Court Ordered Life Insurance

[Traci1031]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Illinois
I have been divorced for 7 months. It was court ordered in our divorce decree that myself and my ex-husband carry a $100,000 life insurance policy naming each other the beneficiary which would allow us to care for our 2 minor children in the event of a death. My ex-husband passed recently and he did not have the court ordered insurance policy. My question is, am I able to secure other assets to compensate for the missing insurance i.e. pension, 401K, trust fund? Also, life insurance money is tax free, would the estate be liable to pay the taxes on this money?

 

[Ohiogal]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Illinois
I have been divorced for 7 months. It was court ordered in our divorce decree that myself and my ex-husband carry a $100,000 life insurance policy naming each other the beneficiary which would allow us to care for our 2 minor children in the event of a death. My ex-husband passed recently and he did not have the court ordered insurance policy. My question is, am I able to secure other assets to compensate for the missing insurance i.e. pension, 401K, trust fund? Also, life insurance money is tax free, would the estate be liable to pay the taxes on this money?

You can sue the estate and if you win a judgment you can attach get an order attaching assets of the estate. However what assets did your ex have? The 401k most likely had a beneficiary named. Hence it would pass outside of probate. So would the pension and any trust fund most likely. Bank accounts might have PODs named as COULD real estate. So there may not be much to the estate to attach. The time to make sure of the insurance policy was seven months ago. Did you have any proof then that he had life insurance? Did either of you have life insurance then? In what amount? Did your ex have a will? What are the children to receive due to his death?

 

[LdiJ]

Your children are also entitled to Social Security Survivors Benefits. That may go a long way towards replacing child support. You should apply for those ASAP.