We’ve all heard it: The earlier you execute your will, the better. And in a stepfamily, it’s even more important if you want your money to go where you say it should go. As I mentioned earlier, stepchildren are not included in inheritance laws.
So if you die without naming them in your will, they get zip, and even if you do name them, a court could award your money to a blood relative if the wording of your will is vague in any way. If you consider your stepchildren family and want to provide for them when you’re gone, then you’ve got to make sure your will is airtight.
The more money you have, the more important it’s going to be. That means finding a lawyer who is familiar with stepfamily law. Hopefully, no one will contest your will, but you never know how your family members will react after you’re gone.
It can get nasty for stepchildren, so take the burden off them and your husband and get that will put together. If you have a child together and you and your husband die without a will, your stepchildren could be out in the cold no matter what you intended to give them, and all of your assets would pass to your biological child, no matter how long you lived with your stepchildren, even if they lived with you fulltime since they were babies and their mother has never been in the picture.