Last Will and Testament for a Widow or Widower with Adult and Minor Children
Note: This law summary is not intended to be all-inclusive of the Washington law of Will, but does include basic and other
provisions.
Who may make a will. Any person of sound
mind who has attained the age of eighteen years may, by last will, devise
all his or her estate, both real and personal.
RCW 11.12.010
Requisites of wills. (1) Every will shall
be in writing signed by the testator, and shall be attested by two
or more competent witnesses, by subscribing their names to the will, or
by signing an affidavit that complies with law (2), while in the presence
of the testator and at the testator's direction. RCW 11.12.020
Foreign Will. A last will and testament,
executed in the mode prescribed by the law of the place where executed
or of the testator's domicile, either at the time of the will's execution
or at the time of the testator's death, shall be deemed to be legally executed,
and shall be of the same force and effect as if executed in the mode prescribed
by the laws of this state.
RCW 11.12.020
Revocation of will -- How effected -- Effect on codicils.
(1) A will, or any part thereof, can be revoked:
(a) By a subsequent will that revokes,
or partially revokes, the prior will expressly or by inconsistency; or
(b) By being burnt, torn, canceled, obliterated,
or destroyed, with the intent and for the purpose of revoking the same,
by the testator or by another person in the presence and by the direction
of the testator. If such act is done by any
person other than the testator, the direction of the testator and the facts
of such injury or destruction must be proved by two witnesses.
(2) Revocation of a will in its entirety
revokes its codicils, unless revocation of a codicil would be contrary
to the testator's intent. RCW 11.12.040
Affidavits of attesting witnesses. Any or all
of the attesting witnesses to a will may, at the request of the testator
or, after his decease, at the request of the executor or any person interested
under it, make an affidavit before any person authorized to administer
oaths, stating such facts as they would be required to testify to in court
to prove such will, which affidavit may be written on the will or may be
attached to the will or to a photographic copy of the will. The sworn statement
of any witness so taken shall be accepted by the court as if it had been
taken before the court. RCW 11.20.020
Interested witness -- Effect on will. (1)
An interested witness to a will is one who would receive a gift under the
will. (2) A will or any of its provisions is not invalid because it is
signed by an interested witness, however, there is a presumption that the
gift was a result of fraud unless there are two other witnesses. RCW 11.12.160
Incorporation by reference. A will may
incorporate by reference any writing in existence when the will is executed
if the will itself manifests the testator's intent to incorporate the writing
and describes the writing sufficiently to permit its identification. In
the case of any inconsistency between the writing and the will, the will controls. RCW 11.12.255
Dissolution or invalidation of marriage.
If, after making a will, the testator's marriage is dissolved or invalidated,
all provisions in the will in favor of or granting any interest or power
to the testator's former spouse are revoked, unless the will expressly
provides otherwise. Provisions affected by this section must be interpreted,
and property affected passes, as if the former spouse failed
to survive the testator, having died at the time of entry of the decree
of dissolution or declaration of invalidity. Provisions
revoked by this section are revived by the testator's remarriage to the
former spouse. RCW 11.12.051
Separate writing may direct disposition of tangible personal
property --
Requirements:
(1) A will may refer to
a writing that directs disposition of tangible personal property not otherwise
specifically disposed of by the will other than property used primarily
in trade or business. Such a writing shall not be effective unless:
(a)
An unrevoked will refers to the writing,
(b) the writing is either in the
handwriting of, or signed by, the testator, and
(c) the writing describes
the items and the recipients of the property with reasonable certainty.
(2) The writing may be written or signed before or after the execution
of the will and need not have significance apart from its effect upon the
dispositions of property made by the will. A writing that meets the requirements
of this section shall be given effect as if it were actually contained
in the will itself, except that if any person designated to receive property
in the writing dies before the testator, the property shall pass as further
directed in the writing and in the absence of any further directions, the
disposition shall lapse and RCW 11.12.110 shall not apply to such lapse.
(3) The testator may make subsequent handwritten
or signed changes to any writing. If there is an inconsistent disposition
of tangible personal property as between writings, the most recent writing
controls.
(4) As used in this section "tangible personal
property" means articles
of personal or household use or ornament, for example, furniture,
furnishings, automobiles, boats, airplanes, and jewelry, as well as precious
metals in any tangible form, for example, bullion or coins. The term
includes articles even if held for investment purposes and encompasses
tangible property that is not real property. The term does not include
mobile homes or intangible property, for example, money that is normal
currency or normal legal tender, evidences of indebtedness, bank accounts
or other monetary deposits, documents of title, or securities. RCW 11.12.260
