Royal Arcanum News and Events

 

Jan 26, 2021 Newsletter #10

Hi Member, Highlights of this newsletter A Message From the Assistant General Counsel We Are Now Licensed in Texas! Scholarship applicants - Get your documents in Make your 2021 IFS donations Roy's Corner - Zoom Gathering Tomorrow!    A Message From Assistant General Counsel Matthew D'Emilio It is common – indeed, standard procedure – for a member to designate his or her spouse as the beneficiary of his or her Benefit Certificate.  But what happens to the proceeds of the Benefit Certificate if the member and his or her spouse get divorced?    If the member did not update his or her beneficiary designation, the answer is . . . it depends.  While a divorce decree, separation agreement, or court approved property may dictate the payment of the proceeds of a Benefit Certificate, that is not always the case.  Further, many (but not all) states have legislation or case law on this subject.  Believe it or not, the prevailing rule is that a divorce does not operate to invalidate a proper beneficiary designation!  The result is a distribution of the proceeds to a former spouse.  That is often not the intended result.   It is critical to keep your beneficiary current on your Benefit Certificate.  You cannot rely on your divorce paperwork or state default rules to pay the proceeds to the “correct” person.  Be sure to review your beneficiary designation periodically to ensure that the proceeds from your certificate pass to the intended recipient.    It is simple to change your beneficiary – all you have to do is complete and sign a change of beneficiary form.  To get the form, simply call the Home Office or print it from the Royal Arcanum website. If your interested in the Life Insurance Products and Annuities that we offer please review our website for more information with the link below. If you’re looking for a policy change form such as a change of beneficiary click on the link below” https://www.royalarcanum.com/products.html https://www.royalarcanum.com/forms.html    Now Licensed in Texas! The Royal Arcanum is continuing to expand its operations! We are now officially licensed in Texas. This is part of our operational expansion plan to grow our membership and operational results. We're registering agents now and expect to get the benefits of this step in our multi-year plans. Do you have any relatives living in Texas? Why not sign them up as members now!    Scholarship applicants, don't delay! Scholarship applicants, be sure to get in all your documents and a recent picture before the deadline, March 31. You should have gotten a notice of all missing documents needed, just be sure to get them all in on time.    Make your 2021 IFS Donation Now! Don't forget that each Subordinate Council and each Grand Council is each eligible for reimbursement of half their qualifying donations, up to $1,000 each year! Why not help your community and/or your council's favorite charities? We look forward to sending your council a reimbursement check soon! And don't forget that any 2020 donations should have their IFS program request sent into the home office by the end of February. That's just a month away, don't wait!    Roy's Corner Zoom gathering tomorrow! We will be having our second Zoom gathering tomorrow afternoon / evening, on Wednesday, January 27 at 6 PM Eastern / 5 PM Central / 3 PM Pacific. Come join us and catch up with your friends from other Jurisdictions. It's so simple, just use this link on your smart phone or computer. If you have video, you can let your friends see you. If not, you can still see them and talk to them through your phone or computer microphone and speakers. Besides catching up, it's a great opportunity to see how you can use Zoom for your own council meetings. No need to register, just click this link to join the meeting. Hope to see you there!