Wills

A will is a very important legal document that must be written and executed according to specific legal requirements. Until your death you can revoke or change your will as often as you wish. However, at your death, your "last will" is the legal document that designates the following: (1) Your will names your beneficiaries. These can be your family members, friends, domestic partner or charitable organizations. You choose what each beneficiary will receive from your estate. You can provide for specific gifts of a sum of money or item of jewelry or you can just provide a "percentage" of your estate that each beneficiary will receive. (2) If you have minor children, your will can nominate a guardian for them who will be responsible for caring for those minor children until they reach 18 years of age. You can also require that your estate assets be held in a "testamentary trust" for your minor children and you will nominate a person to manage those assets for your minor children until they each reach 18 years of age. (3) Your will also appoints a "executor" to handle the probate administation of your estate. The executor is your "personal representative" who is charged with carrying out your wishes for the distribution of your estate. Your executor must also pay creditor claims that may be received and he/she must inventory your estate assets and determine the value of those assets. Real property in your estate is valued by a Court appointed Probate Referee. An executor's job is often time consuming and can be stressful. Although executors are compensated according to the law (see this website dealing with Probate Administration), you should still discuss the role beforehand with the person you wish to nominate as your executor. Not every asset that you own requires a will in order to give it to your heir. Generally, life insurance policies, retirement accounts, securities and brokerage accounts and general bank accounts have "pay on death" or "transfer on death" provisions that mean title is held in the joint names of you and those whom you wish to receive those assets at your death. Also, assets held in "joint tenancy" pass automatically to the surviving joint tenant when the other person dies. Joint tenancy assets do not require a will for this reason. The law refers to this as "the right of survivorship" and so you must be careful what assets you hold in joint tenancy as that will trump what you would otherwise want done with that asset after your death. California is a community property estate. Therefore, unless you have a premarital agreement or a marital property agreement (see this website's discussion on this topic), your will can only control your half of the community property. Assets that you own before your marriage or that you inherit during your marriage are "separate property" that you can control who receives it, through your wil.