Death affects people in many ways and is not only a personal issue but also a legal one. While numerous people pass away without a will, most people benefit from having one. A will is a document that controls the distribution of your property upon your death and is important to anyone who is concerned about what happens to their property after death and in whose hands their property will ultimately fall.
If you die with a legally valid will, then your property is distributed according to your wishes as expressed in your will. On the other hand, if you die without a will or if your will is declared invalid, your estate will be considered “intestate” and your property will be distributed according to state law.
Since most people usually have an idea of how they would like their property to be distributed, undesired results can arise if you die without a will (i.e., intestate). Dying intestate increases the probability that your property will not be distributed as you had wished.
And it is important to understand that just writing your wishes down on a sheet of paper does not mean your will is going to be considered valid by the courts. Holographic wills (wills written and signed completely in your own handwriting) and wills written without professional guidance tend to encounter evidentiary problems in Texas courts.
Since the principal purpose of your will is to affect the distribution of your property as you see fit, and as this will likely affect your loved ones’ financial futures after your death, it is important to have a well-drafted and legally valid will. For these reasons, intestate death is almost always undesirable. You should seek the advice of an experienced attorney who specializes in wills and estates law when contemplating one of the most important documents of your life.
Check out next week’s “Common Law” column to learn more about how property is distributed when someone dies without a valid will in place.
This article appears in November 11 • 2005.