Would You Make This Million Dollar Mistake?
Picture this: You’re in your twenties, just starting your career. You fill out a simple form at work, naming your live-in significant other as the beneficiary of your retirement account. You start contributing, and over the years, your retirement savings grow significantly. Fast forward 28 years—your relationship ended long ago, you’ve lived a full life, and then you pass away. But you never updated that beneficiary designation, and now your ex is entitled to your million-dollar retirement nest egg, while your family gets nothing.
Sound unlikely? It’s not. This exact scenario played out in a high-profile lawsuit involving Margaret Losinger, her former boyfriend Jeffrey Rolison, his estate, and Procter & Gamble, the company where he worked for 28 years.
Let’s dive into this shocking real-life story, the lessons we can learn, and how having a trusted advisor at every stage of life can protect you from making a million-dollar mistake—or any other costly errors you might be overlooking.
What Happened?
In the 1980s, Jeffrey Rolison dated Margaret Sjostedt, and the two lived together. During this time, Rolison worked at a Procter & Gamble (P&G) plant, where he enrolled in a profit-sharing and savings plan, listing Sjostedt as the sole beneficiary of his retirement account in 1987. Two years later, their relationship ended, and they went their separate ways. Sjostedt eventually married and became Margaret Losinger.
Rolison, however, never updated his beneficiary designation. When he passed away in 2015 at age 59—single, childless, and without a will—his retirement account had grown to $1.15 million, still designated to Losinger.
Rolison’s brothers, Brian and Richard, were shocked to learn that Losinger was the beneficiary. They were convinced their brother wouldn’t have wanted his long-ago ex-girlfriend to inherit his retirement savings. In 2017, the brothers filed a lawsuit against P&G and Losinger, trying to redirect the money to Rolison’s estate.
On April 29, 2024, after a lengthy legal battle, an appeals court ruled that Losinger was entitled to the money. Rolison’s family not only lost their claim to the million dollars but also incurred significant legal fees and court costs. To ensure your family never faces this situation, read on…
Why Even “Simple Estates” Require Trusted Guidance
Before we move forward, let’s clarify what estate planning really is, how beneficiary accounts factor in, and why you need the guidance of a trusted advisor—even if you think your estate is “simple” or you don’t think you need an estate plan.
What estate planning is: Many people mistakenly believe that estate planning is only for the wealthy or the elderly. As you can see from this case, that’s simply not true. Rolison wasn’t wealthy when he named Losinger as his beneficiary, and he probably wasn’t wealthy when they broke up. But without an estate plan or the guidance to know what he needed, he inadvertently made his ex-girlfriend a wealthy woman, costing his siblings time, money, and heartache in the process.
At its core, estate planning is about ensuring your assets pass to the people you choose, in the way you want, with as little effort, cost, and mess as possible. It’s also about making sure your wishes are honored if you become incapacitated, with minimal cost and maximum privacy.
Most importantly, estate planning is about your choices and your freedom. How important is it to you to have a say in what happens to your assets and your loved ones? If it’s important, you need an estate plan. Otherwise, the government will make those decisions for you.
How Beneficiary-Designated Accounts Factor Into Your Estate Plan
Beneficiary-designated accounts—like retirement accounts or life insurance—are a crucial part of your estate plan. Beneficiary designations override the government’s plan for you, and they also override any will or trust you may have created.
In Rolison’s case, we see that he didn’t have a will, but even if he had, it wouldn’t have mattered. Beneficiary designations take precedence over any will or trust, no matter how long ago the forms were filled out.
Beneficiary forms are powerful documents. They alone determine who gets your retirement accounts, life insurance policies, and bank accounts, often regardless of your current wishes. The biggest takeaway from the Rolison/Losinger case is that beneficiary accounts are an integral part of your estate plan and should be reviewed regularly. This is why we include a review of all your accounts, beneficiary designations, and an inventory of all your assets in our Life & Legacy Plans.
Why You Need Regular Reviews of Your Accounts and Beneficiary Designations
Rolison’s case underscores how easy it is to forget about beneficiary designations, especially when they were set years ago. Neglecting to update your accounts can lead to unintended consequences and legal battles for your loved ones.
Rolison’s brothers argued that P&G failed to adequately inform him about his beneficiary designation, claiming insufficient warnings during service provider changes and in monthly statements. But most companies don’t remind you to review and update your beneficiary accounts. When was the last time your bank prompted you to check the beneficiary on your checking account? Or your life insurance company? Have you taken it upon yourself to do so regularly? If not, you should. In its decision, the court stated that keeping beneficiary information current is the individual’s responsibility.
How Accountability Makes All the Difference
Life is busy. With all your daily responsibilities, planning for death and incapacity might be the last thing on your mind. And reviewing beneficiary accounts? That’s probably second-to-last. But the truth is, “later” could be too late.
We all know we’ll die someday; we just don’t know when. Death doesn’t care about your age or your busy schedule. I’m not saying this to scare you—just to prepare you. When you plan for it, you’ll find that you can live with more peace of mind, knowing you’ve done the right thing for your loved ones.
Having a trusted advisor who’s there for you throughout your life can make all the difference. That’s why my Life & Legacy PlanningⓇ process includes regular check-ins and reviews of your plan, including your beneficiary accounts. The best part? You don’t have to remember to do it on your own. Unlike most estate planning lawyers, I’ll remind you regularly to update your plan and keep you accountable. I’ll be there as life changes, so your plan always reflects your current wishes. Together, we’ll make sure your family inherits your accounts, not an ex you dated 40 years ago.
We Do the Heavy Lifting So You Don’t Have To
When it comes to planning for your death and incapacity, we do the heavy lifting, freeing you to focus on your family, work, and yourself. As a Personal Family LawyerⓇ Firm, we help you create a Life & Legacy Plan that keeps your loved ones out of court and conflict and ensures your plan works when you need it to. Once your plan is in place, you can rest easy knowing your wishes will be honored, your loved ones cared for, your property protected, and your plan updated throughout your lifetime.
If you’ve already created your Life & Legacy Plan with us, keep an eye out for our reminders to review and update your plan. And if you know you need to update your plan due to a life change, don’t wait—call us today or use the form on this page to schedule a complimentary 15-minute consultation.
This article is a service of The Life and Legacy Law Center, a Personal Family Lawyer® Firm. We don’t just draft documents; we ensure you make informed and empowered decisions about life and death, for yourself and the people you love. That’s why we offer a Life & Legacy Planning® Session, during which you will get more financially organized than you’ve ever been before and make all the best choices for the people you love. You can begin by calling our office today to schedule a Life & Legacy Planning Session.
The content is sourced from Personal Family Lawyer® for use by Personal Family Lawyer firms, a source believed to be providing accurate information. This material was created for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as ERISA, tax, legal, or investment advice. If you are seeking legal advice specific to your needs, such advice services must be obtained on your own separate from this educational material.