According to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey, there were more than 670,000 divorces[1] and more than 2 million marriages in 2022. Divorce is an ordinary life event that many Americans face during their lifetime. Some states have laws that automatically end an ex-spouse’s appointment as a decision-maker in their spouse’s estate plan with the ending of their marriage and their right to any inheritance to which they may have been entitled. However, what happens if you die after you file for divorce but before it becomes final? The Doherty Divorce Timing is crucial in such scenarios.
Shannen Doherty faced this same question. In her case, the divorce was deemed to be finalized before her death.
Born April 12, 1971, in Memphis, Tennessee, Shannen Doherty is most known for her iconic roles as Jenny Wilder in Little House on the Prairie; Brenda Walsh in Beverly Hills, 90210; and Prue Halliwell in Charmed. After battling stage IV cancer for more than four years, she passed away on July 13, 2024. Surviving her are her mother, with whom she was very close, and her brother, Sean.
While Doherty was battling cancer, she was also in the midst of a divorce from her third husband, Kurt Iswarienko. The divorce proceedings took more than 15 months to conclude, with Doherty filing for an uncontested divorce and signing the necessary paperwork the day before she died. Iswarienko signed the documents on July 13, 2024.[2] A family law judge signed off on the divorce two days after Doherty passed away.[3]
According to a stipulated agreement with Iswarienko, Doherty’s estate retained the couple’s home in Malibu, California; a Salvador Dali painting; several cars; and all earnings from her acting.[4] In addition, as part of the divorce proceedings, she filed an income and expense declaration stating that she had $251,000 in the bank, another $1,880,000 in stocks and bonds, and insurance money from a lawsuit over damage to her California home.[5] She also stated that she had real property worth $3 million and $134,000 in a pension fund.[6]
In an interview with E! News, Doherty discussed how she had started to sell some of her valuables and, with that money, was able to take trips with her loved ones to create memories.[7] She also acknowledged that, in selling property and other items, her priority was to make things as easy as possible for her mom.[8]
With both parties finalizing the divorce and signing their respective waivers, Doherty was able to control what would happen to her money and property at her death. Had she passed away before the divorce was recognized as final, things could have looked much different. Because a marriage is a legal relationship while you are alive, the passing of one spouse ends the marriage, leaving the other party as the surviving spouse.
Although she and Iswarienko were in the middle of divorce proceedings, Doherty could probably not change the provisions in her estate plan that dictated who would receive her money and property until the divorce became final. Therefore, any money or property she would have left her soon-to-be former spouse under a will, trust, or beneficiary designation would probably still go to him. If he was not included in her will or trust, he may have been able to file a claim against her estate for his elective share (a statutory minimum that a surviving spouse receives).
Had there been no will or trust, California’s intestacy statute (the state’s plan for what happens to a person’s money and property if they die without a will or trust) would have dictated what Iswarienko was entitled to. According to the statute, his inheritance would have been
Although he would have ended up with all the community property and quasi-community property, he would have had to share Doherty’s separate property with her mother.[10]
The exact terms of Doherty’s estate plan are unknown, but we know that Doherty’s mother played an essential role in her life and was someone she wanted to provide for. This lack of public information may be because Doherty utilized a trust or beneficiary designation as part of her estate plan. The benefit of both strategies is that the matter stays out of the courts and the public eye. However, utilizing a trust allows for additional restrictions and instructions about how a beneficiary receives their inheritance. Naming someone as a beneficiary via a beneficiary designation will usually result in the beneficiary receiving the total amount outright with no additional protections or restrictions.
We know that going through a divorce and planning for your incapacity and death can be stressful. We are here to help you through this rough chapter so that you can craft a protected future for yourself and your loved ones. Book a Free Discovery Call to discuss how we can create a plan to meet your unique needs.
[1] CDC, Marriage and Divorce, National Ctr. for Health Statistics (Mar. 14, 2024), https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/marriage-divorce.htm.
[2] Diana Cabrices, Shannen Doherty’s Estate: When Timing is Everything, WealthManagement.com (Aug. 13, 2024), https://www.wealthmanagement.com/print/161390.
[3] Shannen Doherty finalized divorce hours before death, AP (July 18, 2024), https://apnews.com/article/shannen-doherty-divorce-death-iswarienko-laura-wasser-0d9fbb475ae64fed1ccdc0a03eb69cf6.
[4] Id.
[5] Ryan Nauman, Shannen Doherty’s Estate: Actress Left Behind $6 Million Malibu Mansion, 7-Figure Sum for Family, Y!entertainment (July 14, 2024), https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/shannen-doherty-estate-actress-left-105924129.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8%E2%80%A6.
[6] Id.
[7] Elyse Dupre, Shannen Doherty Details Letting Go of Her Possessions Amid Cancer Battle, ENews (Apr. 2, 2024), https://www.eonline.com/news/1398634/shannen-doherty-details-letting-go-of-her-possessions-amid-cancer-battle.
[8] Id.
[9] Cal. Prob. Code § 6401(a)–(c).
[10] Id. § 6401(c)(2)(B).
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