Jeff Sheldon


Tips for Blended-Family Estate Planning: IAFP

Cardinal Point’s tax and estate planning expert Terry Ritchie recently tweeted from the Institute of Advanced Financial Planners (IAFP) Symposium in Ottawa under the username @tfritchie. He shared select tips from a presentation by Christine Van Cauwenberghe of Investors Group on the subject of how advisors can help blended families handle estate planning.

These tips can apply to blended families where the couple is married or common law and there is a stepchild(ren) in the family. Many conflicts of interest can arise for clients between the interests of a new spouse and children from a previous relationship, even resulting in disinheritance without proper estate planning. Needs can be balanced through a spousal trust, direct gifts to both spouse and child upon death, or life insurance. Terry Ritchie shares these and a list of other tips from the presentation at the link provided.

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