Updating Your Will and Estate Plan After Divorce in Rhode Island

Rhode Island law partially protects you when your divorce is finalized — but only partially. Your will gets an automatic update. Your trust, power of attorney, and healthcare proxy don't.

If you assume everything resets automatically, your ex-spouse could end up making medical decisions for you in an emergency or inheriting assets through a trust you forgot to amend.

What Happens to Your Will Automatically

Under R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-5-9.1, the entry of a Final Judgment of Divorce automatically revokes every provision in your existing will that benefits your former spouse. The law treats your ex as if they predeceased you.

This means:

• Bequests to your ex are voided
• If your ex was named executor, they're removed from that role
• The remainder of the will stays intact

The exception: if the will explicitly states it was made in contemplation of the divorce, the revocation doesn't apply.

While the automatic revocation provides a safety net, it doesn't rewrite your will. It just removes your ex. If your will left everything to your ex with no contingent beneficiaries, you could end up dying intestate (without a valid estate plan) for those specific bequests.

What You Must Update Manually

Revocable Living Trusts

Rhode Island's automatic revocation statute does not extend to trusts. If your ex is named as a beneficiary or successor trustee of a revocable living trust, those provisions remain fully active after divorce.

You need to formally amend or completely restate the trust to remove your ex-spouse and any of their relatives who are no longer intended to inherit.

Power of Attorney

A financial power of attorney gives someone the authority to manage your money, sign contracts, and access your accounts if you become incapacitated. Divorce does not automatically revoke this document in Rhode Island.

If your ex holds your power of attorney, revoke it in writing and execute a new one naming a trusted person.

Healthcare Proxy and Living Will

A durable healthcare proxy gives someone the authority to make medical decisions on your behalf. If your ex-spouse is named as your healthcare agent, they retain that authority after divorce unless you formally revoke the document.

Execute a new healthcare proxy and living will naming someone you trust. Distribute copies to your primary care physician, local hospital, and the new agent.

The Complete Post-Divorce Estate Checklist

Within 60 days of your Final Judgment:

1. Execute a new will with two disinterested subscribing witnesses as required by R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-5-5
2. Amend or restate revocable trusts to remove your ex-spouse as beneficiary and trustee
3. Revoke and replace your power of attorney with a new document naming your chosen agent
4. Revoke and replace your healthcare proxy and living will
5. Update beneficiary designations on every life insurance policy, retirement account, and payable-on-death bank account — these are separate from your will and aren't covered by the automatic revocation
6. Update guardian designations for minor children if your will named your ex-spouse's relatives

Coordinate timing with property transfers and retirement account divisions — your estate plan should reflect who actually owns what after the divorce is fully executed.

The Rhode Island After-Divorce Checklist walks through the complete estate planning reset with document checklists and a tracking system for each update.

See more Rhode Island guides →