Today I learned +

[Bohandas]

Is there any way to get a valid will without having to hire an attorney?

 

[jdrakeh]

Is there any way to get a valid will without having to hire an attorney?

The attorney I spoke to said that a lot of that depends upon specific jurisdictional rules.

 

[Scribe]

But an unprinted Word doc wouldn’t meet the probate standards in any jurisdiction I know of.

So the scribbled notes on the back of an unlined legal size sheet of drawing paper...wouldnt cut it?

 

[Ryujin]

So the scribbled notes on the back of an unlined legal size sheet of drawing paper...wouldnt cut it?

As stated above, depends on jurisdiction.

Edit- I first learned about this case on the CBC TV show "It's the Law", back in the early '70s.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatoon/history-cecil-george-harris-will-farm-safety-1.6868417

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

As stated above, depends on jurisdiction.

Edit- I first learned about this case on the CBC TV show "It's the Law", back in the early '70s.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatoon/history-cecil-george-harris-will-farm-safety-1.6868417

Yep.

My Wills & Estates prof said a person alone with a pen and a pad of paper were the most dangerous things in Texas probate.

And the shortest will recognized in Texas was “Mom takes all” scrawled in the dirt after a nasty farm accident.

Note: both are physical, not electronic.

 

[MoonSong]

Yep.

My Wills & Estates prof said a person alone with a pen and a pad of paper were the most dangerous things in Texas probate.

And the shortest will recognized in Texas was “Mom takes all” scrawled in the dirt after a nasty farm accident.

Note: both are physical, not electronic.

That aspect of Common Law countries is nice. Here you do need to get a notary -yes, not just any lawyer will do- to have a valid will.

 

[Staffan]

That aspect of Common Law countries is nice. Here you do need to get a notary -yes, not just any lawyer will do- to have a valid will.

Here in Sweden, the requirements are:

• In writing and on paper.
• Should list the assets and who gets what, ideally using that person's personal number but it's fine if you can positively identify someone in another way, like "Allan Svensson who is my neighbor".
• Has to be signed in your own hand.
• Needs two witnesses to testify and co-sign that they have seen you sign the will. They do not need to see what's in the will, only that you've signed it and that it is a will. These can't be close relatives or beneficiaries of the will.

That's pretty much it. If you have significant assets it's probably a good idea to get a lawyer or financial advisor involved to get things right, but that's what you need to make it valid. Sweden also has some limitations on the contents of the will: notably, your children are entitled to share at least half of your estate equally (this will be held in abeyance if there's a living spouse as well and the children in question are ones you have with said spouse). This was instituted to break the economic power of the remnants of the nobility, who often own large estates and have historically often willed almost all of it to a single heir.

 

[jian]

We went to see the play version of The Daughter of Time last week and it made me realise just how much the opening events of A Game of Thrones are based on that specific episode in the War of the Roses.

To summarise the history: Edward of York (Edward IV) successfully takes the throne from the Lancastrians and makes his loyal brother, Richard of Gloucester, Warden of the North. He marries Elizabeth Woodville, a beauty from a rising family seeking to make themselves kingmakers, and it is rumoured that their young sons (including the heir to the throne) are not Edward’s children but the product of incest between Elizabeth and her brother Anthony. When Edward dies unexpectedly, Richard rides south to become regent for the young prince despite opposition from the Woodvilles. Richard then discovers that Edward and Elizabeth’s sons are not legitimate heirs and is offered the throne; he accepts and becomes Richard III.

Spoiler

Robert Baratheon successfully takes the throne from the Targaryens and makes his loyal friend, Ned Stark, Warden of the North. He then marries Cersei Lannister, a beauty from a powerful family seeking to make themselves kingmakers, and it is rumoured that their young sons (including the heir to the throne) are not Robert’s children but the product of incest between Cersei and her brother Jaime. When Robert dies unexpectedly, Ned rides south to become regent for the young prince despite opposition from the Lannisters. Ned then discovers that Robert and Cersei’s sons are not legitimate heirs. Cersei is a damn sight faster on the uptake, not to mention much more ruthless, than Elizabeth Woodville and has Ned arrested and executed (which is actually the fate of Edward and Richard’s brother, George of Clarence, when he spreads such rumours in our world).

 

[Cadence]

The current Finnish president went to Furman University in South Carolina, originally on a golf scholarship (and then he doubled down on political science).

 

[Maxperson]

Yesterday I learned that being right across from a burning semi when the gas tank explodes is a bad idea. A semi carrying Teslas caught fire and as I was passing directly buy it(two lanes over), the gas tank exploded sending a 15-20 foot diameter jet of fire about 30-40 feet up into the air at around a 45 degree angle. The jet was rotating in the air. Looked exactly like in the movies. Had that jet gone directly towards me, it might have reached my car. This picture was a few seconds before I passed the truck and the explosion happened.