Wills and Testament Law

Articles written by attorneys and experts worldwide discussing legal aspects related to Estate Planning including: estate and trust, inheritance law, personal property, probate, wills.

Planning your estate is about caring for your loved ones, seeing they are provided for, and making sure your hard-earned property is distributed according to your wishes. Your estate consists of all your property, including: * your home and other real estate * tangible personal property such as cars and furniture, and * intangible property like insurance, bank accounts, stocks, and pension and social security benefits.

This Act provides that any persons who die within 120 hours of each other, by law, predecease each other. This rule keeps the property of one deceased person from passing through the estate of another deceased person before passing to those who survive both.

The 1991 Uniform Probate Code (UPC 1991) is a nationally recommended and up-to-date model for the improvement of state law relating to the succession of property at an owner's death, as controlled by will, intestacy statute, and the probate process. The UPC has long been applauded for its reform provisions, which are designed to shorten and simplify the probate of estates. Aspects of nonprobate transfers on death are also covered in the UPC, as are guardianships and other protective arrangements for minors and incapacitated adults. The UPC aims to make laws more uniform among the states, and promotes a speedy and efficient system for estate administration.

The purpose of a will is to permit the living to provide for those who come after him or her. By "willing" their estates, individuals can control the way their property is distributed after their deaths. If an individual dies without a will and without heirs or relatives, however, the estate escheats to the state. A will is thus a way to keep the estate in the hands of family and/or loved ones, and out of the hands of the state.

A will or testament is a legal declaration by which a person, the testator, names one or more persons to manage his estate and provides for the transfer of his property at death. For the devolution of property not disposed of by will, see inheritance and intestacy. In the strictest sense, a "will" has historically been limited to real property, while "testament" applies only to dispositions of personal property, though this distinction is seldom observed today. A will may also create a testamentary trust that is effective only after the death of the testator

With this Green Paper, the Commission is launching a public consultation exercise in order to address the practical problems encountered by individuals in connection with succession and wills. The difficulties facing those involved in a transnational succession mostly flow from divergences in the substantive rules, the procedural rules and the conflict rules applicable in the Member States. The mobility of individuals within the European Union (EU) and the increasing number of marriages between nationals of the different Member States also influence matters relating to succession and wills.

For the purposes of section 15 of the M1Wills Act 1837 (avoidance of gifts to attesting witnesses and their spouses) the attestation of a will by a person to whom or to whose spouse there is given or made any such disposition as is described in that section shall be disregarded if the will is duly executed without his attestation and without that of any other such person. (2)This section applies to the will of any person dying after the passing of this Act, whether executed before or after the passing of this Act.

When a person dies without a will, all of that person's property is distributed according to a formula fixed by law. Without a will, legal costs are increased. It can also lead to hard feelings. Finally you will have no say as to who will look after your affairs after you have gone.

An Act respecting international wills and testaments.

The American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys is an exclusive, membership organization that serves the needs of estate planning attorneys and law firms nationwide. Since 1993, we have been dedicated to promoting excellence in estate planning by providing our attorneys with comprehensive document creation software, up-to-date research on estate and tax planning matters and exceptional educational training materials.

If you want to know more about a Last Will and Testament, you've come to the right place.

The National Association of Estate Planners & Councils (NAEPC) is a national organization of professional estate planners and affiliated Estate Planning Councils focused on establishing and monitoring the highest professional and educational standards. NAEPC fosters public awareness of the quality services rendered by professionals who meet these standards. NAEPC builds a team approach involving cross-professional disciplines to better serve the public’s need in estate planning.

ur mission is to educate, promote, and support financial, legal, and tax professionals who understand the needs of estate planning, enabling them to work together as a team to bring to every client a custom tailored estate plan which is designed to preserve, protect, and pass on that individual's estate to whom they want, when they want, and how they want, and that also gives that client the peace of mind that comes from knowing their estate will be managed during their lifetime as they have directed even should they become incapacitated. We believe every American adult should have an estate plan that allows these goals to be accomplished in the most efficient manner available under the law, and that minimizes costs both now and in the future.

Answers provided by the ABA to FAQs regarding estate planning, wills and trusts.

There are several different types of wills that are recognized as legal and binding in probate.

People at all economic levels benefit from an estate plan. Upon death, an estate plan legally protects and distributes property based on your wishes and the needs of your family and/or survivors with as little tax as possible.