What is a valid Will?
It is a Will made by an individual above the age of eighteen and he/she is mentally capable as well as fully aware of the decisions he/she were making and the consequences of their actions. Persons should seek legal help and advice before making a Will because this is to make the Will more valid than by doing it themselves. A valid Will is that written with no undue influence from anyone and the provisions made by the document must begin with the instigation of the testator. The testator must sign the Will and 2 people who are not beneficiaries are required to sign as witnesses. More than just signing, the witnesses must be convinced with the validity of the Will and they must be happy to sign against the fact. In cases of assigning guardian for children, it must be dated.
What is an invalid Will?
There are many situations where a Will is invalid and people can go for contesting it. If the Will does not meet the necessary conditions as per law, then there are grounds for challenging a Will. If it has not been signed by the late person and did not include 2 witnesses, then the Will can be considered invalid. Likewise, if you can prove that the testator was not of sound mind at the time of making the Will, then you can contest it.
Cancelling a Will
Testator of a Will is authorized to cancel the Will at a future date if he/she wants to change the provisions included within the Will. However, it must be fully his or her, own idea to do so and the proper procedure must be completed to ensure that the former Will is no longer in use. Generally, a Will is canceled when a person gets married or entered to a civil partnership. Under this ground, a new Will needs to be made.
Keep in mind that people have the right of choice and are allowed to leave their asset to whomever they want. Close to the dead person does not mean that you are eligible to his/her inheritance unless you were financially dependent on him/her. If you were financially dependent on the dead person and you have been left out when making the Will, then you have the right grounds to contest the Will. In other way, the only cause for contesting a Will is when it is expressly invalid.
A will is an official document declaring the wishes of the testator to beneficiaries. People who believe that the Will was not made as per deceased’s legal rights or as per the actual wishes can contest the Will’s validity. There is a time frame determined by the government of law of countries to contest the Will. This can be 6 months from the reading of the Will or 6 months from grounds that proposes the Will is invalid and this is depending on the country.
Author bio: Gloria is an expert in writing law and finance articles online. She has worked for many businesses, firms, and agencies and has supplied them with her good writing services. She has submitted a white paper recently on topic – “can I contest a will”. She currently resides in Montana and is happy with her husband and young kid and uses Wikipedia's definition on Wills.
