How to Update Beneficiaries After Divorce

Maine's probate code does some of this work for you automatically — but not all of it. The gap between what state law revokes and what it leaves untouched is where people lose hundreds of thousands of dollars to an ex-spouse they never intended to inherit anything.

What Maine Law Revokes Automatically

Under 18-C M.R.S. § 2-804, divorce automatically revokes the following provisions that name your former spouse:

• Bequests in your will — your ex is treated as if they predeceased you
• Designations in revocable trusts — same treatment
• Powers of appointment granted to your ex
• Nominations of your ex as personal representative, trustee, or agent in any revocable document

This happens by operation of law the moment the divorce is finalized. You don't need to file anything for these revocations to take effect.

The ERISA Preemption Trap

Here's where it gets dangerous. Maine's automatic revocation under § 2-804 explicitly does not override federal law. And for employer-sponsored retirement accounts and group life insurance policies, federal ERISA law controls.

Under ERISA preemption, the plan administrator must follow the beneficiary designation on file — regardless of your divorce, regardless of your will, regardless of state probate law. The U.S. Supreme Court confirmed this in Egelhoff v. Egelhoff (2001): if your 401(k) or employer life insurance still names your ex-spouse, they will receive the payout when you die.

This means you must manually update beneficiary designations on:

• 401(k) and 403(b) accounts through your employer's plan administrator
• Employer-sponsored group life insurance through your HR department
• Pension plans through the plan's beneficiary designation form
• IRAs through your brokerage or bank (these follow state law in some cases, but updating them removes all ambiguity)

What to Update and Where

Immediate priority (ERISA-governed, state law cannot fix):

• Employer 401(k)/403(b) — contact HR or log into the plan portal
• Group life insurance — contact HR
• MainePERS — submit a new Beneficiary Designation form to MainePERS directly

High priority (state law helps but updating is still best practice):

• Individual life insurance policies — contact each insurance company
• Annuities — contact the annuity issuer
• Bank accounts with POD (payable on death) designations — visit the bank
• Investment accounts with TOD (transfer on death) designations — contact the brokerage

Update after your beneficiary designations are current:

• Execute a new will. Even though § 2-804 revokes your ex's bequests, your old will may no longer reflect your wishes. Name new beneficiaries, a new personal representative (executor), and a new guardian for minor children.
• Revoke old powers of attorney. If your ex-spouse holds financial or healthcare power of attorney, revoke them immediately and execute new documents naming a trusted person.
• Update your healthcare advance directive. Replace your ex as your healthcare agent if they're currently named.

The Forgotten Accounts

People typically remember the big accounts — the 401(k), the life insurance policy. The ones that slip through:

• Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) — have their own beneficiary designation
• 529 college savings plans — the account owner controls beneficiary changes
• Credit union accounts with POD designations
• Safety deposit boxes with joint access
• Digital accounts with legacy contact or inheritance settings (Apple, Google, Facebook)

The Maine After-Divorce Checklist includes an estate planning audit worksheet that walks through every account type so nothing gets missed.

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