Usually not unless there is a clear reason. But “clear reason” matters a lot here. If your ex is simply an ex, the answer may be very different from the answer for an ex-spouse, an ex you are divorcing, or the other parent of your children.
This is one of the most emotionally charged pages in the whole cluster because it mixes old hurt, jealousy, unfinished legal ties, co-parenting, guilt, and the temptation to tell somebody either out of honesty, revenge, pride, or fear.
The answer depends on what kind of ex you mean. A former boyfriend or girlfriend you no longer share anything with is very different from an ex-spouse, an ex you are separating from financially, or the other parent of your children. In some situations, silence is sensible. In others, hiding it can create legal or co-parenting complications.
Money lands on top of old emotion. That is what makes this topic so explosive.
Usually not for emotional reasons alone. If the relationship is over and there are no active financial or parenting ties, many people will choose not to tell an ex at all. But if you are still married, still divorcing, still financially connected, or still parenting together, the answer becomes more complex and much less about emotion.
Usually no disclosure needed. The urge to tell is often emotional rather than necessary.
High caution. Do not rely on instinct alone. Get legal advice before making moves.
The child angle matters. Not because the win is “theirs”, but because children may be affected.
This is where pride and revenge thinking can distort judgment fast.
This is one of the strongest emotional long-tail angles on the page. If you were just dumped, or just left someone, a win can feel like cosmic timing. That can make telling an ex feel tempting. But that temptation is often about validation, revenge, or unfinished hurt rather than wisdom.
This is understandable — and usually a bad basis for disclosure. A lottery win is not the healthiest way to reopen a closed emotional loop.
Sometimes telling an ex is less about money and more about wanting to be seen as suddenly untouchable, desirable, or “the one who won anyway”.
This is where a disclosure can turn into performance. It may feel satisfying for ten minutes and create months of noise after.
If your reason for telling your ex begins with hurt, pride, revenge, or “I hope they see this”, it is probably not the right reason.
These examples are useful because they show the range: secrecy during divorce, a jackpot treated as part of an ongoing marital split, and a later relationship breakdown after a win.
In a widely reported California case, a woman concealed a lottery jackpot shortly before divorce proceedings and later lost the money to her ex-husband. It is one of the clearest examples of why secrecy can become much more serious once legal disclosure duties are involved.
Richard Zelasko’s reported case shows the danger of assuming separation ends the question. He won a huge jackpot while divorcing and was later ordered to share it with his estranged wife.
Lara Griffiths later said she and her ex-husband split after spending their jackpot. The useful lesson is not “money ruins everyone”. It is that money can amplify whatever the relationship already was.
| Situation | Default answer | Why | Main caution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Old ex, no children, no legal ties | Usually no | No obvious practical need to reopen the connection. | Telling may create fresh drama for no benefit. |
| Ex-spouse, divorce ongoing | Get legal advice first | Money can intersect with disclosure and financial proceedings. | Do not guess. This is where mistakes become expensive. |
| Ex-partner and co-parent | Maybe later, maybe partly | Children’s lives, arrangements, and household changes may be affected. | Keep the conversation child-focused, not emotionally charged. |
| Recently dumped by ex | Usually no | Most reasons to disclose are emotional rather than sensible. | Revenge disclosure often backfires. |
Ex-relationships already carry history. A lottery win can light up old wounds: “Why now?” “Why them?” “Why wasn’t this our life?” “Why do they get the good ending?” Even when the breakup was the right one, sudden wealth can make the other person feel replaced by luck, punished by timing, or tempted to reopen a dead story.
Winning just after a breakup can feel unbearably symbolic to the person who left or was left.
The ex may compare your new freedom to their current struggle and react from resentment.
Even if you are “over it”, the money may reopen conflict, blame, or nostalgia on one side.
Some people will immediately start thinking about claims, fairness, the children, or what they are owed.
This page has a strong lead-gen angle for family-law and divorce support, but the tone should stay calm. Most readers do not want a fight. They want to avoid one.
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This is the softer, more important angle. If you share children, the question is no longer just about your ex. It is about whether the win changes anything material for the children, and whether handling it badly could increase harmful conflict around them.
If the win will affect schooling, housing, travel, schedules, or obvious support arrangements, some disclosure may be sensible.
Co-parenting does not automatically mean your ex needs full financial visibility into your private life. It means the child’s needs come first.
Keep the conversation focused on arrangements, stability, and the child rather than the headline fact of “I won”.
If you are co-parenting, the question is not “does my ex deserve to know?” It is “what, if anything, does my child need me to handle responsibly here?”
Do not let the win become a fresh battleground if children are already navigating separation.
Talk about the child’s life, not the emotional symbolism of the win.
Children should not become the route through which adults argue about money, fairness, or bitterness.
If the financial or legal situation is active, pause before turning the news into conflict.
You think you are being honest, kind, or simply making a practical disclosure.
Jealousy, regret, anger, blame, curiosity, or hope all come back into the room.
Your ex may hear “look at me now”, “you should have stayed”, or “this changes everything”.
Now the issue is not the money. It is what the money means to the history between you.
Use this before turning a private win into an ex-related problem.
It is usually: “what, if anything, makes telling them necessary — and what part of me is really pushing for it?”