Are Beneficiary Designations Protected in Nevada?
Nevada automatically revokes an ex-spouse as beneficiary at divorceNRS 133.115; NRS 111.781Verified Sep 15, 2026View source; employer plans under ERISA follow federal rules either way, so a 401(k) beneficiary changes only by a new designation.
A beneficiary designation on life insurance, a retirement account, a payable-on-death bank account or a transfer-on-death brokerage account decides who receives that asset at death, in Nevada as everywhere. The designation controls over the will or trust, and an outdated one stays in force whatever the other documents say.
Yes. Nevada automatically revokes an ex-spouse as beneficiary on divorce for these asset types: life insurance, retirement accounts, pod accounts, tod accounts, annuitiesNRS 133.115; NRS 111.781Verified Sep 15, 2026View source. An ERISA-governed employer plan (a 401(k), a pension) follows federal law instead and must be updated by hand whatever the state rule says.
As a community property state, Nevada generally requires spousal consent to name a non-spouse beneficiary on a retirement account funded with community propertyNRS 123.220; NRS 123.230(2); NRS 111.801Verified Sep 15, 2026View source. This applies to: retirement accounts. The federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) preempts state law for an employer-sponsored plan such as a 401(k), a pension or group life insurance: the plan pays the designation on file with the plan administrator, and a qualified plan requires the spouse's consent to name anyone else (Egelhoff v. Egelhoff, 2001; Kennedy v. Plan Administrator, 2009).
Nevada gives inherited IRAs partial protection from creditorsNRS 21.090(1)(r)Verified Sep 15, 2026View source; the reach can depend on whether the IRA came from a spouse and whether the case is in state or federal court. After Clark v. Rameker (2014), federal bankruptcy law does not protect an inherited IRA on its own.
No. Nevada does not default to per stirpes for beneficiary designationsNRS 111.767(5) (lapse to owner's estate); NRS 111.771(2) (opt-in LDPS designation); NRS 133.200 (anti-lapse — WILLS only); NRS 134.040 (intestacy only); NRS 688A.150(2)(b) (industrial life facility-of-payment)Verified Sep 15, 2026View source: when a named beneficiary dies before the account holder, the share lapses unless the designation says per stirpes or names a contingent beneficiary.
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Divorce
What divorce does and does not undo: beneficiary designations, your will, powers of attorney, and the one account your ex stays on until you change it.
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Marriage
What married couples need in place: one joint trust or two, wills, beneficiary updates, and the spousal rights your state grants you automatically.
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Retirement
Retirement changes your financial picture. Healthcare directives, beneficiary reviews, long-term care planning, and protecting what you've built.
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Serious Diagnosis
A serious diagnosis changes priorities. Healthcare proxies, financial powers of attorney, and the documents that ensure your wishes are honored.
Learn moreForms for Planning Your Estate in Nevada
Free forms for planning your estate in Nevada: a will, living trust, pour-over will, both powers of attorney, living will, and TOD deed.
Last Will and Testament
In Nevada, a will is signed before 2NRS 133.040Verified Oct 19, 2026View source witnesses, and a self-proving affidavit signed with it lets the court admit it without witness testimonyNRS 133.040Verified Oct 19, 2026View source.
Healthcare Power of Attorney
Nevada allows a choice for a healthcare power of attorney: 2NRS 162A.855, 162A.865, 162A.870Verified Oct 15, 2026View source witnesses or a notary.
Financial Power of Attorney
Nevada treats a power of attorney as durable by defaultNRS § 162A.200-660Verified Sep 18, 2026View source, and it is signed with no witness or notary requirementNRS § 162A.200-660Verified Sep 18, 2026View source.
Transfer on Death Deed
In Nevada, a deed upon death is signed before a notaryNRS 111.655 to 111.699Verified Oct 19, 2026View source, then recorded with the county before the owner's deathNRS 111.655 to 111.699Verified Oct 19, 2026View source.
Vehicle Transfer on Death
Name a beneficiary to inherit your vehicle at death without probate. Available in 26 states and the District of Columbia.
