Emotional Considerations in Making a Will

When you are getting ready to make a will, it is important to think about a wide range of issues: from important practicalities about who you want to inherit your assets and to administer your estate, as well as personal issues such as deciding how to let your family know that you are leaving a particular asset to one child but not to another, for example. When you are thinking about some of those personal issues that nearly always rise when a person is making a will, it can be helpful to think about them as emotional considerations, according to an article in Psychology Today. While the process of making a will is always going to involve practical and legal considerations, there are emotional considerations for everyone, too. What are some of those emotional considerations that you should take into account when you are getting ready to make a checklist for your will, or to sit down with an estate planning lawyer?

Consider some of the following emotional topics or matters that may arise for you when you make a will.

Leaving a Family Member or Other Loved One Off Your List of Beneficiaries

Anyone who plans to leave a family member or other loved one out of their will — who is expecting to be included in the will — can raise a number of emotional issues. In making your will, past traumas with that individual may arise, and you might experience your own emotional difficulties around making your will. In addition, you might have concerns about how this type of exclusion will affect the relationships among your loved ones after you pass. In most cases, discussing your plans with your family and letting them know what to expect in your will can help to ease such issues.

Deciding to Make Unequal Distributions Among Your Children

Deciding to make unequal distributions among your children may be a difficult but important decision for you to make. Just as with the issue above, discussing your decision with your family can help to ease the emotional burden of this decision.

Dealing with Blended Family Issues

Making a will when you are part of a blended family can be complicated due to children from different marriages, the amount of assets brought into a second marriage, the ages of the children, and more, according to Psychology Today. By thinking about the “emotional implications of your financial decisions” in this type of situation, you can help to ease your family into the decisions you ultimately make in your will.

Naming an Executor

Sometimes even the act of naming one of your children as an executor can cause emotional strife. You may feel nervous or anxious about letting your other children know about your selection, for example, or you might be concerned that it will cause difficulties among your children. You should discuss plans for naming an executor with your attorney, as well as ways to talk with your family about the decision you have made.

Contact Our Summit Estate Planning Attorneys Today 

Do you have questions about making a will? Or are you ready to make a will or to engage in other aspects of estate planning? One of the experienced Summit estate planning lawyers at Dempsey, Dempsey & Sheehan can begin working with you today. Contact our firm to have your questions answered and to get started on your estate plan.

Sources:

psychologytoday.com/us/blog/life-after-50/202210/psychological-considerations-in-writing-a-will

law.justia.com/codes/new-jersey/title-3b/

law.cornell.edu/wex/mirror_wills