottom Line
This isn’t about controlling people from beyond the grave. It’s about ensuring that the assets you worked so hard to build go exactly where you intended. With a little thoughtful planning—through remarriage restrictions and smart trust design—you can protect your legacy and provide for your family, no matter what twists life throws their way.
If this is a topic you want to research further for yourself, we invite you to reach out.
