Estate planning is crucial for everyone, but for members of the LGBTQ+ community, it carries additional significance and complexity. Despite important legal victories like marriage equality, many LGBTQ+ individuals and couples still face unique challenges when it comes to protecting their assets, healthcare decisions, and ensuring their wishes are respected.
Why Estate Planning Is Particularly Important for LGBTQ+ Individuals
Family Recognition Challenges
For many LGBTQ+ individuals, relationships with chosen family members may be stronger than those with biological relatives. Without proper estate planning documents, the law typically favors biological family members in matters of inheritance and medical decision-making, potentially sidelining partners, close friends, and chosen family who may have been the most significant relationships in a person’s life.
Protection for Unmarried Partners
Not all LGBTQ+ couples choose to marry, even with marriage equality. For unmarried partners, estate planning becomes essential to ensure inheritance rights, healthcare decision authority, and other protections that married couples receive automatically.
Protecting Against Family Conflict
Unfortunately, some LGBTQ+ individuals face the possibility that estranged family members might challenge their wishes after death or during incapacity. Comprehensive estate planning creates stronger legal protections against such challenges.
Healthcare Decision Making
Medical emergencies can happen unexpectedly. Having healthcare directives in place ensures that your chosen person, not someone assigned by default legal standards, makes medical decisions if you’re unable to do so.
Special Considerations for LGBTQ+ Parents
Legal Parentage
For LGBTQ+ parents, establishing legal relationships with your children is crucial. This may involve adoption, second-parent adoption, or other legal procedures to ensure parental rights are protected.
Guardianship Designations
Naming guardians for minor children in your estate plan is essential to ensure your children are raised by people who share your values and will respect your child’s identity.
Unique Considerations for Transgender Individuals
Name and Gender Marker Documentation
Estate planning documents should reflect your correct name and gender. If you’ve legally changed your name, ensure all your documents are updated accordingly.
Medical Directives
For transgender individuals, specific medical directives can address concerns about receiving gender-affirming care during periods of incapacity.
Moving Forward: Creating Your Estate Plan
Work with LGBTQ+-Affirming Professionals
Seek out attorneys and financial advisors who are knowledgeable about LGBTQ+-specific legal issues and who will respect your relationships and identity.
Review and Update Regularly
Life circumstances change. Marriage, divorce, children, property acquisition, and moves to different states are all reasons to review and update your estate plan.
Communicate Your Wishes
Once your estate plan is in place, discuss your wishes with your loved ones to minimize confusion and conflict later. To assist you in starting and having a thorough conversation, download our eBook, Life Conversations with Your Important People.
Estate planning is an act of love and care—both for yourself and for those you cherish. For LGBTQ+ individuals, it provides an essential layer of protection in a legal system that may not automatically recognize your relationships and wishes. By creating a comprehensive estate plan, you can ensure that your voice is heard, your relationships are respected, and your legacy is protected.
Founded by a nurse attorney and with offices in Acton, Andover, and Sudbury, Massachusetts, Generations Law Group helps individuals and families navigate the complex areas of estate planning and elder law to inform and protect loved ones of every generation.
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