Last Will and Testament for Widow or Widower with Minor Children
Note: This summary is not intended
to be an all-inclusive discussion of the law of wills in Alaska, but does
include basic and other provisions. Handwritten wills or wills where
the testator cannot sign his own name are not included.
Who may make will: An individual 18 or
more years of age who is of sound mind may make a will. 13.12.501
Execution of wills: A will must be in writing,
signed by the testator and signed by at least two individuals, each of
whom signs within a reasonable time after the witness witnesses the signing
of the will by the testator. 13.12.502
Self-proved will: A will may be simultaneously
executed, attested, and made self-proved, by acknowledgment of the will
by the testator and affidavits of the witnesses, each made before an officer
authorized to administer oaths under the laws of the state in which execution
occurs and evidenced by the officer's certificate, under official seal,
in a required form. The will you have found contains the required
form of certificate. 13.12.504
Who may witness: An individual
generally competent to be a witness may act as a witness to a will.
The signing of a will by an interested witness does not invalidate the
will or a provision of it. 13.12.505
Choice of law as to execution: A written
will is valid if executed in compliance with Alaska law, or if its execution
complies with the law at the time of execution of the place where the will
is executed or of the law of the place where, at the time of execution
or at the time of death, the testator is domiciled, has a place of abode,
or is a national. 13.12.506
Revocation by writing or by act: A will
or a part of a will is revoked (1) by executing a subsequent will that
revokes the previous will or part expressly or by inconsistency;
or (2) by performing a revocatory act on the will, if the testator performed
the act with the intent and for the purpose of revoking the will or part
of the will or if another individual performed the act in the testator's
conscious presence and by the testator's direction; in this paragraph,
"revelatory act on the will" includes burning, tearing, canceling, obliterating,
or destroying the will or any part of it; a "revocatory
act on the will" includes a burning, tearing, or canceling whether or not
the burn, tear, or cancellation touched any of the words of the will. 13.12.507
Incorporation by reference: A writing in
existence when a will is executed may be incorporated by reference
if the language of the will manifests this intent and describes
the writing sufficiently to permit its identification. 13.12.510
Separate writing identifying devise of certain types of tangible
personal property: A will may refer to a written statement
or list to dispose of items of tangible personal property not
otherwise specifically disposed of by the will, other than money.
To be admissible under this section as evidence of the intended
disposition, the writing must be signed by the testator and must
describe the items and the devisees with reasonable certainty.
The writing may be referred to as one to be in existence at the
time of the testator's death; it may be prepared before or after the
execution of the will; it may be altered by the testator after its preparation;
and it may be a writing that does not have significance apart from its
effect on the dispositions made by the will. 13.12.513
Contracts concerning succession. A contract
to make a will or devise, or not to revoke a will or devise, or to die
intestate, if executed after January 1, 1997, may be established
only by:
(1) provisions of a will stating material provisions of the contract;
(2) an express reference in a will to a contract and extrinsic evidence
proving the terms of the contract; or
(3) a writing signed by the decedent
evidencing the contract. The execution of a joint will or mutual wills
does not create a presumption of a contract not to revoke the
will or wills. 13.12.514
Deposit of will with court in testator's lifetime: A
will may be deposited by the testator or the testator's agent with a court
for safekeeping, under rules of the court. During the testator's lifetime,
the will must be kept confidential. During the testator's lifetime, a deposited
will shall be delivered only to the testator or to a person authorized
in writing signed by the testator to receive the will. A conservator may
be allowed to examine a deposited will of a protected testator under procedures
designed to maintain the confidential character of the document
to the extent possible, and to ensure that it will be kept confidential
and on deposit after the examination. 13.12.515
Penalty clause for contest: A provision
in a will purporting to penalize an interested person for contesting the
will or instituting other proceedings relating to the estate is unenforceable
if probable cause exists for instituting proceedings. 13.12.517
