I sure hope he left a note where his will is!

September 28, 2015.  The last few days have presented several cases in which the original last wills and testaments have been lost – or cannot be found after the maker’s death.  Please, please, please.  Do not let that happen with your original last will and testament.

After someone dies, It is necessary to file the original will with the Probate Court – not a copy, not a duplicate.  A person can have only one will.

If a person’s original last will and testament cannot be found after that person dies, then there is a presumption that the person revoked the will prior to his or her death.  That creates big problems.

Therefore, if you have taken the time to prepare your last will and testament, take the time to make sure the original is kept safe, is not lost, and that your loved ones know where to find it if something happens to you.

Your heirs, and your Probate Judge, will thank you!

In a separate post later, I’ll mention a handy way to make sure your will is safeguarded – by filing it with the Probate Court during your lifetime.  That is called filing the Last Will and Testament for “safekeeping.”  I’ll include a copy of the law in that post.