Will (law)

In the law, a will or testament is a document by which a person (the testator) regulates the rights of others over his property or family after death. For the devolution of property not disposed of by will, see inheritance and intestacy. In the strictest sense, "will" is a general term, while "testament" applies only to dispositions of personal property (this distinction is seldom observed). A will is also used as the instrument in a trust.

Wills in history

Some wills have unusual wishes. Charles Vance Millar's will was notorious for offering the bulk of his estate to the Toronto woman who had the greatest number of children in the ten years after his death (the Great Stork Derby). Another famous case, Estate of Kidd (Ariz., 1971), involved a will found on a deceased prospector who willed his entire $250,000 estate "for research or some scientific proof of a soul of the human body which leaves at death. I think in time there can be a photograph of a soul leaving the human at death."

Related Topics:
Charles Vance Millar - Toronto - Great Stork Derby

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Though most Americans are aware they need a will, as many as 66%, according to Consumer Reports, don't have one. Among those who died without a will are Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Johnson, Ulysses S. Grant, Howard Hughes, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Pablo Picasso.

Related Topics:
Consumer Reports - Abraham Lincoln - Andrew Johnson - Ulysses S. Grant - Howard Hughes - Martin Luther King, Jr. - Pablo Picasso

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