augfan77
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| death bed wills |
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How far the death bed wills are valid? Because they are infact prepared in a hurry.
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Thu Mar 09, 2006 3:01 am |
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alice
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| death bed wills |
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In general, wills made at the time of death are legally as much valid and binding as other wills are. The only risk to such a will, firstly, is that it can be challenged very easily on the basis that it is prepared in a hurry and in a state of mental sickness. A beneficiary who did not get any part or as much as he wanted can claim this.
Secondly, a last minute will can actually be erroneous. Let me explain. For example, the person could not take advantage of some features that could reduce the tax to be paid by the beneficiaries. Or it could be that the will did not meet some legal requirement.
Hope this will help 
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Thu Mar 30, 2006 4:49 am |
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JCook
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I am not an expert on wills but I do know that wills are governed my state law so there is probably some variation from state to state on this matter.
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Fri Mar 31, 2006 4:02 am |
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bugmenot
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Not legal advice as the law of estates varies greatly from state to state, but to be a valid will there are many formalities such as the will maker's (testator) signature being witnessed by 2 or 3 witnesses who also sign the will attesting to testator's signature, etc.
If someone was litterally on their death bed without access to an attorney, I would advise them to create a holographic will where requirements and formalism are minimal. The will must be entirely in the testator's handwriting and signed by the testator. It will probably be effective and will have the effect of revoking any previous will of any kind, at least to the degree that the holographic will is inconsistent with the previous will.
If for some reason someone dies without a will, the law of intestacy will govern how the person's assests are disposed of. Immediate familiy will take everything, subject to a court supervised process known as probate.
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Wed Apr 19, 2006 2:57 pm |
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