If these are the only portions of your decree that pertain to the annuity, then yes, you do still have a claim. Ownership of the policy stayed with her, which includes the ability to change the beneficiary. If she did not choose to change the beneficiary designation, then it is still valid. Unless you somewhere agreed not to accept any benefits from that policy, you should be able to receive and keep the death benefit. If the insurance company receives any conflicting claims, they may decide to pay the proceeds into court, and let a judge decide. That would probably be done in SC, if that is where she died. You should file a claim and see how the insurance company responds.
Answered on Feb 17th, 2012 at 8:57 AM