Q: My ex-husband passed away this year. Am I entitled to any of his benefits, such as life ins, pension or social security?

A: Upon divorce, each spouse is automatically removed by law as a beneficiary under their ex-spouse’s estate, even if they are named in a will at the time of the divorce. So you are not entitled to any distribution under your ex spouse’s estate.

In order for an ex-spouse to qualify for a percentage of their ex-spouse’s SSA benefits (which doesn’t reduce what their ex-spouse receives), they must have been married for at least 10 years. Since you were only married 9 years, you do not qualify.

Your right to receive a share of your ex-spouse’s pension benefits is normally addressed in your divorce settlement agreement or divorce decree. The court would have had to issue a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO) directing the pension administrator to separate out your marital share of his pension. If that did not happen, then you have no share. However, if he elected to grant you a “survivor benefit” when he signed his original pension papers at his employer, and he never changed that, then it is possible you remain entitled to a survivor’s benefit. But survivor benefits are often negotiated as part of the divorce settlement, and the spouse with the pension would oppose granting such a benefit because it reduces their monthly benefit while they are alive. So, in all likelihood, unless that was negotiated by you as part of the divorce, you probably do not have a survivor benefit. You can always contact his employer’s pension administrator to inquire if you are named to receive a survivor’s benefit.

Finally, if you remain a beneficiary on a life insurance policy, then you would receive those benefits. But why do you believe your ex maintained a life insurance policy naming you as the beneficiary as opposed to one or more of his children? Regardless, the insurance company will only pay the beneficiary named under the policy, so if in fact that’s you, then they will pay you.