Your will: thrown out of court

21 Jul 2023 · 1 min

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1:01

In this concise instructional video, the presenter warns DIY estate planners about three common errors that can cause a will to be invalidated in court. First, using improper witnesses—beneficiaries or anyone with an interest in the will cannot serve as witnesses, and the required number of witnesses varies by state, so viewers must check local statutes. Second, drafting a will and never revisiting it; the speaker advises reviewing the will and other estate documents at least every three years to reflect life changes. Third, being overly specific in bequests—listing exact items or fixed amounts for a set number of beneficiaries can backfire if circumstances differ at death, leading to disputes. The video recommends using flexible language, such as gifting to “each grandchild alive at my death,” to avoid challenges.

Chapters

If you are going to write your own will, do not do these 3 things unless you want it thrown out of court. Thing 1: Have the wrong witnesses sign it. Don't have anyone who is associated with the will in any way sign it as a witness. Someone who's a beneficiary to the will or to receive something from the will cannot be a witness to it. Make sure you have the right number of witnesses. The law on the number of people you need to witness your will is different from state to state. Check your state law. Thing 2: Preparing your will and then never looking at it again. Things change in life. You need to look at that will will and your other estate documents at least every 3 years. Thing 3: being too specific. And if you put in your will that you want your daughter to have your 1972 Mustang, and then at the time of your death you have a 1979 Camaro, that could cause somebody to challenge the will. Likewise, if you put in your will that you want to give your grandsons Josh and John $5,000 apiece, then at your death you have 4 grandchildren, the 2 new grandchildren will be out of luck. It's better to say something like, I give each of my grandchildren alive at my death