A will is often the foundation of a broader estate plan. Quite a few testators begin with a will and then draft other documents. Some people try to achieve all of their major legacy goals with one document.
Regardless of how many estate planning documents individuals draft, they need to be certain to use documents appropriately or risk the courts setting aside their instructions. There are certain matters that people might include in a will because doing so seems reasonable or expedient. However, including certain matters in a will can undermine the testator’s wishes in some cases and lead to unexpected complications in others.
What should people generally avoid including in their wills?
Instructions for life insurance
Life insurance proceeds can be a crucial part of an estate plan. The funds provided by a life insurance policy can help loved ones replace lost wages or pay off major debts, like student loans and mortgages. Given how important those funds may be for an individual’s overall legacy, they may make mention of them in their will. However, the will does not control the distribution of life insurance proceeds. Testators need to maintain updated beneficiary designations with their life insurance providers to ensure that the right parties receive proceeds from their policies.
Funeral instructions
Some people use wills as a place to explain that they have pre-purchased funerary services or burial plots. They may provide instructions about their preferences for memorial services. Unfortunately, some families do not even review a will until after the funeral. Reading the will after internment services is a common practice, which means that instructions about services may not end up influencing the actions of the family because they don’t read about those wishes until after the testator’s passing. If instructions are listed in a will, multiple loved ones should be alerted to this reality in advance so that it can be assessed right away.
Instructions about asset use
Some testators want to ensure that their loved ones use an inheritance in a particular way or refrain from using it in a way that undermines their personal values. In such scenarios, a will is unlikely to fulfill the true intentions of the testator, as their beneficiaries gain sole control over their inherited resources as soon as ownership transfers during the probate process. The creation of a trust may be necessary to more effectively guide the use of inherited property and avoid misuse of an inheritance.
Understanding what people cannot achieve with a will can be as important as knowing what terms are most important to include in a will. Testators often need help drafting their initial documents and taking specific steps to achieve their personal legacy goals.