In re Estate of Ash, No. 307033, 2012 Mich. App. LEXIS 2119 (Mich. Ct. App. Oct. 23, 2012)

(legal wife appealed probate court decision requiring her to tender proceeds of life insurance policy back to estate; wife and decedent had consent judgment of separate maintenance, which specifically stated wife had no further interest as beneficiary of life insurance; insurer denied claim by estate for proceeds stating under ERISA it could only pay designated beneficiary under the policy which was the wife; probate court held wife had waived her rights to the proceeds; on appeal court affirmed probate court holding that under contract law, once proceeds properly paid pursuant to ERISA, a contract claim could be made against wife for the proceeds she waived in the maintenance agreement; remanded to probate court to examine issue raised by wife that she and decedent entered into new agreement).