Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District / Date unavailable
Michael Grabb vs. Teresa Lurinda Grabb a/k/a Terry Grabb and Amanda Huffman, Public Administrator for Morgan County, Missouri, Personal Representative of the Estate of Ronald E. Grabb
Michael Grabb, the son of Ronald Grabb, appealed the trial court's judgment awarding his father's IRA proceeds to Teresa Grabb, the father's ex-wife, as a non-probate asset. The son argued that the ex-wife's beneficiary designation was automatically revoked upon divorce under Missouri statute § 461.051.1. The appellate court affirmed, finding that the IRA's custodial agreement contained an express provision, permitted by § 461.051.2, stating that divorce would not automatically revoke beneficiary designations, and this provision was properly considered by the trial court.