Do You Need to Make a Will or Change Your Will?

Does your present will accurately show how you want your estate to be passed to your family or friends?

When you should consider making a new will:

You change your mind about who you want to inherit any part of your estate.

You get married or remarried. In North Carolina, your spouse is legally entitled to claim at least a portion of your property after you die. If you want to decide what your spouse is to receive from your estate, rather than letting the legislature decide for you, then you should have your will reviewed.

You have a new business partner or partners. Without a new will or alternate estate plan, your partners will inherit nothing from you at your death and could end up having to work with people who know nothing about your business. To avoid this problem, you and your partners should make proper plans now.

You move to North Carolina from another State. Each State has its own laws which govern probate, inheritance taxes, estate administration, community property, common law marriage, etc.

You get divorced. Where you get your divorce can have a major impact on your will and the distribution of your property under your will. In some states, an absolute divorce eliminates all gifts to a spouse under the will. In other states, a divorce completely revokes the entire will. No matter what state you live in, you should seek legal advice and make a new will after a divorce.

You have a baby. You will want to name a personal guardian for your child or establish a trust for the child. A guardian is the person you will want to raise your child in the unlikely event that both you and your spouse are killed in an accident or die prior to your child reaching adulthood.

You marry someone who has children by a prior marriage. Unless you legally adopt your spouse's children from the prior marriage, they will have no right to inherit from your estate. If you wish for these children to receive a share of your estate, then you will need to make a new will.

You inherit or sell any large asset. Very often when you inherit a piece of property or you sell your home, these types of events can significantly alter the share or distribution of your estate that your intended beneficiaries may receive at your death and create inequities that you never intended. For example, five years ago you may have had a will prepared which bequeathed your home to one child, your business to another, and your beach house to your third child. Since executing your will you have sold your beach house, purchased another beach house, and sold your business. If you haven't changed your will, there will be a very different distribution to your three children than you envisioned five years earlier. In this example, your will needs to be reviewed and updated to reflect your present circumstances.

You have children or beneficiaries who are either incapable or might have difficulty effectively managing a large single payment. Do you have a spouse or children who could need assistance in managing a business or safely investing a single lump sum payment? Would it be better for your beneficiaries if they received payments annually or upon attaining certain ages?

How Can I Change My Will? You can change your will either by executing a codicil or you can revoke your existing will and execute a new will.

Do You Need a Codicil or a New Will?

A codicil is a way to add to or to change an existing will, either revoking a part of it or adding new provisions. Codicils may have made sense years ago, when creating a new will was a much more labor intensive task. Today, in the era of computers, word processors and scanners, codicils do not usually make much sense. Codicils can and frequently do create confusion by conflicting with other provisions in a will. Do not make your estate administration any more difficult than it has to be. Because codicils must be written, dated, executed and witnessed with the same formalities as a will. It usually makes more sense to execute a new will and to revoke all prior wills and codicils.

If you execute a new will, it is important that you revoke your old will. In addition to revoking your old will by an affirmative statement in your new will, you should destroy your old will in the presence of witnesses. It is often a good idea to bring your old will to your lawyer's office, and to destroy the will at the same time you execute and have your new will witnessed. Do a big favor for your family and loved ones. Avoid confusion after your death by collecting and destroying all copies of your old wills which have been revoked.

Remember, it is important to have your will reviewed at least once every five years. Laws change, events change, people change, and these changes in peoples lives can affect your wishes for your property and what you have worked a lifetime to save.

Weaver, Bennett and Bland P.A. has four Matthews attorneys who are experienced in estate planning, estate administration, and who are conveniently located only two minutes from Interstate 485 in downtown Matthews. Quality legal representation from our experienced Matthews lawyers is easily accessible to both Union and Mecklenburg Counties. Why go through the headache of driving and parking in downtown Charlotte or Monroe?

Call for an appointment at 704-844-1400.