Do My Beneficiaries Have to Be Family Members?
Are you starting to think about estate planning, including making a will and naming beneficiaries on your insurance policy and bank accounts? If so, you are likely starting to think carefully about who (or what) you want to inherit your assets when you are no longer here. For many New Jersey residents, their children, parents, siblings, or other family members are first on their list. Yet for others, it may be that there is very little or no interest at all in leaving assets to family members. Rather, many New Jersey residents want to leave assets to long-term partners, close friends, or even charities they support.
Do your beneficiaries have to be family? Certainly not. Our Summit estate planning attorneys can tell you more, and we can begin working with you on your estate plan today.
Who Can Be a Beneficiary?
A beneficiary can, in effect, be any person or any entity of your choosing. A beneficiary has nothing to do with a blood relation, relation by marriage, or any other type of family relation. A beneficiary is quite simply a person or entity to whom your assets will go after your death, or to whom your assets associated with accounts, policies, or pensions should be paid.
You can name any person or entity you would like as a beneficiary. You can also choose multiple beneficiaries for different assets, and depending on the asset, you may be able to name multiple beneficiaries to share that asset (such as the funds in an account, or your pension). For many types of assets, you can also name alternate beneficiaries (in the event the original beneficiary dies before you can change your beneficiary designations). You can also name a mix of individuals and entities, such as a best friend and a charity, for example.
Methods of Designating Beneficiaries Will Vary
While you can name almost any individual or entity as a beneficiary, the way in which you will do so is going to differ depending on the asset and how you want it to pass to the beneficiaries of your choice.
For any assets that you want to leave through a will, you will need to name the beneficiaries for specific assets in your will. Those assets will then need to go through the probate process before they are distributed according to your wishes. You can also designate beneficiaries for insurance policies and pensions (often by simply identifying the person or entity on the document), and you can create payable-on-death beneficiary designations for various types of bank accounts. These latter types of beneficiary designations do not require probate — the assets can pass quickly to the beneficiary of your choosing.
Contact a Summit, New Jersey Estate Planning Lawyer
If you want to find out more about designating beneficiaries as part of your estate plan, or if you want to learn about changing beneficiary designations, it is important to seek advice from a lawyer who has experience handling estate planning matters in New Jersey. Depending on the asset and the beneficiary designation, you may need to create a new document or series of documents with your lawyer’s help, or you may simply be able to amend existing one. One of the experienced Summit estate planning lawyers at Dempsey, Dempsey & Sheehan is here to assist you. Contact us today to find out more about the estate planning services we provide in New Jersey.
Source:
nj.gov/treasury/pensions/documents/factsheets/fact68.pdf
