WILL
YOUR
About
About
YOUR
WILL
Prepared in cooperation with Legal Aid of Oklahoma
A will is a written legal document.
It names the people – your family, friends, and
business associates – or organizations, such as
schools, churches or charities that you choose
to receive your property when you die.
It may cover personal property – like cash, stocks,
your interest in a business, cars, furniture, jewelry,
dishes, or your stamp collection. It may also cover
real property, which is land and any improvement,
such as a house or barn, that stands on it.
What is a will?
Page 1
A will is not a letter, a note or a list of
instructions about what you want done
with your property after your death.
It is not a way to change what happens to
your property that is passed by other means
such as a trust, transfer upon death deed, or
beneficiary designation.
What is NOT a will?
• Anyone 18 or older
• Anyone of sound mind. This means you must
understand the important decisions involved
in making a will and have reasonable
knowledge of what property you
own, how much it’s worth and
to whom you are leaving it.
Who can make a will?
Note: You do NOT have to be a
United States citizen to make a will.
Page 2
It names your executor. This is the person, bank or
corporation that handles your affairs after you die.
What does a will do for me?
The executor:
• collects any money owed to you;
• pays your debts and taxes; and
• gives the rest of your property to the
people or organizations named in
your will.
If you don’t name an executor, the court will
appoint an administrator to settle your affairs. This
may not be the person you would have chosen.
A will shows exactly who is to receive
your property. Under Oklahoma law, people
who are not your relatives cannot inherit your
property unless you make a will leaving them
your property. For example, if you want to
leave money to someone who is not a
relative, like a charitable organization,
you need a will to be able to do this.
You cannot disinherit your spouse.
Under Oklahoma law, your spouse will receive the
greater of the property left under the will or half the
property acquired during the marriage.
You can specify that your children inherit nothing. In
your will, you must clearly specify that you are leaving
nothing to a particular child or children.
It lets you take special care of an older parent,
a sibling who is chronically ill, a child who has an
intellectual or developmental disability or who
is much younger than their siblings.
It nominates a guardian for your minor children. You
should say who you want to take care of your children
and any property you wish to leave to them,
in case something happens to you.
How can a will save money
for my estate?
In the absence of a will, a court-appointed
administrator who settles your estate will
have to post a bond with the court. This
is a legal promise that your affairs will be
handled carefully and honestly. The cost of
the bond is paid out of your estate.
When you make a will, you can waive or
give up the bond for your executor. If you
die without a will and the administrator
wants to sell real property, a notice of
the sale will have to be published in the
local legal newspaper. A will that gives the
executor a power of sale can save this
extra expense. Without the power of sale
provision, your representative will have
to get permission to sell your property
and then follow a strict formal procedure
regarding advertising, pricing and other
details of the sale. A will with a power
of sale clause will avoid most of these
formalities. Additionally, in some cases,
your estate or your family may owe fewer
taxes to the federal or state government if
you make a will.
Page 4
Page 5
Can I write my own will?
Yes. This is called a holographic will.
A holographic will must:
• be entirely in your own handwriting. It is best to
write on plain paper, since nothing typed, printed
or stamped will be considered part of your will.
• be dated and signed by you.
• specify any children you wish to omit from
your will. An example of this would be “after due
consideration, I have decided not to leave any
of my property to my daughter, Pamela Jones.”
If you do not provide a statement of your
intention to not leave anything to your child,
the court will likely award that child a share
of your estate.
Note: You can have your holographic
will witnessed, but you should not have it
notarized. Also, if you move to another
state, check to see if the law allows
holographic wills. While Oklahoma
accepts handwritten wills, some
states do not.
Page 6
No. A holographic will is only valid for
the person who wrote it, not for the
person who merely signed it.
Can I make a joint will
with another person?
Page 7
Should I write my own will or
have a lawyer make one for me?
It is important to have a will with clear instructions
of how to dispose of your property. If a will is
poorly written, it may cause more problems than
if you died without a will. For example, if your
will does not clearly state who is to receive your
property, it may encourage those receiving less
or no property to challenge the will. This, in turn,
may create additional attorney fees and other
costs that will be charged to your estate
to defend your will. That is why it is
suggested that you consult an
attorney in order to assure that
your will is properly made.
Page 8
A formal will uses prescribed language
to say what you want done with your property.
It is signed by the person writing the will and two
witnesses. Laws about signing and witnessing
this kind of will must be followed very carefully.
If they are not, the will may not be valid. In
Oklahoma, the person who made the will
must state that it is the last will and then
sign it at the end of the document in
the presence of two witnesses
who must also sign.
What are the
requirements of
a formal will?
An attorney may be able to help you find the
best way to handle special circumstances
such as protecting the interests of minor
beneficiaries, providing for someone with a
disability or addressing other issues in the
event your beneficiaries die before you do.
Your attorney will prepare a formal will
for you. Formal wills must comply
with the strict requirements
of the law.
Page 9
Yes. A will must be probated. The witnesses might be
required to be present at the probate proceedings if the
will is not self-proving. Therefore, the witnesses should
be people who are easy to find (it is a good idea to
list their addresses), be younger than you, be in good
health and not related by blood or marriage, and they
should not be named in your will to receive property.
Does a will have to be probated?
A self-proving will is a formal will that is notarized
and contains statutory language. It must be
acknowledged by the person who had it made and
an affidavit signed by the witnesses before a notary
public or a person authorized to administer oaths. The
notary seal should appear on the acknowledgement
and affidavit.
The main advantage of the self-proving will is that
witnesses are not required to be present at
the probate proceedings. Because of this
important feature, it is now the most
commonly used type of formal wills.
