The term “family” may be used in two ways.  One is to denote members of a nuclear family who live or have lived together as a unit – often termed a household in wealth management services. The other definition denotes the extended members of the entire family enterprise system, comprising the many households, branches, and generations of a family enterprise. 

In either case, a family has traditionally been defined by members joined together either by blood or by marriage, with clear lines of demarcation for who was in or outside of the family system. However, recent changes in demographics, reproductive technology, and family perspectives have required a redefinition of “who is the family.”  

Types of families now include traditional heterosexual two-parent families with biological or adopted children, blended families with stepchildren, same-sex couples, nontraditional couples, families derived from or maintained through cohabitation for a defined period of time, and children created through in-vitro fertilization (IVF), surrogacy, and other means, to name a few.  More Rising Generation family members forgo getting married yet have children and share property in committed relationships.  Finally, UHNW family cohesion across generations often emphasizes the need to foster common values, interests, and goals over time, no matter who is in the family.

These factors have expanded who is considered “family” both relationally and legally, with a corresponding impact on estate planning, trust design and administration, governance, and wealth advising.  Advisors need to be careful not to assume their own definition of family is shared by the client. The question of “who is family” must be considered and discussed carefully for each client, without preconception.