Simple Wills for Husband and Wife
Simple complementary Wills for a Husband and
Wife will ordinarily provide that the Husband
leaves everything to the Wife and the Wife
leaves everything to the Husband except in the
event of a common disaster or one predeceases
the other, in which event everything goes to the
children, share and share alike, or other
persons as you may designate. For purposes of a
simple Will, we presume that this is your
intent.
Appointment of Executor
You need to appoint an Executor, i.e., the
person that will be in charge of the affairs of
your estate. The first choice will be each
spouse. Beyond that, you need to appoint a
person or persons in the event of a common
disaster or when the widow(er) dies.
Appointment of Guardian
In the case of minor children, there are several
other issues which need to be addressed, to take
effect in the event of a common disaster or when
the widow(er) dies. Since minor children
(usually under the age of 18, with exceptions)
cannot own property, a Guardian of the Property
needs to be appointed in the Will. Similarly,
you will want to appoint people you trust to
have custody of your children. This is referred
to as the Guardian of the Person of the child or
children. Although in a court proceeding the
court makes the final decision based on the best
interests of the children, the parents' wishes
expressed in a Will carry much weight.
Ordinarily, you would name the same person or
persons to be Guardians of the Property and
Guardians of the Persons of your children. They
may, however, be different persons.
Trustee of the Trust for Children
Again, when minors are involved, a Trust is
created within the Will which holds the portion
given to the minor child. A Trustee is named to
manage the assets of the Trust for the benefit
of the minor child or children and will usually
pay the interest generated by the Trust to the
Guardian of the Property of the child, or to the
child when old enough. The Trustee is also given
the power to invade the principal for the
health, welfare and education of the child.
Usually the Trustee is given broad discretionary
powers and is instructed in the Will to
distribute the child's portion of the principal
of the Trust when the child attains a specified
age. In our experience, most people choose an
age between 21 and 30 as the age when the
Trustee will distribute the principal to the
child. In some cases it is done in two or three
stages. For example, 1/3 at age 23, 1/3 at age
26, 1/3 at age 29. Please specify for us the age
or ages which you would like to have the
principal distributed to each child. The Trustee
or Trustees may be different from the Guardians
of the Property and the Person, or they may all
be the same person or persons.
The various appointments (Executor, Trustee,
Guardian of the Property and Guardian of the
Person) are referred to as fiduciaries. It is
customary to also appoint a contingent fiduciary
in the event the person or persons you name
predecease you or are otherwise unable to act,
for whatever reason, in the capacity which you
have chosen for that person.
Call our offices today at (315) 451-2383 for an appointment to set
up your Simple Wills.
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cornerstone of our success is the quality
relationship which we maintain with clients.
Clients are treated with integrity and respect
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combine thoughtful, insightful thinking with
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Contact Us
To arrange a
confidential meeting to discuss your legal
needs, contact our offices by e-mail or call (315) 451-2383.
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