Irc Wealthcast

This week, the IRC WealthCast continues its focus on Generation X as we discuss the financial, emotional and legal challenges of estate planning and blended families, both those we create as well as the blended families created by our parents. In this second episode of a two-part series, we continue the conversation with two Generation Xers — Wendy Hayes, a financial analyst who works in family law, and Michelle Thompson, a financial planner with IRC Wealth and former attorney — who discuss what they’ve learned from their personal as well as professional experiences. In sharing her family estate planning nightmare, Michelle points out that her mother thought she had taken the necessary steps to ensure her desires would be carried out, but was unable to predict her surviving spouse’s actions. In her own experience as well as when working with clients, Michelle says that in the majority of cases, it’s inevitable that a surviving spouse who controls the estate will prioritize their own children over those of