A person who wishes to distribute his estate according to his wishes, without being bound by the rules set forth in the law regarding the rules of inheritance by law, may need to make a will.
The person making a will must adhere to various rules in the Inheritance Law, including the following rules:
A. A personal act - The will must be a personal act, made out of the full and complete will of the testator.
B. No influence - the will must be prepared without any interference or unlawful influence on the testator's will.
The law defines invalid grounds that, if met, may render the will invalid, as detailed below:
A. Common grounds for disqualification
The most common grounds for invalidating testamentary provisions are listed in Section 30A of the Inheritance Law, which states that a testamentary provision made through coercion, threat, undue influence, trickery or fraud is invalid.
However, Section 31 of the law states that if a year has passed since the rape/threat/undue influence/trickery ceased to operate on the will or from the date he became aware of the fraud, and he could have revoked the will and did not do so - then this defect can no longer lead to the revocation of the will.
For example, if a person made a will out of a threat, and a year has passed since the threat expired and ceased to affect him, and he still did not change the will, it will no longer be possible to revoke it.
This is because if a person could change the will, of their own free will and without threat, and yet did not do so, then they apparently agree with the will, as it is, and there is no reason to revoke it. .
Additional grounds for disqualification
A will made by someone who is not qualified - A will made by a minor or by someone who has been declared legally incompetent, or made while the testator was unable to discern the nature of a will, is void, as these people cannot make a will that reflects their true wishes.
Invalidation of certain provisions in a will
Provision denying authority - A provision that limits or denies the testator the right to change the will or revoke it will be void, as it cannot be conditioned on the testator's personal will.
A provision with problematic validity - a provision whose validity depends on the will of a person who is not the testator will be void.
Error - If a testamentary provision was made in error, and it cannot be clearly understood from the will how the error can be corrected, then the provision will be void.
Unclear instruction - If it cannot be understood from a will's instruction to whom the testator has given the instruction, or if its meaning is unclear - the instruction is void.
Illegal/immoral/impossible instruction - an instruction whose execution is illegal, immoral or simply impossible - will be void.
An unlawfully entitling will - a provision of a will that entitles the person who made it, or was a witness to it, or took any part in making it - is void. This rule also applies to the spouse of one of these.
Additional legal provisions
In addition to these grounds for invalidity, there are additional legal provisions that determine how the will must be drawn up, and they must be adhered to, so that there is no opening for the will to be invalidated. Therefore, it is advisable to draw up the will before a lawyer who will ensure that the various rules are observed and that the will is valid.
Nothing in this article is intended to replace individual legal advice, and each case must be examined on its own merits. Reliance on the information is the sole responsibility of the user.
For inquiries and questions, please contact us by email: [email protected]
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