Everyone with property or children should have a will. It is especially important if you have children, since a will can provide instruction of your wishes regarding who will take care of your children.
A will must meet several requirements in order to be considered legally valid:
- There must be testamentary intent. This is fancy way of saying that the will was created with the intention of acting as a will and this fact is understood by the testator.
- The testator is required to have testamentary capacity at the time of signing the will. That means the extent and nature of the property in the will must be understood. The distribution of the property must also be understood.
- The will must be executed freely. This means the testator cannot be under undue influence, duress, or fraud.
- It must be signed. Depending on the state, this may include a notary or witnesses.
Just as with estate planning in general, wills also have their own terminology that the average person isn’t exposed to on a regular basis. Understanding these terms will greatly increase you understanding of wills in general.
