There’s a lot of things you can do for yourself, especially with help from your good friend Google or Bing.  But you should never attempt to prepare your own Last Will.  Even if you get the language right, that’s only part of the process.  A Last Will is no good unless it is signed with all of the proper formalities.  My client recently discovered this the hard way.

In Florida, a Last Will must be in writing, must be signed by the testator (the person making the will) at its end, and must be signed by two witnesses who witness the testator’s signature and witness the signature of each other.  This last requirement tripped up my client, who was the surviving daughter and appointed personal representative of the testator. 

My client provided me with a self-prepared Last Will that appeared to have the signature of the testator and two witnesses at its end.  The Last Will also had a notary stamp, but the notary public had not signed the Last Will.  My client was in a hurry to be appointed personal representative, so we went down to the courthouse together for the purpose of getting the Last Will and probate documents filed and immediately going before the judge.

When the client and I got to the courthouse, the deputy clerk informed us that a Last Will had already been deposited for the client’s deceased mother.  We were provided a copy of the Last Will on deposit, which looked exactly like the Last Will we had, with one exception.  The Last Will was missing the signature of one witness.  It was signed by the testator and one witness and had the notary stamp.  Not good enough.  The Last Will on deposit is ineffective because it wasn’t probably witnessed.  As it turns out, the second witness signed the Last Will after the fact.

As a result, my client’s mother died intestate.  In this case, the result is not entirely disaster, but it will require a few extra steps.  But it’s not hard to imagine the disaster that could result if a do-it-yourself Last Will–no matter how good the language itself–is improperly signed.  And just to make matters more difficult, the rules differ from state to state.

Here’s the bottom line:  If you’re smart enough to prepare a Last Will for yourself, you’re smart enough to know that you need to have an attorney help you with it.