Source: https://www.oneillandlian.com/blog/what-is-a-will-and-what-is-required-to-create-one
Timestamp: 2019-04-22 20:45:29+00:00

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What Is a Will and What Is Required to Create One?
George Wythe, June 11, 1806, Last Will and Testament with Codicil pg. 1.
There are three types of wills: a witnessed will, a holographic will, and a statutory will. A witnessed will is any will that is written, contains language demonstrating testamentary intent, and is signed by the testator and two witnesses. Probate Code § 6110. A holographic will is one that does not comply with the requirements for a witnessed will but is still valid “whether or not witnessed, if the signature and the material provisions are in the handwriting of the testator.” Probate Code § 6111. The classic image of dying person handwriting on a note pad their last wish is an example of a holographic will. A statutory will is a fill-in-the-blanks form created by the California legislature, that still must be signed by the testator and two witnesses. It is essentially a hybrid between a typed and handwritten will. A copy made be obtained on the State Bar of California’s website.
A will must be in writing. (Probate Code § 6110.) Simply saying to a group “I want my chopstick collection to go to Nikki.” is not enough. A will must also be signed by one of three people. It can be by the testator, that is, the person writing the will. It can be by someone else who is in the testator’s presence and is signing the will under the direction of the testator. This situation can come up when the testator is in the hospital and is too weak to sign for themselves. In such a case, they can direct a nurse or visitor to sign the will for them. Last, a conservator can sign the will if pursuant to a court order.
A will must have two individuals as witnesses who sign the will. The individuals must be physically within close proximity and witness either the signing of the will by the testator or “the testator’s acknowledgment of the signature or of the will” and understand that the document that are signing is the will is the testator’s will. Probate Code § 6111.
The exception to the witness requirement is when the testator creates a holographic will. Although this brings up mental pictures of something the characters in Star Wars would create before flying into the Death Star, a holographic will is a will that is hand written and signed by the testator. This will also has its own requirements. First, the testator must put the date that he/she created and signed the will. Second, the signature and the “material provisions” of the will must be in the handwriting of the testator. (Probate Code § 6111.) A holographic will doesn’t need to be completely hand written. A fill-in-the-blanks will from Office Depot will be valid provided that the provided that the “material provisions” of the will are in the handwriting of the testator. You may be wondering what the material provisions of a will are. Essentially, they are the provisions of the will that actually dispose of property. A provision that states “Chopstick collection to Nikki” would be a material provision because it dictates what to do with the chopstick collection. Pre-printed language related to location or the preamble, will not invalidate the rest of the will. (Estate of Black (1982) 30 Cal.3d 880.) The courts and legislature recognize that the creator of a holographic will most likely have no legal education and will not be aware of many of the requirements for executing a will. Because of this, the courts take the policy of "liberality in accepting a writing as an holographic will." (Estate of Baker (1963) 59 Cal.2d 680, 683). Because this type of will is created by people with no legal education and under unusual circumstances, it is not advised that people base their estate planning on such documents.
The provisions of a will must be concrete and not aspirational, as the Southworth case demonstrates. Although this seems slightly obvious, what is clear and what is ambiguous may not be apparent to a lay person, further demonstrating the importance of having an attorney involved in the process of drafting the will.
Generally speaking, it is the better practice to have the two witnesses not be “interested persons.” A disinterested witness is a person who will not be receiving something under the will.
(1) An heir, devisee, child, spouse, creditor, beneficiary, and any other person having a property right in or claim against a trust estate or the estate of a decedent which may be affected by the proceeding.
(2) Any person having priority for appointment as personal representative.
o (3) A fiduciary representing an interested person.
What’s the problem with having a witness be interested? The problem is that when the will leaves something to an interested person Probate Code § 6112 “creates a presumption that the witness procured the devise by duress, menace, fraud, or undue influence.” You don’t have to be a lawyer to imagine that this is a big problem. An interested witness will not invalidate a will but that witness may be prevented from receiving what the testator left to them if they cannot show that they did not obtain the gift by duress, menace, fraud, or undue influence. If they cannot rebut the presumption, then the witness can only receive a proportion of the devise made to the witness in the will as does not exceed the witness’ share of the estate which would be distributed to the witness if the will were not admitted to probate i.e. by the rules of intestacy. (Probate Code § 6112(d).) In that aftermath of a loved one&apos;s death, this is the last problem a grieving family would want to deal with.
While we are on the subject, some people worry about whether an elder relative may have been forced or tricked into making a will benefiting someone. In addition to being elder abuse under Welfare & Institutions Code § 15600 et seq., such a will is invalid under Probate Code § 6104 if it was the result of duress, menace, fraud, or undue influence. You may be surprised to know that an "elder" is anyone living in the state of California who is 65 years old or older. (Welfare & Institutions Code § 15610.27.) That is not very old at all. Thus, it is advisable that anytime an individual is an elder per the statute, an attorney should be consulted to avoid any subsequent accusations of elder abuse. Additionally, if a beneficiary of the will is one of the classes of individuals listed under Probate Code § 21380 (e.g. the testator&apos;s nurse, employee, or friend) then obtaining a Certificate of Independent Attorney Review under Probate Code § 21384 is absolutely critical in preventing a subsequent claim of elder abuse. In closing, although I used the example of an elderly person, the rules governing fraud in the creation of a will applies to any person who is tricked or forced into making a will.
This concludes what a will is and what is required to make one. My next post on the subject will focus on what a will can and can not do.
The information that I have provided via this blog is purely for informational purposes only and is not legal advice nor does it create an attorney-client relationship between you the reader and myself the lawyer. You are warned that any comments, feedback and responses on this blog are not confidential because, you know, it&apos;s on the internet. Last, no representations are made as to any of the stuff I post on here being accurate or complete.

References: § 6110
 § 6111
 § 6110
 § 6111
 § 6111
 § 6112
 § 6112
 § 15600
 § 6104
 § 15610
 § 21380
 § 21384