Free Alabama Last Will and Testament Form

The principal distinction between the two documents is that once you die, the agent you designate through power of attorney loses their official authority to manage any matters in your place. Among various power of attorney types, the two following ones are believed to be main:

• General power of attorney – enables you to designate a proxy (agent) who will be able to take care of your monetary and legal affairs instead of you. However, this document will become ineffective if the PoA author dies or becomes incapacitated.
• Durable power of attorney – grants the identical rights to the proxy as the first type but will stay valid even if the person on behalf of whom the agent acts becomes disabled.

An executor is someone you establish in your last will to handle your affairs after you pass on. You could assign the same person to act as an attorney-in-fact and a will executor.

Alabama statute says that a last will can be valid without getting a notary public to certify it. But, you can make your last will self-proving by attaching an affidavit to the document, and you’ll need to hire a notary if you’d like to make it happen. In the event that you make your last will self-proving, the court won’t have to make contact with the witnesses to establish the credibility of the document, which is going to expedite the probate.

A holographic will is handwritten. For it to be effective, the document has to be entirely in the handwriting of the testator, dated and signed by him or her, and witnessed according to the state law. However, these wills are usually thought of as a short-term solution. You can upgrade such last will by creating an attested one when you can use a lawyer’s support or a fillable template. A suitably outlined will is much better for the future probate process since holographic last wills might contain unclear conditions that can slow down the probate and make it more pricey and/or harder to impose.

An attested will is usually typed as it is often made by an attorney or is based upon a will template, like the one you can get from us. To be considered valid, it has to be signed by the testator and two credible witnesses over the age of 18 in the testator’s presence, which can also be done in the presence of a notary. However, the latter is not needed in Alabama.

Testamentary capacity is used to describe the testator’s (the person writing the last will) legal and mental capacity (sound mind) to write and modify their last will and testament.

In most states, to write a last will and testament, you have to be of sound mind and at least 18 years of age.

It is not strictly necessary in Alabama. But, if you wish to attach a self-proving affidavit, it’ll be rather beneficial considering that this document functions as a substitute for in-court testimony of witnesses at the time of probate.

Should you want to disinherit your marriage partner, it will be possible. Alabama is not a community property state (also known as marital property). This is a type of asset ownership presented by the law that declares that 50% of all properties and assets (including arrears) of one marriage partner is owned by another and continues to be such upon divorce. In Alabama, the law allows you to disinherit your spouse but enables your partner to have a particular minimum number of your assets.

Except for your husband or wife, Alabama law allows you to disinherit any other member of your family. That applies to your adult children (no younger than 18) and any other family members; only include disinheritance paragraphs to your will.

No, it is solely you who can amend your will. There’s one particular situation when a third party is allowed to intervene. In case you are physically unable to sign your last will, a third party is permitted to do it instead of you but only in your presence.

Yes, it is possible to alter it.

In Alabama, if you haven’t engaged in a contract saying the opposite, you are allowed to annul or alter your last will at any moment.

It’s recommended to modify your last will if a serious event happens in your life. Those include but are not limited to:

• A child has been born or adopted
• You have divorced or married
• Purchasing or selling real estate
• Your money situation has changed greatly

In case the will has been lost or destroyed, as per the Alabama law, the court can recognize it. But, the probate court is not likely to admit anything other than the initial version of the last will and testament to probate.

Alabama law offers a presumption that the will’s absence means it has been annulled. This puts the obligation on the advocate of the last will and testament to present proof of the said last will.

The process will get far more difficult when considering a holographic will. In order to provide proof of its validity, the court requires testimony and sword witnesses. The cause for not producing the last will and its contents has to be proven too.

Alabama Estate Code permits another person to sign your will just per your directive and with you being present. Voice communication, a positive response to a query, or a gesture are the methods you can use to express that you would like a particular person to sign your last will and testament.

You may have a notary public sign the name of a testator that is physically unable to do so in case the testator guides the notary with a witness present. Such a witness is selected much the same way one would decide on an executor – they mustn’t have any legal or equitable interest in any property that is the subject of or impacted by the last will.