how a holographic will works
holographic wills do not need to be witnessed or notarized which can lead to some issues during will validation in probate court to avoid fraud the testator must sign the will and the court will determine whether the will and signature were by the testator s hand 1handwriting experts or people familiar with the decedent s handwriting must convince the court that the signature was indeed that of the deceased problems arise when the handwriting is vague or illegible as with any will a testator to a holographic will must be explicit as to named beneficiaries and the receipt of property or assets such as stocks bonds and fund accounts the testator may also detail circumstances for recipients to meet to receive named assets holographic wills are not accepted in all states and are subject to each state s laws some lawyers recommend that explaining why specific property or other assets such as securities would be left to which beneficiaries would indicate that the testator was of sound mind being of sound mind is a crucial provision in determining the validity of a holographic will 2also a holographic will argued in probate court may not contain the testator s final wishes the decedent may have written the holographic will as a draft or may have utterly forgotten to update it these questions may be brought up in court today there are a variety of software books and websites with detailed instructions on how to create and print a valid will and avoid some probate court problems if a will is printed as opposed to being handwritten it requires the witness of at least two people 3