Getting divorced is one of the most significant legal events in a person’s life — and it has direct consequences for your existing will. In Florida, divorce does not automatically void your entire will. But it does revoke provisions in your will that favor your former spouse, and if you fail to update your estate plan after divorce, the results can be entirely contrary to your wishes.
What Florida Law Does — and Doesn’t — Do When You Divorce
Under Florida Statute § 732.507, once a marriage is dissolved, any provision in a will that was made in favor of the former spouse is revoked. This includes bequests of property to the former spouse, nominations of the former spouse as personal representative, and other dispositions that benefit the former spouse. The divorce statute treats these provisions as if the former spouse predeceased the testator.
What the statute does not do: it does not revoke the entire will, it does not update beneficiary designations on life insurance or retirement accounts (those are governed by separate law), and it does not change the disposition of assets that are not covered by the will.
The Danger Zone: What Gets Left Behind
The most common mistake divorced Floridians make is assuming that their existing will “handles it” after the divorce. It partially does — but only for the provisions directly naming the ex-spouse. Assets that were intended to flow to the former spouse under the revoked provision now pass under the will’s residuary clause, or if there is no effective residuary clause, under Florida’s intestacy laws.
More dangerously, beneficiary designations on retirement accounts, life insurance, and jointly titled property are NOT affected by the divorce statute. If you named your former spouse as beneficiary on your 401(k) before the divorce and never updated it, those assets may still go to your ex regardless of what your will says. Florida courts have consistently held that a valid beneficiary designation controls over a will.
Update Your Estate Plan After Divorce
After a Florida divorce, you should immediately update your will, review and update all beneficiary designations on retirement accounts and life insurance, review jointly titled property, and update any powers of attorney or healthcare surrogates that name your former spouse. Contact Weidner Law to review and update your Florida estate plan after a divorce.
Read the Exact Statute
The Florida statutes cited in this article are published word-for-word — free, complete, and fully organized — at FloridaRules.net.
FloridaRules.net — Every Florida Probate Rule, Statute, and Case Commentary. In One Place.
