Probate and Divorce in Tennessee

In a student note, Hailey H. David discusses why Tennessee should adopt a broader statute for revoking provisions in favor of an ex-spouse or the ex-spouse’s relatives in wills and will substitutes.  Hailey H. David, Note, The-Revocation-Upon-Divorce-Doctrine: Tennessee’s Need to Adopt the Broader Uniform Probate Code Approach, 39 U. Mem. L. Rev. 383 (2009).  

Here are excerpts from the introduction of his note:

Couples frequently fail to appreciate the impact a divorce has on their individual estate plans until after one of the partners dies. Questions then arise, often from other family members, about whether the deceased partner would have intended for his or her former spouse to take certain assets, such as those apportioned by will, life insurance policy, retirement plan, trust, or other estate planning devices.

Part I of this Note discusses the history of the revocation-upon-divorce doctrine with respect to probate assets, specifically as applied to probate assets in Tennessee. Part I also compares the Tennessee provisions with those of the UPC and argues in favor of adding language to the Tennessee Code to revoke provisions in a testator’s will in favor of a former spouse’s relatives. Part II of this Note considers the application of the revocation-upon-divorce doctrine to will substitutes such as life insurance policies, retirement plans, annuities, and trusts under both Tennessee law and the UPC. This section also sets forth an argument to add language to the Tennessee Code which changes beneficiary designations from a former spouse or a former spouse’s relatives to an alternate beneficiary or the decedent’s estate when a decedent dies without having changed the beneficiary designation after his divorce. In sum, this Note explains why and how Tennessee should expand its revocation-upon-divorce statutes to more accurately reflect modern family life.