Monthly Member Meeting | What Divorce Professionals Need to Know About Estate Planning

This presentation explores the critical intersection of family law and estate planning, addressing the very real and often-overlooked estate planning risks that arise when a marriage dissolves. While many clients assume that filing for divorce or finalizing a decree automatically severs legal ties, the reality is far more complex.

The discussion will guide professionals through the specific hazards present at every stage of the divorce timeline, from the initial filing to post-divorce updates. Through real-world case studies—including the cautionary tales of “Jane” and “Dillon”— attendees will see how a failure to update documents can lead to former spouses controlling inheritances intended for minor children or legally claiming assets years after a split.

Finally, this session provides a practical roadmap for protecting your clients’ futures .It will review essential questions to ask divorcing clients regarding their current wills, healthcare proxies, and powers of attorney to ensure that their assets and children are protected. Attendees will leave with a clear understanding of the necessary action items for unwinding trusts and updating estate plans to prevent unintended consequences and to ensure clients’ assets end up in the right hands.

You’ll come away with an understanding of:
– Why clients without current estate planning documents are vulnerable before and during divorce proceedings.
– Why divorce is not a “Clean Slate” for estate planning and the gaps in automatic revocation rules.
– The particular estate planning issues for clients with minor children and how a former spouse can end up administering your client’s estate and managing their child’s inheritance.
– How Medicaid trusts and advanced tax planning strategies complicate the divorce process and how to unwind them.

Speaker Bio:
Shannon McNulty, J.D., LL.M., CFP® is the Founder of The Village Law Firm, a boutique trusts and estates firm in New York City.

Ms. McNulty provides comprehensive tax and estate planning for individuals, families, and small business owners.  She counsels clients on legal strategies for building and preserving their wealth, protecting and providing for their loved ones, and preparing for the eventual transfer of their assets.

Ms. McNulty believes that estate planning is not just a set of documents – it is a parting gift that you provide to your loved ones and your community that should reflect your values and how you’ve lived your life.  She helps clients identify areas of concern to them, design the legacy they want to leave, and create an estate plan that they can feel good about.

Ms. McNulty is the author of the book The Complete Guide to Legal Planning for New York Parents.  She earned her Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center cum laude and received her LL.M. in Taxation from New York University School of Law.  She subsequently earned the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERTM designation, which enables her to develop a more-holistic understanding how her clients’ estate plan fits into their larger financial picture. 

Before opening her own practice, Ms. McNulty completed a federal district court clerkship for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and worked as an Associate at the large New York City law firms of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle.

You can learn more about Ms. McNulty and her firm at www.thevillagelawfirm.com.