---
type: Concept
title: Stress Test Your Estate Plan in Missouri
description: Nine questions to check whether your Missouri estate plan still reflects your life, your people, and current law.
resource: https://nemolegal.com/stress-test-your-estate-plan/
tags: [estate-plan-review, beneficiary-designations, digital-assets, recordkeeping, life-insurance, missouri]
timestamp: 2026-06-22
jurisdiction: Missouri
author: Patrick Nolan
---

# Summary
Signing your estate documents is not the finish line. An estate plan is a living tool that should change as your family, finances, health, and the law change. The firm offers a nine-question stress test to tell whether it is time for an update, with the general guidance to review every three to five years and sooner after a major life change.

# Quotable Q&A
**Q: How often should I review my estate plan?**
A: In most cases reviewing an estate plan every three to five years is enough, but if a major life change happens sooner, take another look right away. The more time that passes, the more likely the law has also changed in ways that affect how your plan works.

**Q: Should I name my trust as a beneficiary of my life insurance?**
A: You can, and if you have a trust-based plan your attorney may recommend naming the trust as a primary or contingent beneficiary so the proceeds flow into the trust and are managed and distributed according to your wishes. Each policy should still name a primary and a contingent beneficiary, reviewed regularly.

# The nine stress-test questions
The firm post asks you to check each of these.

| # | Question to ask |
|---|---|
| 1 | When did you last update your will or living trust? |
| 2 | Are your named executor and trustee still the right fit and willing? |
| 3 | Do you have adequate life insurance with current primary and contingent beneficiaries? |
| 4 | Which accounts or property are jointly owned with someone other than your spouse? |
| 5 | Is your recordkeeping current and accessible (accounts, benefits, passwords, key documents)? |
| 6 | Has your health or a loved one's health changed? |
| 7 | Have you had a major financial change (inheritance, windfall, big asset sale or purchase)? |
| 8 | Do you have a plan for your digital life (crypto, online accounts, cloud storage)? |
| 9 | When did an experienced estate planning attorney last give the whole plan a once-over? |

# Decision rule
- If any of the nine questions made you pause, then it is likely time to have your plan reviewed.
- If it has been more than three to five years, or a major life event has happened, then schedule a review even if nothing else seems wrong, to catch small issues before they become big ones.

# Related
- [Estate Planning Overview](/okf/estate-planning/overview.md)
- [Core Documents](/okf/estate-planning/core-documents.md)
- [12 Estate Planning Blunders](/okf/estate-planning/estate-planning-12-blunders.md)
- [Getting Started](/okf/estate-planning/getting-started.md)
- [About Nolan Law Firm](/okf/firm.md)