Will Forms
Who needs a will?
Most of us put off writing a will because we don’t want to think about the end of life. But if you have children, are unmarried and in a long-term relationship, or own anything you care about – from a cat to a stock portfolio - you can benefit from creating a will.
Why a will?
A will lets you control what happens to your property and underage children if you die. Without one, the court decides and they may not decide in ways you would have wanted.
Learning about wills
Writing a will can be easy, but deciding what goes into it can be complicated and emotional. Bradford’s 40-page booklet, Planning a Will in Colorado, gives you the basics about evaluating your estate, naming beneficiaries, and providing for young children. Bradford’s book and CD, the Colorado Will and Estate Planner, explains the details of wills, living wills, probate, financial powers of attorney, and is an excellent organizer for all your important documents. The companion CD includes key legal forms.
Taking steps to preserve wealth
Just as you would plan your finances now, you can prepare for how the law will regard your estate after you die. Bradford’s book, Preserving Your Wealth: A Guide to Colorado Probate & Estate Planning, provides detailed explanations of estate taxes, tax credits, trusts, life insurance, and after-death taxation of retirement benefits, among other things. This book provides an easy-to-understand look at how to transfer wealth before and after death.
Now that you have a
Colorado will, what do you do with it?
First, if you prepared it using a computer, you must print the will. An electronic will stored in a computer has no legal significance. You must print a hard copy of your will or it will not be valid.
Second, make sure you have a clean final copy. If you find any errors or spelling mistakes, you will need to re-type or re-write a corrected version. Cross-outs or corrections written on the will you sign could invalidate it completely.
Next, you need to sign your last will & testament to make it legal. Be sure to sign with the exact name you used at the beginning of your will. In Colorado you can choose to sign your will in front of two witnesses (self-proving) or you may complete the “Testator Acknowledgment”, where you alone sign in the presence of a notary. Complete only one of the two acknowledgments in the Last Will and Testament— Bradford forms 39A, 39C and 39T.
Lastly, keep the will in a safe place (but not in a safe deposit box), and tell someone where it is. You can also make a photocopy, although not required, it is a good idea. If you do give a copy of your will to someone you should realize the copy is not a valid will because only your original, signed and witnessed document will be accepted by the probate court.
It is always a good idea to have an attorney review your will. For more information, reads Bradford’s informative booklet “Planning a Will in Colorado.”
