A last will is a legal document comprising the directions of a person (testator) relating to their property and assets in the event of death, made in the format prescribed by law.
Creating a last will is often an advisable choice for everyone who wants to be protected against arguments and misunderstandings. A thought-out and properly written last will is often essential to those you love and your relatives upon your passing even when you haven’t got a large amount of property and assets to distribute.
If you’re in need of a printable and fillable Connecticut last will and testament form, you’ll find one on this page, together with the tips on last will preparation and answers to commonly asked questions.
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| Requirements | State laws | |
| Statutes | Chapter 802a – Wills: Execution and Construction | |
| Signing requirement | Two witnesses | Sec. 45a-251. Making and execution of wills |
| Age of testator | 18 and older | Sec. 45a-250. Who may make a will |
| Age of witnesses | Sec. 45a-251. Making and execution of wills | |
| Self-proving wills | Allowed | Sec. 45a-285. Proof of will out of court |
| Handwritten wills | Might be recognized if witnessed according to state law | Sec. 45a-251. Making and execution of wills |
| Oral wills | Not recognized | |
| Holographic wills | Not recognized | |
1. Think about your possible choices. One important thing to keep in mind, first of all, is whether you wish to write the entire thing by hand (holographic will) or work with a fillable last will and testament form available online.
2. Indicate your details. The first step is establishing the testator by filling out their full name, along with the residential details (city, county, and state). Go through the remaining part of the passage, including the information you’ve written and the “Expenses and Taxes” paragraph.
3. Choose the executor. In this particular passage, you choose who is going to carry out your will by entering their full name, together with their city, county, and state of residence. Most states have special policies regarding the out-of-state representatives and executors, which in most cases would mean extra headache and red tape. That’s why it is advised to designate an individual who lives in the same state as you. Although it is not mandatory, it’s a wise idea to appoint an additional person to act as an executor in case the first one is unwilling or incapable of executing your last will.
4. Determine the guardian (optional). You are able to choose a trusted person as a guardian if you’ve got underage or dependent children that need to be looked after. In case there are no instructions regarding exactly who should look after your kids, the guardian will be chosen by the court.
5. Establish your beneficiaries. This is where you indicate those who are going to receive your estate. For every named beneficiary, indicate the next details: full name, address, and the way they are related to you.
6. Allocate possessions. List your assets and describe precisely how you want to distribute them among your beneficiaries in case you’ve got something in mind other than dividing the property evenly. Cash, shares, realty, business ownership, money for unsettled debts, and any material items of financial worth you possess can be brought up in the last will. Please notice that there are things that can’t be distributed in the will, for instance, life insurance and joint and living will property.
7. Continue with the witnesses putting the signatures at the end of the document. According to the Connecticut regulation, for a last will and testament to be considered legally correct, it must be signed by two witnesses. Only a person who is not your named beneficiary and is of 18 years or more can be chosen as a witness. Consider selecting witnesses younger than you to make sure that they can be present in the event the will is contested in the court or if some other problem takes place. At this point, you (and your two witnesses) must sign the will after writing your full legal addresses and names. Don’t forget to review every sentence thoroughly before finalizing the matter.
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The principal difference between these two documents is that once you depart this world, the agent you designate through power of attorney loses their legal authority to deal with any matters in your stead.
There are two major ones among the power of attorney types:
An executor is someone you assign in the last will and testament to take care of your affairs once you depart this life. Nevertheless, the two positions can be served by the same individual.
Connecticut law affirms that a last will can be valid without having a notary public certify it. But if you need to add a self-proving affidavit to the will, you’ll need to notarize it. A self-proving last will makes probate quicker because the court can accept it without speaking to the witnesses who signed it.
A holographic last will is handwritten. To be valid, the document has to be wholly in the handwriting of the testator, dated and signed by him or her, and witnessed according to the state law. But, such wills are usually viewed as a temporary alternative. You’d like to substitute such a last will by having an attested one as early as you can by using an attorney’s expertise or a fillable form. A properly outlined will is better for the future probate process since holographic last wills may contain ambiguous conditions that can hinder probate and make it more expensive and/or more difficult to put in force.
An attested will is generally typewritten because it is often made by an attorney or is based upon a will template, like the one you can get here. You will need to have two witnesses (18 years or more) sign the will in your presence for it to be considered valid. In certain states, you would have to notarize the document as well, but in Connecticut, it is not obligatory.
Testamentary capacity is used to describe the testator’s (the person writing the will) legal and mental capacity (sound mind) to write and modify their last will and testament.
There’re generally two requirements to fulfill: age and soundness of mind. In most states, you must be over 18 years to make a last will. Being of sound mind translates that you are conscious of your estate and the heirs of your belongings and realize the aftermaths of your doings.
It is not necessarily in Connecticut. Nevertheless, if you choose to attach a self-proving affidavit, it’ll be rather advantageous because this document functions as an alternative for in-court testimony of witnesses in the course of probate.
Should you want to disinherit your marriage partner, you will be able to do it without any obstacles. Connecticut is not a community property state (also known as marital property). The mentioned concept is a form of interest documentation presented by the law that claims that 1/2 of all assets (along with debts) of one marriage partner is owned by the other and remains such upon divorce.
Thus, in Connecticut, you can disinherit your marriage partner, but the law implies that your spouse is entitled to some minimum amount of your property.
Besides your spouse, Connecticut law lets you disinherit any other family members. Your adult children or other relatives can be lawfully disinherited completely in your last will. To do that, include corresponding paragraphs to your last will and testament.
No, it is solely you who can amend your will. There is only one case when a third party is allowed to get involved. If you are physically unable to sign your last will and testament, a 3rd party is authorized to do it instead of you but only with you present.
Yes, it is possible.
As outlined by Connecticut law, you can change or repeal your last will if you are not obligated by a legal agreement saying the opposite.
It’s recommended to modify your will if a significant event happens in your life. Those include but aren’t limited to:
If the last will and testament is lost or destroyed, according to the Connecticut law, the court will recognize it. But, the probate court will not be likely to accept anything other than the original of the last will and testament to probate.
By Connecticut law, the will’s absence is regarded as its revocation. This means the trustee will need to provide proof of the last will’s credibility, which in turn might be found to be somewhat problematic.
For a holographic will, you would need sworn witnesses and testimony to show. That makes the situation far more problematic. Furthermore, you are also to provide proof of the reason why the last will and testament and its elements can’t be provided in a way that will also prove it wasn’t repealed.
Solely per your directive and in your presence is another person allowed to sign your will (See Connecticut Estate Code). You can give a particular directive using a number of means, including verbal communication, a positive answer to a query, or gestures.
A notary public is allowed to sign the name of the testator if the latter is unable to do so due to a physical incapacity. The notary has to be directed to do it in the presence of a witness. It is worth noting that such witnesses are not allowed to have an interest (equitable or legal) in any of the assets being the concern or affected by this type of a document (the last will).
| Related documents | When to create it |
| Codicil | There are a number of minor modifications you want to make to your will. |
| Self-proving affidavit | You would like the probate to be faster in due time. |
| Living will | You want to make sure your end-of-life treatment is done as outlined by your wishes. |
| Living trust | You want extra safety and confidentiality once the time to distribute your possessions comes. |
