Generally, life insurance benefits are paid to the named beneficiary, regardless of his or her status as a spouse. The divorce decree may also explicitly state that the ex-spouse is no longer eligible to receive life insurance benefits.

Can you keep spouse on life insurance after divorce?

If your ex-spouse took out a life insurance policy that insures you and pays out a death benefit to them in the event of your death, they can keep that policy even after your divorce. This is because only the policyholder can cancel or change a life insurance policy.

What states revoke beneficiary rights upon divorce?

There are at least twenty-three (23) states that have revocation of nonprobate assets upon divorce statutes. The statutes in Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Utah[6] are modelled upon § 2-804 of the Uniform Probate Code (UPC).

Can a former spouse collect life insurance benefits after a divorce?

There are exceptions to these laws, such as when there is an agreement between former spouses to keep the current beneficiary designation, there is a divorce decree naming the former spouse or the insured restored his or her former spouse as a beneficiary.

Can a beneficiary of a life insurance policy die?

In most states, you can collect life insurance money if you are legally the beneficiary on the policy, regardless of your relationship to the deceased. If you were married to the policyholder and they named you as the beneficiary, you can still receive the money if they die as long as they have not changed the beneficiary of the policy.

Can a divorce decree override a life insurance policy?

A divorce decree can override a beneficiary designation in a life insurance policy only in cases where the divorce decree (usually a state court order) is not preempted by laws controlling the life insurance policy itself.

How to exclude a spouse as life insurance beneficiary?

How to Exclude a Spouse as Life Insurance Beneficiary In community property states, spouses can execute a “property status agreement” that gives them the legal, binding ability to exclude their life insurance from marital property and effectively name someone other than their spouse as beneficiary.