WRITING A WILL?

A couple of weeks ago, we had published a post on the benefits of having a will in – ‘Where there is a will, there are no hassles.’

…Now that you know WHY you should write a will, here is a post on HOW to write one! We have tried to cover every dimension there is to the phenomenon we call a ‘will’.

As you might already be aware, in the absence of a will, the said property is distributed equally among the deceased’s heirs according to legal succession laws…which wouldn’t always work in everyone’s favor. 

Would you want your prized possessions sold and the proceeds distributed among your heirs according to a bunch of pre-written succession laws and not as per your wishes? Certainly not!

Thus, once again, the fact that a will is important is stated.

…And while we are at it, a will is all about ‘assets’ and their consolidation. If you invest and buy properties without taking your family into confidence, they will have to scour through heaves of papers to know your legacy! Thus, it is very necessary to manage asset consolidation systematically.

There is one thing about wills that not everyone is aware of…and that is the types a WILL can be classified into --

An Unprivileged Will – An unprivileged will needs to be  signed in the presence of at least two witnesses who also sign the will. This type of a will can be revoked by writing a new one or destroying an old one.

A Privileged Will is made by either soldiers, sailors or airmen who are in the battlefield or engaged in an expedition. If handwritten, this will does not need to be signed by any witnesses.

A Conditional Will, as the name suggests, has certain conditions attached to the will, ie, the assets in the will can be claimed only and only subject to fulfillment of certain condition such as marriage or attaining certain age.

A Joint will, is that type of a will which is jointly written by two or more persons together who dispose of their property as a team.

A Mutual Will is written by two individuals where one wishes to give their wealth to the other in case of their death and vice versa.

A Concurrent Will is for the sake of the convenience of those individuals who have properties in more than one country and need to execute separate wills for properties in different nations...

Thus, heading towards conclusion, a will –

 ü Has no fixed format.

 ü Does not need a lawyer to be drafted; and

 ü Is valid only when it has your signature or thumb impression and has signatures of two witnesses certifying that it is your will.

Finally, just writing a will is not enough; it needs to be carefully safeguarded. It is advisable to register a will as it cannot be tampered with, destroyed, lost or stolen. It is also advisable to keep a copy of your will with the main beneficiary or the executor…

We are sure you ‘WILL’ keep this in mind!