Free Florida Last Will and Testament
What is a Last Will and Testament?
A Florida Last Will and Testament is a formal document that describes how your assets will be used once you perish. The individual who dies is formally referred to as the decedent. The testator might also appoint a guardian for their minors in the will to ensure there is somebody who can protect the children until they grow to be adults or until they get to a certain age.
In cases where an individual passes away without having a valid Florida Will (which in the majority of states implies the document must be correctly witnessed, not only signed), somebody will usually be designated by the probate court to be the personal representative and pay off the decedent’s debts, utilizing assets as required to do so. Next, the leftover assets will be spread amongst the decedent’s beneficiaries based on the legislation of the state the will creator lived in.
In some states, in case one spouse passes away leaving behind their partner, that living spouse will receive all the decedent’s assets in the absence of a Will containing the contrary. In other cases, the testator may have specified a specific person to inherit a life insurance policy, retirement account, or some other asset, and that beneficiary designation will dictate who is given those assets in the absence of a Last Will and Testament.
The important thing to pay attention to is the fact that anyone who needs to designate the way in which their property will be distributed after their passing should absolutely create and appropriately execute a Last Will and Testament to guarantee their wishes are recognized and executed. Without having a will, you could be leaving it up to chance, the rules of the state, or a lawcourt regarding just how your last matters will be settled.
Legal Requirements for Last Wills in Florida
The last will is a paper that determines the rights for the property after the death of the person. If you know to whom you want to transfer your estate after death and are not sure that the court will make the same decision about inheritance, you can record your will in this legal document. Last will requirements differ from state to state in the USA, and that is why it is important to learn the rules in your state before signing the form.
Legal requirements are crucial to follow because the court can confirm that the will is invalid if even only one requirement is not met. In this case, your form will not work, and the court will decide how to share your property between minors or spouses.
The laws of Florida require the last will to be:
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written;
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signed by the testator (owner of the property) in the presence of two witnesses;
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signed by two witnesses.
Moreover, special rules are regulating the process of the completion of the last will form, especially the state of the testator:
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he or she should be over 18 years old;
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he or she should not have any mental problems at the moment of signing.
The last will becomes valid only after the death of the testator, and it cannot be changed anymore after this event. However, a testator can make some changes in the form during life, but all the corrections should be recorded legally. It means that after some changes in the form, the testator should follow the same process of signing the paper as he or she did before. Make sure that the will was not changed after the death of a person because it could make the last will invalid.
Also, the testator can cancel the will at any point of his or her life in Florida, but it should be made without any pressure on the testator. It means that the testator should be of sound mind and able to make decisions by him or herself.
