The Bowman Firm Estate Planning

05/13/2026

Most people assume that if something would be considered separate property in a divorce, it must also be protected from a surviving spouse after death.

Nope.

In Virginia, divorce and death follow two very different sets of rules.

Equitable distribution in divorce looks at marital property, separate property, and hybrid property under Virginia Code § 20-107.3.

But after death, the elective share rules under Virginia Code §§ 64.2-308.1 through 64.2-308.15 look at something very different—the augmented estate and what was part of the marital economic partnership.

That means assets like:

• a premarital business
• inherited real estate
• revocable trust assets
• TOD and POD accounts
• jointly held property

may still be part of the conversation even if they would have been treated differently in divorce.

A trust alone does not automatically solve that.
Neither do beneficiary designations.
And “I left everything to the kids” is usually not enough.

This comes up all the time in second marriages, blended families, and business succession planning.

This week in my ABCs of Estate Planning series:

D is for Death and Divorce

I’m breaking down how Virginia elective share rules actually work and why planning based on divorce assumptions can create expensive surprises later.

Read the full article here: https://blog.bowmanfirm.com/virginia-elective-share-marital-property/

Virginia elective share rules are very different from marital property in divorce. Learn how augmented estate laws affect surviving spouse inheritance rights.

04/29/2026

Most people think estate planning starts and ends with a will.
But if we’re talking about true protection for your family, we also need to talk about trusts.

A revocable living trust can help with probate avoidance, smoother transitions during incapacity, and making life much easier for the people you love if something happens to you.

It’s not just for the ultra-wealthy.
And it’s not just about death.

For many families, trust planning is really about control, clarity, and making sure life keeps working when life gets messy.

This week in my ABCs of Estate Planning series, C is still for Core Documents—and we’re talking about trusts.

Because a will answers who gets what.

A trust often answers how life keeps working before and after that moment.

What does a revocable living trust actually do? Learn how trusts help with probate avoidance, incapacity planning, and protecting your family in Virginia estate planning.

04/16/2026

04/16/2026

Most people feel pretty good once they have a will in place.

And to be fair—it is an important step.

But here’s what I see all the time…
People think their will covers everything, and it just doesn’t.

A will only works after you’re gone.
It goes through probate.
And it only controls assets that are actually in your name.

Which means a lot of what you own may not even pass through it at all.

That doesn’t make a will bad—
it just means it’s one piece of a much bigger picture.

As part of my ABCs of Estate Planning series, this is your reminder that C is for Core Documents—
and a will is just the starting point.

The real question is whether everything you have is actually working together the way you think it is.

If you already have a will, this is a good time to revisit it.
If you don’t, this is where we start.

Next up: the other core documents people don’t think about—but absolutely should.

04/13/2026

What does a will actually do?

This is one of those things that feels straightforward… until you really start looking at how everything works together.

A will is one of your core estate planning documents—but it doesn’t control everything. A lot of your assets pass based on how they’re titled or who you’ve named as a beneficiary.

Which means if those pieces aren’t aligned, your plan doesn’t actually work the way you think it does.

In this week’s blog, I walk through:
• what a will actually does
• what it doesn’t do
• and how it fits into the bigger picture

If you’ve been meaning to revisit your plan—or you’re not quite sure how everything works together—this is a really good place to start.

👉https://blog.bowmanfirm.com/what-does-a-will-do-estate-planning/

This is part of my ABCs of Estate Planning series—C is for Core Documents (Part 1: Wills).

04/11/2026

One of the most common things I see?

Someone has a beautifully done estate plan… and then their beneficiary designations never get updated.

And the problem is—those designations control.

Retirement accounts, life insurance, and a lot of your financial accounts pass outside of your will or trust. So if they’re not aligned, your plan doesn’t actually work the way you think it does.

This is especially important if:
• You’ve recently created a trust
• You have minor children
• You’ve had any major life changes

I put together a quick guide you can save and come back to when you’re ready to review everything.

This week is B is for Beneficiaries in my estate planning series—and this is one of those small things that makes a really big difference.

Save this for later—you’ll want it when you start updating accounts.

04/09/2026

This week in my ABCs of estate planning series, we’re on B for beneficiary designations—and this is one of those areas that feels simple, but can quietly create real problems.

I see it all the time.

Your retirement accounts, life insurance, and certain bank accounts don’t follow your will—they go directly to whoever you’ve named as the beneficiary.

So if those designations are outdated, incomplete, or just not coordinated with the rest of your plan… things don’t play out the way you intended.

A few things worth checking:
• Do you have both primary and contingent beneficiaries listed?
• Are they still the right people based on your life today?
• Would it make more sense for those assets to flow through a trust instead?

This is one of the easiest updates you can make, and it can have a big impact.

I walk through all of this in this week’s blog if you’d like a closer look.

And if reviewing your beneficiaries has been on your mental to-do list for a while—this is your nudge to take a few minutes and revisit them.

Next up: C is for core documents.

04/06/2026

Most people think their will or trust controls everything.

But that’s not actually how it works.

A large portion of assets—retirement accounts, life insurance, even some bank accounts—pass based on beneficiary designations instead.

Which means your plan only works the way you intend if everything is coordinated.

This is one of the most common gaps I see.
The documents are in place, but the accounts themselves were never aligned with them.

In this week’s blog, I walk through:
• Which assets should be retitled vs. left with beneficiary designations
• When it makes sense to name a trust as beneficiary (and when it doesn’t)
• Common mistakes that are easy to miss

If you haven’t reviewed your beneficiary designations recently, this is a great place to start.

👉 Read more here:

Beneficiary designations play a critical role in your estate plan. Learn which accounts should be retitled, when to name a trust as beneficiary, and how to avoid common mistakes.

04/06/2026

Everyone focuses on the documents.

But in real life, the stress doesn’t come from the legal structure…
it comes from not knowing where anything is or what to do next.

This is exactly why I always include what I call “ancillary documents” in every plan—
the information your family will actually rely on.

This is Part 1 of my April series:
The ABCs of Estate Planning

Next up:
B is for Beneficiary Designations

04/01/2026

You know those little things that aren’t technically part of your estate plan…
but your family will absolutely wish you had written down?

That’s what this is about.

Because the truth is—
when something happens, it’s not just the legal documents people are sorting through…

It’s the everyday things.
The details.
The “wait… what would they have wanted here?” moments.

And those are often the hardest.

This reel is part of my ABCs of Estate Planning series—and today we’re on A: Ancillary Documents (aka the things your loved ones will quietly thank you for later).

Take a minute to watch—and then ask yourself:
👉 Have I actually written this down for my family?

If not, this is your sign 💛

And if you want a simple way to get started, I walk through this in more detail on the blog.