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A Michigan will template is a fill-in form for your last will. Unless it qualifies as a holographic will, every Michigan will, a template will included, needs the signatures of at least 2 witnesses (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2502(1)(c)). The template suits Michigan residents, especially parents naming a guardian for minor children.
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A Michigan will is valid only if it is in writing and signed by the testator, or by another person in the testator's name, in the testator's conscious presence and by the testator's direction (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2502(1)(a)-(b)). It also needs the signatures of at least 2 individuals, each of whom signed within a reasonable time after witnessing the testator's signing or the testator's acknowledgment of that signature or of the will, except for a holographic will under subsection (2) (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2502(1)(c)). For the statutory will, the witness notice says to use 2 adults as witnesses, and all of them must observe the testator sign, hear the testator say the will was signed, or hear the testator say it was signed at the testator's direction in the testator's presence (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2519(2)). The table lists each rule with the section behind it.
| Rule | What Michigan law says | Section |
| Written form | Valid only if in writing | Mich. Comp. Laws 700.2502(1)(a) |
| Testator's signature | Signed by the testator, or in the testator's name by another person in the testator's conscious presence and by the testator's direction | Mich. Comp. Laws 700.2502(1)(b) |
| Witnesses | Any will except a holographic one: at least 2, each signing within a reasonable time after witnessing the signing or the testator's acknowledgment | Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2502(1)(c) |
| Witnesses, statutory will form | Statutory will: 2 adults (3 preferable), who observe the signing or hear the testator acknowledge it | Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2519(2) |
| Age of testator | Age 18 or older, only with sufficient mental capacity | Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2519(2) |
| Self-proving affidavit | Allowed, sworn before an officer or as a written statement that is not a sworn statement | Mich. Comp. Laws 700.2504 |
| Handwritten will | Valid whether or not witnessed, only if dated and the signature and material portions are in the testator's handwriting | Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2502(2) |
| Court deposit | Optional, sealed wrapper, county where the testator resides, fee by supreme court rule or the revised judicature act of 1961 | Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2515(1) |
A Michigan will can be made by an individual age 18 or older who has sufficient mental capacity, as the statutory will notice states (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2519(2)).
The screenshots under each step show the FormsPal Michigan last will and testament template filled with sample entries in blue, so you can see where each answer goes. The names, addresses, dates and amounts are examples only.
A Michigan will moves from your details to your signature: it names you, your executor, a guardian if you have minor children, your beneficiaries and how your property is divided. The steps below follow the order of the form.
A Michigan will is one of the ways a parent appoints a guardian: the parent of an unmarried minor may appoint a guardian by will or by another writing signed by the parent and attested by at least 2 witnesses (MCL 700.5202(1) and (2)). The guardian looks after the child's physical well-being, and a conservator manages the child's assets, as the statutory will form explains (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2519(2)).
A Michigan will may refer to a separate written list to give away items of tangible personal property not otherwise disposed of by the will, other than money (MCL 700.2513). The list must be in the testator's handwriting or signed by the testator at the end, and must describe the items and the people who receive them with reasonable certainty (MCL 700.2513). The list may be prepared before or after the will is signed, and the testator may change it later (MCL 700.2513).
A Michigan will does not need a notary: an officer authorized to administer oaths takes part only when the testator and witnesses choose sworn statements for a self-proving affidavit (Mich. Comp. Laws 700.2504). It does not need to be notarized, as long as it is in writing, signed by the testator, and signed by two witnesses.
A self-proving affidavit lets the will prove its own signing, so the witnesses do not need to testify about it later (Mich. Comp. Laws 700.2504). The affidavit takes one of two forms (Mich. Comp. Laws 700.2504):
The affidavit can be signed with the will or at any time after its execution (Mich. Comp. Laws 700.2504). If needed to prove the will's due execution, a signature on the attached self-proving statement counts as a signature on the will (Mich. Comp. Laws 700.2504). A ready form is on our self-proving affidavit page.
The Michigan statutory will is a fill-in-the-blanks will form printed in the statute itself (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2519(2)). A custom will is written in the testator's own terms and is valid only if it meets all of the requirements listed in Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2502(1), not only the writing and the testator's signature, unless it qualifies as a holographic will under subsection (2). The statutory form comes with its own notice and limits (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2519(2)):
A custom will fits a plan the blanks cannot hold, such as more gifts, conditions on a gift or uneven shares between children. The statutory will notice itself tells a person whose wishes it does not meet to talk with a lawyer before choosing it (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2519(2)).
