Which state should I make my will in

[Tandoor]

What is the name of your state? California, maybe.

I haven't lived in the US for 26 years and don't plan to return there, but I want to write a US will. The question (see below) concerns which state's laws should I use.

I've lived abroad since the early 80s. Before that Ohio 1979-82 and NY 1974-79

I registered to vote in CA in 1995 using my now-deceased father's address, but voted just that one year, so my residence there has become inactive.

Question:

Am I free to make a will in Washington State, where my brother (one of the planned benficiaries of my US will) lives? Or am I somehow forced to make the will in California. I guess my more general question is, what governs where a will can be made?

Thanks.

 

[moburkes]

The will needs to be valid for the state/country in which you live. You won't be able to have "local" witnesses in either state, if you're not there for them to witness your signature.

 

[Tandoor]

clarification....

I have a Japanese will already. I've been advised by a lawyer here that I ought to make an identical will in the US to ensure that the two countries can't enter into disputes about who gets what. So my question concerns this duplicate US will...I'm assuming I'd need to travel to the US and use local witnesses there to make such a will.

 

[divgradcurl]

Am I free to make a will in Washington State, where my brother (one of the planned benficiaries of my US will) lives?

Yes. As long as the will is valid EITHER in California (i.e., follows California law) OR is valid in Washington State (where it was signed, following Washington law), the will is legal in California.

In other words, you could write a will conforming to California law, and sign it and have it witnessed, in Washington, or you could write a will conforming to Washington law, and sign it and have it witnessed in Washington -- both would be valid in California.

I'm assuming I'd need to travel to the US and use local witnesses there to make such a will.

Not necessarily -- the same thing I wrote above is also true for wills written in other countries as well. A will written while you are in Japan, that is valid under Japanese law, is also valid in California.

If you want to make life easy, you could write your will in Japan that conforms to California law, written in English, and witnessed by two parties (in Japan) that are fluent in English, that would probably cause the least hassle down the road, and avoid having you make a flight out just to sign a will.

But even your Japanese will would be valid in California, so long as it was written, signed and witnessed to make it valid under Japanese law.

 

[divgradcurl]

I've been advised by a lawyer here that I ought to make an identical will in the US to ensure that the two countries can't enter into disputes about who gets what. So my question concerns this duplicate US will

The best way to avoid this problem is to have one will! Having two wills could potentially lead to trouble if there is ever a will contest. Your best bet is to have a single will that simply covers everything.

I wrote my earlier answer without really reading this section, sorry. The problem with two wills is that, in California, a later-written will generally will supercede an earlier-written will. Now, if Japanese law allows for multiple wills, then this won't really matter, because the only will you will be probating in California will be your "California" will -- but if Japan has a similar system, where a later-drafted will overrides and earlier will, then your "California" will becomes THE will, which may or may not be what you want to do.

Finally, another possibility is you could write you Japanese will to cover that portion of your estate physically in or controlled by Japanese law, in a will valid under Japanese law, then write a codicil to the will (valid under California law) that covers ONLY those portions of your estate that are subject to California jurisdiction.

If your attorney in Japan is not familiar with California probate law, you might want to try and find a practitioner with knowledge of both systems, so you don't cause more problems than you solve.