Estate Planning for Unmarried Couples

In today’s society, marriage is not viewed as a necessity to starting a life together. Many couples opt to cohabitate and share their lives with their partners without “involving the government”. While there are pros to not getting married, like avoiding costly and messy divorces; there are also cons. Many protections offered to married couples under the law are simply not extended to cohabitating couples. This includes the right to make health care and financial decisions on behalf of your partner, certain tax breaks, and rights to inheritance.

Under the Illinois Probate Act, even if a deceased spouse leaves no Will, the surviving spouse is eligible to inherit ½ of the deceased spouse’s estate. Additionally, if the deceased spouse does leave a Will and omits their spouse, the surviving spouse still has options to inherit under the law. The Illinois Probate Act has no such protections for unmarried couples. If either partner dies or becomes incapacitated, the surviving, or non-disabled, partner has no right to make decisions on behalf of his/her partner. Decisions about your home and other assets, your medical decisions, and even your life itself, would instead default to your next of kin. This could result in your final wishes not being met and may cause tension between your partner and family members. The best way to protect your partner and ensure your final wishes are met is to have an appropriate estate plan.

The estate plan can be as simple as drafting Power of Attorney forms designating one another to make financial and health care decisions should you become incapacitated.  To protect your partner in the event of your passing, having an estate plan that includes a Will and a Trust will ensure your remains and assets are handled in the way you desire, and your assets are distributed according to your directions. Please note, any Will can be challenged or contested by your heirs-at-law. This is why you may choose to have a Trust in order to keep your matters private, and include no-contest clauses for added protection for your partner. A carefully executed estate plan could offer you and your partner as much legal security as a married couple.

*The word “partner” as used in this article does not mean a person who has a formalized a marriage or civil union under the laws of the State of Illinois, or any other state or country, with another person.

If you have any questions about preparing an estate plan, please feel free to contact Glick and Trostin, LLC at 312-346-8258.

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