A Michigan will can be witnessed by any individual generally competent to be a witness (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2505(1)). The signing of a will by an interested witness does not invalidate the will or any provision of it (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2505(2)).
Many people still choose witnesses who will not inherit anything under the will, to avoid questions about the will later. It is also common to pick a witness younger than you are, so they are more likely to still be available if your will is contested years later.
A handwritten Michigan will is valid as a holographic will, whether or not witnessed, only if it is dated and the testator's signature and the document's material portions are in the testator's handwriting (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2502(2)). A will must be in writing, so an oral will is not recognized.
A document signed without the required formalities can still count as a will if the person offering it proves by clear and convincing evidence that the decedent intended it as the will (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2503(a)).
A Michigan will is revoked by a later will or by a revocatory act, such as destroying it, done with the intent to revoke by the testator or by another person in the testator's conscious presence and by the testator's direction (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2507(1)). A later will revokes the earlier one expressly or by inconsistency (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2507(1)).
A small change usually goes in a codicil, and a codicil may be self-proved like a will (MCL 700.2504(5)). Divorce or annulment revokes gifts to the former spouse, except as provided by the express terms of the will, a court order or a contract between the divorced individuals about the marital estate (MCL 700.2807(1)). The statutory will notice advises making and signing a new will after a marriage or divorce (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2519(2)).
A Michigan will may be deposited with the probate court in the county where the testator resides, enclosed in a sealed wrapper endorsed with the testator's name, place of residence, social security number or state of Michigan driver's license number if any, the delivery date and the name of the person who delivers it (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2515(1)). The court charges a fee as provided by supreme court rule or the revised judicature act of 1961 (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2515(1)).
A lost will can still be probated: if the original will is not in the court's possession, the petition must state the will's contents and indicate that the will is lost, destroyed, or otherwise unavailable (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.3402(1)(c)). Keeping the signed original in one known place, and telling your executor where it is, avoids that step.
A will can leave a spouse out, but the surviving spouse may elect to take 1/2 of the share that would have passed without a will, reduced by 1/2 of the value of property received from the decedent by other means (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2202(2)(b)). The election must be made within 63 days after the date for presentment of claims or within 63 days after service of the inventory upon the surviving spouse, whichever is later (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2202(3)). Couples who want to plan around this often use a trust or a prenuptial agreement instead of relying on the will alone.
Any part of an estate not effectively disposed of by will passes by intestate succession to the decedent's heirs as the probate code prescribes, except as modified by the decedent's will (MCL 700.2101(1)). A will lets you choose the beneficiaries, the executor and a guardian instead.
A written will is valid in Michigan if it was executed under Michigan's rules, under the law of the place where it was executed at that time, or under the law of the place where the testator was domiciled, had a place of abode, or was a national at signing or at death (MCL 700.2506).
Testamentary capacity is the testator's mental ability to understand the act of making a will: the property involved, the people who would naturally inherit, and the effect of signing. The statutory will notice says an individual age 18 or older may make a will if the individual has sufficient mental capacity (Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.2519(2)). A person contesting the will has the burden of establishing lack of testamentary intent or capacity, undue influence, fraud, duress, mistake, or revocation (MCL 700.3407(1)(c)).
A clause penalizing an interested person for contesting the will is unenforceable if probable cause exists for instituting proceedings (MCL 700.2518). A no-contest clause therefore reaches only contests brought without probable cause (MCL 700.2518).
A personal representative is entitled to reasonable compensation for services performed (MCL 700.3719). If the will sets the compensation and there is no contract with the decedent about it, the personal representative may renounce the will's provision and take reasonable compensation instead (MCL 700.3719).
| Related documents | When to make it |
| Codicil | Your will needs one or a few small changes. |
| Self-proving affidavit | You want the will to prove its own signing. |
| Living will | You want to set out the health care you prefer if you cannot speak for yourself. |
| Living trust | You want to hold property in a trust so it passes outside the will. |
General information, not legal or tax advice.
