Estate Planning #5: Be Clear, Be Precise

We often see Wills with gifts of personal items.  Perhaps: “Uncle Charlie’s watch”, or “the Robert Bateman print in the living room”, or “my mother’s gold locket”.

Remember that your Will is going to be read when you are dead.  No one will be able to ask you: “Which one?”  What if there are two Batemans?  What if you’ve redecorated and there’s no Bateman in the living room – but one in your bedroom?  What if everyone “knows” that “Uncle Charlie’s watch” is a Rolex Oyster Submariner worth $45,000 – and all that can be found is a cheap Timex.  Meanwhile, your dead mother’s new husband is wearing a suspiciously familiar Rolex….

Or the granddaughter expects to get Oma’s gold locket that she wore every day. And all that’s found (after one “helpful” relative after another has been through the house “sorting out things” — is a cheap Medic Alert pendant …

Stealing for the estate is evil. It’s also common. People loot the house. They pull jewelry off the body. Think anyone ever gets buried wearing their wedding jewelry: rings, bangles, watches, whatever? — Ha!

That’s where good, clear drafting comes in.  Describe the personal item precisely.  Give details of the material: 14 carat gold.  Weight: 30 grams.  If gems, the size and shape: 2 carat brilliant cut.  Decorations: carved with a woman’s profile, wearing a wreath.  Inscriptions: “Olga” on the obverse.  Any attachments: A 50 cm 14 carat gold chain.

If possible, include a photograph.  Even better, an appraisal (they always have photographs).

There are ways to add photographs, etc. the Will itself so that no changes can be made.

When you make a Will, you need to be clear.

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