Thinking of drafting your own Will or Codicil?
A codicil is the will that is subsequently drafted document forming a part of the original bill or may be separate to the original bill. The codicil is capable of revoking the portion of the will and testament or it may also be used for amending the previously prepared will. It can be drafted with the intention of naming the executor or may be used to change the name of the executor who was appointed previously. The codicil to perform any kind of role must possess the testamentary elements of the will. Besides this, such a document can be used to republish the former will or to invalidate the previously published will or to make valid any revoked clause. The date of the codicil is being used to interpret the main intention of the testator. Hence, the codicil date is the date of the whole will, used for making the declaration of the purposes and the intensions of the testator. To avoid the potential latent ambiguity in the codicil, the testator must clearly declare to whom the property and the gift will be bestowed.
How to avoid the future disputes with codicil?
The patent ambiguity always exists on the face of the document. For example, the testator wants to identify the common street address and the legal description of the property which has to be bequeathed upon the person to avoid any future confusion. Such a description is mentioned in the original will so that there is no ambiguity with respect to its clauses. In case, if the property gets sold out and the testator purchases a new property in the place of the original, which is mentioned in the document, then the will would be revised by codicil so that the property is identified correctly.
The need of the lawyer in codicil preparation
Although you cannot avoid the lawyer's charges, it is always wise to get the codicil prepared by an eminent lawyer. In the recent occurrence, Gerald felt that his daughter's entitlement under his testament should be reduced. However, unfortunately he read somewhere that it is easy to prepare a Codicil on one's own. He did try his hands on preparing the legal document, codicil. Tom was named as the beneficiary, but then after Gerald passed away it was brought to light by the lawyer that Gerald's codicil is void, much to the dismay of Tom. It was declared as void on the grounds that the codicil had improper witnessing and so the original Will remained in effect. As a result, his wishes were not carried out and Tom did not receive much benefit.
How to avoid the future disputes with codicil?
The patent ambiguity always exists on the face of the document. For example, the testator wants to identify the common street address and the legal description of the property which has to be bequeathed upon the person to avoid any future confusion. Such a description is mentioned in the original will so that there is no ambiguity with respect to its clauses. In case, if the property gets sold out and the testator purchases a new property in the place of the original, which is mentioned in the document, then the will would be revised by codicil so that the property is identified correctly.
The need of the lawyer in codicil preparation
Although you cannot avoid the lawyer's charges, it is always wise to get the codicil prepared by an eminent lawyer. In the recent occurrence, Gerald felt that his daughter's entitlement under his testament should be reduced. However, unfortunately he read somewhere that it is easy to prepare a Codicil on one's own. He did try his hands on preparing the legal document, codicil. Tom was named as the beneficiary, but then after Gerald passed away it was brought to light by the lawyer that Gerald's codicil is void, much to the dismay of Tom. It was declared as void on the grounds that the codicil had improper witnessing and so the original Will remained in effect. As a result, his wishes were not carried out and Tom did not receive much benefit.
