[WSBAPT] Life Insurance/Interplay with Will

[Philip N. Jones]

Jennifer is correct:  the policy governs.  When the beneficiary designation fails, look to the policy.  Nothing else matters.  If the policy says it goes to the estate, only then does the will language kick in.
Same thing with retirement plans, such as IRAs.  The default clauses in the policy (or in the plan) vary widely.  Make sure to get a written copy of the policy.  A 2014 survey indicated that 30% of retirement plans default to the estate of the decedent, 43% default to the surviving spouse and then to the estate, and 22% default to the spouse, and then to the estate, and then to the children.  You don’t know until you see the policy in writing.
Phil Jones


Philip N. Jones
Duffy Kekel LLP
900 S.W. Fifth Ave. Suite 2500
Portland, OR 97204
pjones at duffykekel.com<mailto:pjones at duffykekel.com>
(503) 226-1371 – office
(503) 853-1482 – cell
(503) 226-3574 - fax

From: wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com <wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com> On Behalf Of Marcus J. Fry
Sent: Tuesday, December 14, 2021 4:06 PM
To: WSBA Probate & Trust Listserv <wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com>
Subject: Re: [WSBAPT] Life Insurance/Interplay with Will

You need to look at the policy.  Pretty unusual language that agent is citing and I think the agent should stay in his/her lane.  The policy is likely payable to the estate (as opposed to saying intestate heirs), and therefore, the Will controls the disposition.


Marcus J. Fry
Attorney | Witherspoon • Kelley
mjf at witherspoonkelley.com<mailto:mjf at witherspoonkelley.com> | Attorney Profile<https://www.witherspoonkelley.com/marcus-j-fry> | vCard<https://www.witherspoonkelley.com/s/mfj.vcf>

[cid:image002.png at 01D7F106.967C3820]

222 N. 3rd Street
Yakima, WA 98901
(509) 248-7220 (office)
(509) 575-1883 (fax)
witherspoonkelley.com

Confidentiality Notice: The information contained in this email and any accompanying attachment(s) is intended only for the use of the intended recipient and may be confidential and/or privileged. If any reader of this communication is not the intended recipient, unauthorized use, disclosure or copying is strictly prohibited, and may be unlawful. If you have received this communication in error, please immediately notify the sender by return email, and delete the original message and all copies from your system. Thank you.
From: wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com<mailto:wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com> <wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com<mailto:wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com>> On Behalf Of Carol Hunter
Sent: Tuesday, December 14, 2021 3:51 PM
To: WSBA Probate & Trust Listserv <wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com<mailto:wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com>>
Subject: [WSBAPT] Life Insurance/Interplay with Will

Dear Listmates,

I represent a PR  in an estate in which there is a specific bequest that essentially says:

“If the Estate receives proceeds from any life insurance policy, then those proceeds shall be distributed to (individual)”

The decedent did in fact have a policy, and no beneficiary was named.

The life insurance agent is telling the PR that when there is no beneficiary named, then the funds follow a “hierarchy” (his words) – akin to intestate succession as far as I can tell, payable directly to those individuals.

It is my understanding that a policy lacking a beneficiary would default to the Estate.
Any thoughts?


Sincerely,
Carol J. Hunter
Attorney at Law
[cid:image003.png at 01D7F106.967C3820]
Hunter Elder Law, PLLC
2208 W Second Ave.
Spokane, WA 99201
509-747-0101
https://link.edgepilot.com/s/b075401e/sXNnYpUbskqS3h1LbxBDPA?u=http://www.hunterelderlaw.com/

Hunter Elder Law PLLC follows current government mandates and recommendations with regard to the COVID-19 virus so we may continue to serve the general, elderly and high risk populations. We continue to limit the number of persons in the office conference to two (plus the attorney), by appointment only. We request that all parties follow safety requirements of facial coverings and 6 feet social distance spacing at all times (if you do not have a mask, we will provide one to you).  We encourage Zoom video conferencing for all non-signing appointments, and electronic communications or mail to reduce in person contact when possible.  We appreciate your understanding and cooperation during this time.

The information contained in this email message may contain privileged and confidential material for the sole use of the intended recipient.  If you are not the intended recipient, any dissemination, distribution, copying, review or other use of, or taking of any action in reliance upon this information by persons or entities other than the intended recipient, is prohibited.  If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender and delete all copies.  Thank you.



Links contained in this email have been replaced by Link Protection. If you click on a link, it will be analyzed for known threats before allowing you to proceed.
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.fsr.com/pipermail/wsbapt/attachments/20211215/cb897bbf/attachment.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image002.png
Type: image/png
Size: 7508 bytes
Desc: image002.png
URL: <http://mailman.fsr.com/pipermail/wsbapt/attachments/20211215/cb897bbf/image002.png>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image003.png
Type: image/png
Size: 9662 bytes
Desc: image003.png
URL: <http://mailman.fsr.com/pipermail/wsbapt/attachments/20211215/cb897bbf/image003.png>