need a will

[whatever2014]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CO

Does an ex-spouse have any claim to our will after 40 years divorced? Can a child from that previous marriage be omitted from our will? The child would be over 50 by now.

 

[justalayman]

Does an ex-spouse have any claim to our will after 40 years divorced?

Our will? Planning on a 2 for one at the funeral home or something?

Can a child from that previous marriage be omitted from our will?

again; our will?

generally you can refuse to include anybody you so choose but it is often recommended that you do mention the person with specific intent of leaving nothing so there is no room for them to make a claim arguing you simply forgot them.

 

[catlady2112]

Our will? Planning on a 2 for one at the funeral home or something?



again; our will?

generally you can refuse to include anybody you so choose but it is often recommended that you do mention the person with specific intent of leaving nothing so there is no room for them to make a claim arguing you simply forgot them.

How do you politely word that in a will, without sounding like a jerk? I have two half-sisters I did not grow up or know well, and don't want this to become an issue later. Is there a *better* way to say "And to Jane Doe, you get nothing"?

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

To my ex-wife, half sister, illegitimate child, Jane Doe, I intentionally make no provision.

 

[whatever2014]

Sorry,
I am not very computer literate and do not have a legal background. I do know that we each need to make a separate will but have not done so yet. My will leaves everything to my husband and then to our two children equally after he dies. His will leaves everything to me and after I die equally between our two children. He is the one who has a child from a previous marriage and has not seen the ex or child for 45 years. My question was does the ex have any claim at all to his will and does the child specifically need to be excluded? The online wills I looked at do not provide for excluding a child that I could see but do caution about excluding children. There is no malice against the child but it has been so long and she has not been any part of our life and we do not think she should receive any benefit from our deaths.

 

[anteater]

The ex-wife has no expectation of inheriting. She is not an heir-at-law. Therefore, there really is not a need to explicitly exclude her. The child is an heir-at-law. Therefore, it is best that his will explicitly state that he acknowledges the child as his but does not wish to leave the child anything.

The online wills I looked at do not provide for excluding a child that I could see but do caution about excluding children.

That's why it may be best to have an attorney write the will. Online and packaged will programs often don't handle out-of-the-ordinary provisions well.

My will leaves everything to my husband and then to our two children equally after he dies. His will leaves everything to me and after I die equally between our two children.

That's not really how it works. Neither of your wills can bind the survivor to leave the survivor's assets in some manner when the survivor dies. You are going on faith that the survivor will not change his/her mind.