A divorce decree and a life insurance policy are separate documents, and the policy doesn't read the decree. Three things need handling, and they're handled in three different places.
The beneficiary form comes first because it's the one that pays. Some states revoke a spouse's beneficiary designation automatically on divorce and some don't, and even where a statute exists it doesn't reach every type of policy. Employer group coverage under ERISA generally follows the form on file no matter what state law says. So file a new beneficiary form and get written confirmation back from the carrier.
Ownership is separate from beneficiary and people miss it. If your former spouse owns the policy, they control it. They can change the beneficiary, take loans, or surrender it for cash, and your name on it as the insured gives you no say. Transferring ownership takes a form and both signatures, which is much easier to get during the settlement than eighteen months after.
Then there's the decree itself. Many settlements require the paying spouse to maintain coverage as security for support obligations. If that's your situation, the practical protection is being named irrevocable beneficiary or being made owner of the policy, so it can't be changed or lapsed without you knowing. Ask for the annual statement to be copied to you too.
Cash value that accumulated during the marriage is usually marital property, and dividing it can mean a partial surrender, which has tax consequences and shrinks the policy permanently. A transfer of ownership incident to divorce generally avoids tax under section 1041, and the sequencing matters. I'm a licensed insurance broker rather than an attorney or a CPA, so that belongs with both of yours before anything gets signed.
Once the dust settles, look at whether the coverage still fits. The household changed, the obligations changed, and the amount you bought for a two-income home with a shared mortgage probably isn't the amount you need now.