Living Will
In Nevada, the living will is the DeclarationNRS 449A.400-449A.481 (Uniform Act on Rights of the Terminally Ill); registry NRS 449A.700-449A.739; power of attorney for health care NRS 162A.700-162A.870Verified Sep 27, 2026View source, a document of its own, apart from the healthcare power of attorney.
Tools for Planning Your Estate in Nevada
Free tools for planning your estate in Nevada: what a will or trust costs, whether you need a trust or TOD deed, and how documents are signed.
What Does Estate Planning Actually Cost?
An attorney-prepared revocable trust in Nevada runs $4,680Estimate: 10 hours at $468, Clio's Nevada Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $7,020Estimate: 15 hours at $468, Clio's Nevada Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source and a simple will $1,386Estimate: 3 hours at $462, Clio's Nevada Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $2,772Estimate: 6 hours at $462, Clio's Nevada Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source, against $0 to $549 up front plus a subscription with an online service.
How Much Life Insurance Do I Need?
In Nevada, four years at a public university cost about $76,140NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2023, Table 330.20, public 4-year in-state tuition, fees, room and board, academic year 2022-23Verified Oct 17, 2026View source and the cost of living is near the U.S. averageBEA Regional Price Parities, all items, by state, 2024Verified Oct 17, 2026View source; no state estate or inheritance tax appliesNev. Const. art. 10, §§ 1(7) & 4; NRS 375A.025, 375A.100Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.
How Much Does Probate Cost?
Probate on a $500,000 estate in Nevada costs an estimated $24,726NRS 150.060 (reasonable compensation; if computed on the value of the estate the court allows 4% on first $100K, 3% next $100K, 2% next $800K, 1% next $9M, 0.5% next $15M — hourly billing also permitted, fee fixed by written agreement and approved by the court)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source. Attorney fees on a statutory schedule presumed reasonableNRS 150.060 (reasonable compensation; if computed on the value of the estate the court allows 4% on first $100K, 3% next $100K, 2% next $800K, 1% next $9M, 0.5% next $15M — hourly billing also permitted, fee fixed by written agreement and approved by the court)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source, typically 1%NRS 150.060 (reasonable compensation; if computed on the value of the estate the court allows 4% on first $100K, 3% next $100K, 2% next $800K, 1% next $9M, 0.5% next $15M — hourly billing also permitted, fee fixed by written agreement and approved by the court)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source to 4%NRS 150.060 (reasonable compensation; if computed on the value of the estate the court allows 4% on first $100K, 3% next $100K, 2% next $800K, 1% next $9M, 0.5% next $15M — hourly billing also permitted, fee fixed by written agreement and approved by the court)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate.
Who Inherits Without a Will?
Nevada is a community property state, so the surviving spouse already owns half of what the couple acquired during the marriage. Without a will in Nevada, descendants divide what passes to them per stirpesNRS § 134.040, NRS § 132.290Verified Sep 10, 2026View source, and the state sets no survival period for heirs.
How Much Does a Revocable Living Trust Cost?
An attorney-prepared revocable living trust in Nevada runs $4,680Estimate: 10 hours at $468, Clio's Nevada Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $7,020Estimate: 15 hours at $468, Clio's Nevada Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source for an individual, against $0 to $549 up front plus a subscription with an online service.
How Much Does a Will Cost?
An attorney-prepared will in Nevada runs $1,386Estimate: 3 hours at $462, Clio's Nevada Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $2,772Estimate: 6 hours at $462, Clio's Nevada Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source, against $0 to $299 up front with an online service, and probate on a $500,000 estate adds about $24,726NRS 150.060 (reasonable compensation; if computed on the value of the estate the court allows 4% on first $100K, 3% next $100K, 2% next $800K, 1% next $9M, 0.5% next $15M — hourly billing also permitted, fee fixed by written agreement and approved by the court)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source.
How Does SimplyTrust Compare to LegalZoom, Trust & Will, and Other Services?
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How Do I Name a Guardian for My Minor Children?
In Nevada, a parent names a guardian for a minor child in a will or a separate signed writingNRS 159A.062, 159A.061(8)(a), 159A.0753Verified Sep 15, 2026View source, and the nomination covers the child until the age of majority, 18NRS 129.010Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.
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Nevada Estate Planning Resources
In-depth guides covering Nevada probate laws, trust requirements, and estate planning strategies.