Ensuring your will is valid

Checklist: Expert offers assistance to help ensure it withstands legal scrutiny

- Devon Card

The validity of your will is paramount to ensuring that your assets are distributed among your heirs in accordance with your wishes. Checking the legal standing of this critical document requires careful attention to detail. Here's a checklist to determine whether your will can withstand legal scrutiny.

Were you mentally sound at the time of drafting your will? To be legally valid, a testator or testatrix must be mentally sound when drafting a will, meaning they must fully comprehend the consequences of their decisions. If you were under the influence of alcohol, narcotics, or other mind-altering substances at the time, your will could be challenged.

Did you know? Courts often rely on medical and expert testimony to determine a testator's mental capacity if a will is contested. A letter from your doctor confirming your sound mind at the time of signing can serve as additional evidence of validity.

Did anyone influence or pressure you? Your will is a confidential document, and you have the absolute right to distribute your assets as you see fit. You are under no legal obligation to share its contents with anyone, including your spouse. If undue influence or coercion was exerted on you when drafting your will, the document can be challenged. However, the onus of proving coercion rests on the person making the claim.