Wills
A Colorado will has to be signed the right way. Here is what makes one valid, including when a handwritten will counts.
A will only works if Colorado can treat it as valid. If it is not, the court follows the state default rules, which may not match what you wanted.
The usual requirements
For a standard Colorado will, all of these need to be true:
- You are at least 18.
- You understand what you own, who should receive it, and what the will does.
- The will is in writing.
- You sign it, or someone signs your name for you, in your conscious presence and at your direction.
- Two people witness you sign it, or hear you acknowledge that the signature is yours.
Who should witness it
The witnesses should be adults who are present for the signing. If a person who inherits also serves as a witness, Colorado can reduce or cancel that gift. Choose witnesses who receive nothing under the will.
Handwritten wills
Colorado can accept a handwritten will, called a holographic will, when your signature and the important parts are in your handwriting. Witnesses are not required, and adding a witness does not automatically invalidate it.
That does not make a handwritten will the better choice. These wills are easier to challenge, easier to lose, and easier to misread. A witnessed will, written for your situation, is the more reliable way to handle Colorado wills.
What a valid will still does not do
A valid will does not avoid probate. It also does not authorize anyone to manage your accounts if you are alive but unable to make decisions. And it does not control assets that already name a beneficiary, such as life insurance and many retirement accounts. Those pass by the form on file with the company.
This article is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws change, and every family is different.