Codicil to Will PDF Template

Writing your will is an important step in planning your future. Your will can preserve your personal assets and provide for your loved ones. However, if you ever need to change your will, you might need to fill out a codicil. It’s easy to do that if you have a helpful form.

Let’s say you made out your will when you were younger. Like many of us, you’ve probably experienced life changes. You may have had children, gotten married or divorced, or acquired a house or an inheritance. Your will needs to be updated to reflect these life changes so that all your loved ones are provided for.

You can certainly make a new will. However, although your changes are important, they don’t necessarily require a full-scale rewrite. In that case, a codicil might be the perfect choice.

A codicil is a document that alters all or part of your will. A codicil can add to your will, alter provisions you’ve made already, or remove a provision you originally included. However, a codicil doesn’t replace your original will. It just changes one or more parts of it.

Anyone who has experienced one or more important life events should strongly consider filling out a codicil form. Here are some of the most common:

You’ve had a change in your marital state

You have experienced a birth or adoption

One or more of your children is no longer a minor

You need to change your executor or the alternative

You have acquired or no longer possess an important asset

You have lost a partner or spouse

You want to change a beneficiary

You want to amend the way in which your property is divided up

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So that your wishes are followed after you are gone, it’s a good idea to look through your will every 5-6 years to make sure that your will still reflects your circumstances and preferences.

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If you’ve reviewed your existing will and realize you’ve had some major life changes, it’s time to make a codicil. Using a codicil form makes the process of altering, adding, or subtracting information relatively easy, without the more time-consuming process of rewriting your entire will.

Because we never know exactly when our last will might become necessary, it’s hard to give a firm due date for completing a codicil. In general, it’s wise to proofread, evaluate, and notarize your codicil as soon as possible. When you have gotten the document notarized and witnessed, you should keep your codicil form on file along with the original copy of your will.

Some people keep their will and codicils on file in a home lock box. Others prefer to keep their forms on file with their attorney. Please remember, though, that your will and any codicils you might write will both go through probate.

Filling out a will may be difficult, but it’s one of the most important steps you can take to protect your family and loved ones. You can ensure that your property is distributed fairly to your spouse, partner, children, and friends.

If you pass on without leaving a will, you die €œintestate.€ Then, the state in which you live decides how your estate will be distributed. Laws may vary, but here is one example of a flowchart demonstrating how an estate is split up after someone dies intestate:

[pdf-embedder url=”https://cdn-prod-pdfsimpli-wpcontent.azureedge.net/pdfseoforms/pdf-20180219t134432z-001/pdf/codicil-to-will.pdf”] < br>Similarly, if you’ve had a major life change, you’re leaving a lot of the responsibility to the state or your executor In many cases, it might be impossible to determine your intention for a particular beneficiary or a portion of your estate. The consequence for not filling out a codicil form might be that your property is distributed inequitably or that a deserving friend or relative is left out of the distribution of your estate.

Fill out the document with name and the date your original will was executed, meaning the date when the will was made official.

Explain which paragraph you are changing with this codicil.

Explain whether you are completely eliminating any paragraph in your original will. 4. 4. Specify the number of the paragraph(s) to be eliminated.

If you are adding a paragraph, include the new information and tell the executor where the new information should go.

Be sure NOT to sign the codicil until you have arranged for 2-3 witnesses and a notary.

Put the will it somewhere safe, such as a lock box, a fireproof safe in your home or your lawyer’s office.