BarBri - Wills Module 2: Execution of Wills Flashcards
Formalities of a Will
1) There be a writing,
2) That the testator sign that writing, and
3) That the document be attested (signed by witnesses)
Lesser Known Formalities of a Will
1) Testator’s signature appear at the end of the will,
2) Witnesses sign in the testator’s presence when they sign
Notarial Wills
Interested Witness
When one of the beneficiaries of the will is also a witness to the will
Holographic Wills
A will written in the testator’s own handwriting
Doctrine of Integration
Doctrine that governs that when a will consists of more than one page, what pages are included in the will, and what pages are not
Doctrine of Republication by Codicil
The notion that that once we execute our will we then execute an amendment, a codicil to the will
Doctrine of Incorporation by Reference
Doctrine which permits us to incorporate into our will extrinsic writings that are not themselves executed with the formalities required for a will itself
Doctrine of Acts of Independent Significance
Doctrine that tells us when w are allowed to modify our will through our post-execution acts (i.e., by hiring or firing employees)
Scope of the Will
Probate Estate
Traditional Non-Probate Assets
Powers of Appointment
Authority that the testator received from someone else to say where that other person’s property goes at the testator’s death
