September 19, 2019

The Implications Of Not Signing Your Will Properly

What will happen if you pass away without properly signing your will?

If a problem arises, your loved ones will run into legal issues, they won’t know what to do, and they’ll have to pay someone a lot of money to sort it all out.

You never know what can happen. You’re already in the process of signing your will and you want to make sure your assets are distributed the way you want. So make sure you sign your will and get it finalised as soon as possible.

What makes a will valid?

Two of the major requirements to make a will valid include:

• it must be signed by the will-maker or by some other person in the presence of and at the direction of the will-maker

• the will-maker’s signature must be made or acknowledged in the presence of two or more witnesses, present at the same time

This means that in the case of your unexpected passing before you’re able to sign your will properly, your will considered invalid.

But there are exceptions

In the case that your will is deemed invalid because you didn’t sign it, your assets may still be divided the way you want. This is because it may act as an ‘informal will’ instead.

If the unsigned documents clearly show your intention to divide your assets and it is accepted in court — it may even contest your formal will. But note, there has to be reasonable evidence and reason for the judge and the court to accept that it was in fact your intended to be your will.

What happens if my will is deemed invalid in both scenarios?

When your will is invalid and it’s unacceptable as an informal will, or if there is no will to begin with, your assets will be distributed according to the interstate order of inheritance. 

This means that all of your assets will go to the next of kin.

Here is the order:

• First your spouse
• Then children and grandchildren
• Then parents
• Then siblings
• Then grandparents
• Then aunts and uncles
• Then cousins
• Then the state

Note: In most cases, ALL of your assets will go to the first eligible on the list

Do you need legal assistance with your will or someone else’s will?

Get in touch with our team today.

Call us at 0411 384 439