What is a self-proving will?
Page 10
A joint will should be considered carefully. A
joint will is one document that contains two wills,
and is commonly used by married couples who
share the same assets and beneficiaries. In a
joint will, two people say what is to be done with
their property when the first of them dies, and
who will receive the remaining property
when the second person dies. If both
people agree that their joint will
is binding or final, it may not
be changed later by the
surviving partner.
Should I make a joint will?
There are
pros and cons
to making a joint
will. For instance,
suppose you and your
spouse agree in your joint will
that your children are to receive your
remaining property after you are both
deceased. You pass away and your spouse,
now in their old age, has been neglected
by your children and instead is cared for by
another family member. If your spouse wishes
to exclude them from your joint will,
they will have no way of doing so.
Page 11
What happens to my property if
I die without a will?
First, it is not true that your property will automatically
go to the state if you die without a will. This only
happens if you have no heirs - not even a spouse,
relative, children, etc. - to inherit your property.
It is true that your property cannot go to friends, a
charity, or your lodge if you do not leave a will – even
if you promised it to them. The law will treat all your
property the same. There are no special provisions
for heirlooms, jewelry or the family business. If you
do not leave a valid will, the court will distribute your
property to your relatives in a certain order set out by
law. This is called intestate succession. If you have no
will, the laws of intestate succession apply.
According to the laws of intestate succession in
Oklahoma, one half of all property goes to the
spouse and the other half goes to your children.
If you have no children, your spouse gets all the
property acquired during the marriage and one-
third of your separate property; the other
two-thirds go to your parents or, if they
are dead, to your brother and sisters.
The law gives you many choices
if you make a will, but none
at all if you do not.
Page 12
Does a will cover all of my
property?
No, most likely it does not. In fact, a will does not
cover some kinds of property at all. For instance:
• Joint Tenancy Property – This refers to
property such as a house, car, checking
or savings account, held by two or more
people as joint tenants’ rights of survivorship.
When one owner dies, all the property
automatically belongs to the other owners
and is not affected by the will. In case of
joint tenancy, the owners do not have
to be married.
• Life Insurance – The money from your
life insurance policy will go directly to the
person, trust or estate named as the
beneficiary. Thus, life insurance policies
generally are not affected by your will.
• Savings Bonds – Certain United States
savings bonds are not governed by your
will, but go directly to the person listed on
the front of the bond.
Remember: All property, including property not
affected by your will, is still part of your taxable
estate and any taxes must be paid.
Page 13
It is important to say what should be done with
your property should you and your other joint
tenants die at the same time, or if you are the
last surviving joint tenant. If you do not leave a
will, the state must give your property to your
relatives in the order set by law. This may or
may not be your wish. The same is true for
people who own property as joint tenants,
even though they are not married.
Why do I need a
will if all my property
is joint tenancy property?
Page 14
Your will is good until you change it or write a new
one. As long as your mind is sound, you can change
or revoke your will whenever you want to. In fact, you
should review your will and consider changing it when:
• your family changes because of a
birth, death, marriage or divorce;
• the amount of your estate gets
much bigger or smaller;
• you move from one state to
another; or
• your executor can no longer serve.
In any case, you should review your will every few
years, even if no major changes have taken place
in your life.
Remember: If you decide to make a new will, be
sure it revokes all your old wills.
Date your will. Your most recent will is the one
the court will follow in distributing your property.
For how long is my will good?
Page 15
Probate is a court procedure that provides for the
change of legal ownership of your property when
you die. The purpose of probate is:
• to determine your valid last will;
• to safeguard your spouse and minor children’s
rights;
• to protect your creditor’s rights;
• to pay any estate or inheritance taxes due;
• to determine who gets your property; or
• to oversee the work of your executor.
What is probate?
Page 16
Court costs are charged to probate your
will. The estate will also have to pay the
cost of publishing notices. An executor or
administrator will be entitled to a small fee
for handling the estate plus expenses. An
attorney will be entitled to a reasonable
fee, which will be reviewed by the court.
How much will probate cost?
OKDHS Pub. No. 91-34 Revised 11/2021 This publication is authorized by Oklahoma
Department of Human Services Director Justin Brown and printed by DHS in accordance
with state and federal regulations at a cost of $325.89 for 100 copies. Copies have been
deposited with the Publications Clearinghouse of the Oklahoma Department of Libraries.
Members of the public may obtain copies by calling 1-877-283-4113 (toll free) or by
downloading a copy at www.okdhs.org/library.
Page 17
You cannot totally disinherit your spouse. You
can, however, leave nothing to any of your other
relatives, including your children. With regard
to your children, it is very important that you
clearly indicate in your will that you intend to
leave nothing to a specific child or children, as
discussed previously.
Can I omit an heir from my will?
Both federal and state law can impose a tax on
your estate when you die. The two main types
of taxes are estate and inheritance. Whether
your estate or your property will have to pay
one or both of these taxes depends on the
size of your estate and who receives it. Your
property generally will not be given out
until all the taxes due are paid.
Will there be taxes to pay when
I die?
Page 18
The preferred storage place for your will is a
fire-proof safety deposit box. An alternative
available in some counties is filing the will
with the court clerk. Be sure to let your
family members or others who
need the information know
where your will
is located.
Where should I keep my will?
Remember: This pamphlet is offered for
educational purposes only; it is not intended
to solve individual legal problems. You may
need to consult a lawyer. If you cannot afford a
lawyer, call to see if you are eligible for a Legal
Aid lawyer at no cost to you. Free legal advice
is available to all people 60 and over, as a
result of the Older Americans Act.
For more information call
Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma
1-855-488-6814
