Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s repeal of specific provisions of the Federal Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA”), more estate-planning options have opened up for those Americans involved in same-sex marriages. As a recent article explains, however, same-sex couples should still incorporate life insurance policies as a large factor in their estate plans.
Historically, same-sex couples relied of life insurance policies as their sole means of estate planning, as insurance policies can be used to transfer property between parties while avoiding estate taxes. For same-sex couples in states that allow them to marry, however, the emergence of new estate planning options means that they will no longer need to create an estate plan based largely on insurance.
However, there is still much uncertainty surrounding the impact of the DOMA repeal. Although other estate planning tools may be available, life insurance will likely still play a large role in estate planning for same-sex couples. Moreover, only couples that reside in states that recognize their unions as marriages will be able to take advantage of the estate planning tools that DOMA has unlocked.
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