If you have children and are going through a divorce, or are otherwise terminating your relationship with your child's other parent, seeing an estate planning attorney should be one of your top priorities. Perhaps you have fears about your former spouse's ability to care for your child, or have concerns about your families' continued involvement with the child, in the event of your death or disability. Admittedly, the laws in the State of Nevada limit your options. There are presumptions under the law that the other parent should assume custody, prior to any other third party being nominated to care for the children. Nonetheless, the court will consider the concerns of a deceased parent in making a decision in the child's best interest, provided that such concerns are included in your estate planning documents. Additionally, if it is your desire that your family have continued involvement with your child, having a statement from you supporting their efforts to establish grand-parental or extended party rights can be very helpful.
The larger concern with children, however, deals with how your financial estate would be distributed to your child in your absence. Children who are under the age of 18 cannot control their own assets. If they become the beneficiaries of your estate, a guardian will need to be appointed to control the assets until they become of age. Generally, the law will presume that the child's remaining parent should assume the role of guardian of the estate, unless you provide otherwise. You can use either a will or a trust to nominate a different guardian of the children's financial estate. Better yet, you can arrange for your assets to pass to a trust in your child's name. You can then designate and enforce the terms under which the assets will be distributed (such as the child's age, or the specific purpose of the distribution - like college expenses), you can decide the trustee of the trust, and can decide when the trust would end.
