A will is a written document, effective only at death, directing who receives your property and who administers your estate.
It controls your probate estate — property titled in your name alone with no automatic transfer built in. It does not reach life insurance, retirement accounts, payable-on-death accounts, survivorship property or assets in a funded trust.
What Alabama requires
Under Ala. Code § 43-8-131, every will shall be in writing signed by the testator, or in the testator’s name by some other person in the testator’s presence and by their direction, and shall be signed by at least two persons, each of whom witnessed either the signing or the testator’s acknowledgment of the signature or of the will.
| Requirement | Detail |
|---|---|
| Writing | Printed is fine. It must exist on paper |
| Testator’s signature | Or another person signing your name, in your presence and at your direction |
| Two witnesses | At least two, each witnessing the signing or your acknowledgment |
| Notarization | Not required for validity. Required to make the will self-proving under § 43-8-132 |
| Capacity | Section 43-8-130 governs who may make a will |
Alabama’s execution statutes contain no holographic will provision. A will handwritten and signed but not witnessed by two people is not valid if executed here. Section 43-8-135 can give effect to one validly executed under another state’s law.
Ala. Code §§ 43-8-131, 43-8-135.What a will does
- Directs distribution of your probate estate.
- Nominates an executor — called the personal representative under Alabama’s Probate Procedure Act.
- Nominates a guardian for minor children. This clause exists nowhere else.
- Can waive bond under § 43-2-851(c), removing a real cost from your estate.
- Can create a trust at death — a testamentary trust, useful where a beneficiary should not receive money outright.
What a will cannot do
| Asset | What controls instead |
|---|---|
| Life insurance | The beneficiary designation |
| 401(k), IRA, annuity | The beneficiary designation |
| Payable-on-death bank account | The POD designation |
| Property held with right of survivorship | The deed |
| Assets in a funded trust | The trust document |
This is the most consequential thing to understand about wills, and the most commonly missed. If most of what you own passes by designation, your will is governing a small fraction of your estate.
Not sure what your will actually controls?
Bring it in with a list of your accounts. Telling you what your plan really produces is a short appointment.
A will has no effect until it is admitted
Until the probate court admits it, a will is a piece of paper expressing an intention. Alabama probate courts have original and general jurisdiction over the probate of wills under § 12-13-1(b).
Admission can be contested. Under § 43-8-190 an interested person may contest a will before it is admitted to probate. Under § 43-8-199, someone who has not already contested has six months after admission to contest in circuit court.
Changing or revoking one
- A new will that expressly revokes the earlier one is the clean method.
- A codicil amends without replacing. It has to be executed with the same formality as a will. In practice a fresh will is usually cleaner.
- Physical revocation is recognised, but do not rely on it — particularly where copies exist.
- Divorce. Section 43-8-137 addresses the effect of divorce or annulment on provisions in a will for a former spouse. Do not assume it fixes your beneficiary designations, which are governed separately.
If you die without one
Alabama’s intestacy statutes apply. Section 43-8-41 sets the surviving spouse’s share — which is only one half where any child of yours is not also the spouse’s child. Section 43-8-42 covers everyone else. The probate court appoints an administrator under the priority in § 43-2-42, and the estate pays a bond premium because there is no will to waive it.
Basic questions about wills in Alabama
What is the legal definition of a will?
A written instrument, executed with the formalities the law requires, by which a person directs the disposition of their property to take effect at death. In Alabama the execution formalities are in Ala. Code § 43-8-131.
Does a will avoid probate?
No. A will is the instrument that governs probate. It has to be admitted by the probate court to have effect. Avoiding probate is done through beneficiary designations, survivorship deeds, or a funded trust.
Is a will valid without a lawyer in Alabama?
Yes, if it satisfies § 43-8-131 — writing, your signature, and at least two witnesses. Most homemade Alabama wills that fail, fail on the witnessing, not on the wording.
What is a self-proving will?
A will made self-proved under § 43-8-132 by affidavit of the testator and witnesses before an officer authorized to administer oaths. The statute provides that such a will “shall be probated without further proof,” absent fraud or forgery affecting the affidavit.
Can a will name a guardian for my children?
Yes, and it is the document that does. If you have minor children and no will, that decision is left to a court with no guidance from you.
Where should I keep my will?
Somewhere fireproof and retrievable, and tell your executor where it is. A copy raises a presumption problem at probate — the original is what the court wants.
A will is one appointment
Wills, powers of attorney and advance directives for families across Limestone, Madison, Morgan, Lauderdale, Colbert, Franklin and Lawrence Counties.
Daniel Shawn Pickens
Attorney at Daniel S. Pickens Law in Athens, Alabama. The firm handles estate planning, probate, real estate closings and title work, deeds, business formation and contracts for families and businesses across Limestone, Madison, Morgan, Lauderdale, Colbert, Franklin and Lawrence Counties.
Questions about estate planning or probate? Email estateplanning@dsp.law or call 256-434-1678.
Daniel S. Pickens Law · 300 West Green Street, Athens, Alabama 35611
