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Minutes for HB2038 - Committee on Judiciary
Short Title
Revoking spousal inheritance rights upon divorce.
Minutes Content for Thu, Jan 24, 2019
Natalie Scott, Assistant Revisor, provided an overview of the Revisor's Brief for HB2038. (Attachment 1)
Kent Meyerhoff, Kansas Judicial Council testified in support of the bill. Mr. Meyerhoff explained the current Kansas Probate Code was adopted in 1939, K.S.A. 59-610 and this statute only apples to Wills. Today, more and more people are using Will substitutes, such as revocable trusts, or are placing "pay on death" or "transfer on death" designations on most of their property so that the property does not pass by Will. This means that K.S.A. 59-610 does not apply. A better solution would be to provide for automatic revocation of any inheritance rights of an ex-spouse upon entry of a divorce decree or annulment. HB2938 would also revoke rights of relatives of such ex-spouse. In summary, the changes by HB2038 would ensure that whether someone does their estate planning using a Will, a trust, beneficiary designation, or joint tenancy, there will be consistent results in the event of a divorce, and the likely intent of the parties will be carried out without further affirmative action required on the part of the divorced spouses. Mr. Meyerhoff addressed questions from the members. Representative Warren asked him to find clarification on the application of HB2038 in the 30 day period between decree and final judgment of a divorce. All other questions were addressed during the hearing. (Attachment 2)
