Walk It Through: The Handwritten Will
A will in a widower's own hand, a divorce, a third marriage, and a son who finds the papers.
A widower writes out his whole will by hand at the kitchen table and signs it, with no one else present.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One man's three marriages. The augmented estate's arithmetic, a prenuptial waiver, a will contest and property held jointly are not worked through here.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- TestatorThe person whose will it is. A testator must be of sound mind and at least eighteen years old.
- Will wholly in the testator's handwritingA will written entirely in the hand of the person making it and signed, which is valid without attesting witnesses.
- CodicilA later writing that changes a will. A will or any part of one may be revoked by a later will or codicil.
- Revocation by divorceThe rule that a divorce or annulment after a will revokes every gift to the former spouse and naming them as executor or guardian, unless the will says otherwise.
- Custodial responsibilityThe time a child spends with each parent. Unless the parents agree otherwise or it would harm the child, the court allocates it equally (50-50).
- Elective shareThe percentage of the augmented estate a surviving spouse may take instead of what the will or intestacy gives, rising with the years married to 50% at fifteen years or more.
- IntestateDying without a valid will, so the estate passes to the spouse and relatives in the order the code sets.