Therefore, you should make it a practice to refuse to notarize signatures on handwritten wills, unless the testator or testatrix has provided an appropriate notarial certificate. When a holographic will is witnessed or notarized, the will is invalidated because it no longer contains only the testator's handwriting. However, in many states, a will written entirely in the testator's own handwriting is considered a valid, holographic will. In general, there is nothing prohibiting a notary from notarizing a handwritten document, as long as it contains the appropriate jurat or certificate of acknowledgment.
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Dealing with handwritten willsįirst, there is the problem of handwritten wills. Complications arise when a party drafts his or her own will, without the assistance of legal counsel, and comes to a notary for assistance. Such wills are drafted by attorneys and come with specific instructions and pre-printed notarial certificates to be completed by the notary. Most notaries who encounter wills do so in their capacity as a legal assistant or employees of a law firm that handles wills and other estate-planning documents. Some states advise notaries against notarizing signatures on wills unless they are trained in their execution. Typically, however, a properly drafted will requires the acknowledgment of the person making the will (called a "testator" if male or "testatrix" if female) and the oaths of two witnesses unrelated to the principal signer, all before a notary public.
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The laws regarding the proper execution of wills vary from state to state. A last will and testament is a highly sensitive probate document that determines how a person's assets will be distributed after his or her death.