All Things You Need To Know Before Making A ‘WILL’

What is a Will?

A ‘Will’ is a legal document that sets out in writing the deceased wishes for his or her possessions, after their demise. It can only be revoked during his lifetime.

Types of Will

• Privileged Will- This type of ‘Will’ is executed by certain persons. A Privileged Will is made by any soldier, airman, navy persons, mariner who is willing to dispose of their will during their course of employment.
• Unprivileged Will- An unprivileged Will is made by any person who does not come under the category of soldier or airman. This type of ‘Will’ is the most common form of will.

The person making a ‘Will’ is known as ‘testator’ and the person for whom ‘Will’ is made is known as ‘legatee’.

Who can write a ‘Will’?

According to The Succession Act, 1925, any person who is a major, sound mind and willing to write a ‘Will’ is competent to write a ‘Will’.

Requirements of a Valid ‘Will’

• The ‘Will’ must always be in writing.
• For writing a ‘Will’ the testator must be major i.e. above 18 years of age.
• The testator must be of sound mind.
• The ‘Will’ must be signed or marked in the presence of two witnesses and the testator must also acknowledge the signature or mark in the presence of two witnesses.
• The two witnesses must sign the ‘Will’ in the testator’s presence.
• The two witnesses signing the will must not be the ones benefiting from the ‘Will’. They must also be present at the time of the attestation of the ‘Will’.
• Even the spouses of the witnesses must not be the beneficiaries of the ‘Will’.
• The testator’s witnesses can see him or her signing the will but it is not important for them to see what is written in the ‘Will’.
• The signature or mark must be at the end of the ‘Will’.

Steps of Writing a Will

• Declaration of making a ‘Will’
• Details of property and documents
• Details of ownership by the testator
• Attestation of the ‘Will’
• Execution of the ‘Will’

Features of a Legal Will

• The testator has the absolute right to appoint any person as the legatee or beneficiary of his possessions.
• The ‘Will’ can only come into effect after the death of the testator.
• A ‘Will’ can be revoked anytime during the lifetime of the testator.
• The ‘Will’ of the testator is considered to be his last wish.
• If a ‘Will’ is revoked many times then the ‘Will’ which was last made before the testator’s death will only prevail.

Therefore, before making a ‘Will’, a testator must be aware of the above facts so that a ‘Will’ can be made in a detailed and transparent manner. This will help the beneficiaries can inherit the assets without going in for legal disputes and litigation.

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