Why plans go stale
An estate plan is not a one-time task. It's a living strategy that needs to match your current life, your current family, your current assets, and your current wishes. A will drafted when your children were minors may be dangerously outdated when they're adults with their own families.
Outdated documents can be worse than no documents at all: they may leave assets to an ex-spouse, exclude a new child, or put a deceased person in charge of your care.
Life events that require an immediate review
- Marriage, you should update your estate plan; in Illinois, a will executed before marriage does not automatically provide for a new spouse
- Divorce, critical: Illinois law does revoke gifts to a former spouse at divorce, but your ex may still be named as agent in powers of attorney, and your trust may still name them as beneficiary
- Birth or adoption of a child, add the child to your will and trust; review guardian nominations
- Death of a named beneficiary, executor, trustee, or agent
- A named guardian becomes unwilling or unable to serve
- Moving to a different state, your documents may not comply with the new state's execution requirements
- A significant change in the value of your estate (up or down)
- A family member developing a disability or substance abuse issue that affects when/how they should receive assets
Asset changes
- Purchasing real estate, must be titled into your trust if you have one
- Selling real estate, trust may need updating
- Receiving a significant inheritance
- Starting or selling a business
- Retirement accounts significantly increasing in value
- Acquiring significant cryptocurrency or other digital assets
Changes to named parties
Every person named in your estate planning documents should be reviewed periodically: executor, successor trustee, financial agent, healthcare agent, beneficiaries, guardian. Ask: Is this still the right person? Are they still willing and able? Are they still alive?
Name successors for every role so that a single death or incapacity doesn't leave a gap in your plan.
Legal changes
Estate tax exemptions, state inheritance laws, and statutory form requirements change periodically. Major federal tax law changes, like the current federal estate tax exemption expiring at the end of 2025, can make existing plans suboptimal. An annual review catches these issues.
The annual review habit
Even without a triggering event, reviewing your estate plan once a year keeps it current and catches drift. Pick a recurring date, your birthday, tax filing day, or the new year, and spend 20 minutes reviewing your documents against your current life.
Estateur's annual membership includes a guided review that checks your existing documents against your current situation and flags provisions that may need updating.