A common trope in cinema for will readings is to have the decedent’s surviving family appear in a lawyer’s office, that attorney puts a video into the DVD player, and the decedent appear on a TV screen to personally address the beneficiaries and tell them what their legacies are. Why portray will readings in this way? Well, it is simply more dramatic to watch. An attorney reading dry legal text from a stack of papers is not particularly exciting to watch or listen to.
Can I make my final affairs more exciting? Can I make an enforceable video will in Michigan? Unfortunately, the answer is no.
MCL 700.2502(1) lays out the requirements for a valid will that must include ALL the following:
- It must be in writing.
- It must be signed by the testator or in the testator’s name by some other individual in the testator’s conscious presence and by the testator’s direction.
- It must be signed by at least two witnesses who witnessed the testator’s signature or by a notary public that acknowledged the witnessing of the testator’s signature.
These rules are not necessarily hard and fast. A testator can execute a “holographic will” with or without signatures, which is valid provided that the document is signed, dated, and the material portions are entirely in the testator’s handwriting. MCL 700.2502(2). A document or writing purporting to be a will but is lacking one of the requirements in MCL 700.2502(1) may still be admitted to probate if the proponent of that document or writing can prove by clear and convincing evidence that it was intended to constitute the decedent’s will or an addition or alteration of such. MCL 700.2502(3). The Michigan Court of Appeals upheld the validity of an unsigned will under this “clear and convincing evidence” standard when the petitioner was able to prove that it constituted the decedent’s intentions. Estate of Attia, 317 Mich App 705; 895 NW2d 564 (2016). It appears that courts will go to great lengths to give legitimacy to a person’s final wishes.
However, all of the rules in the Michigan Estates and Protected Individuals Code (“EPIC”) explicitly require that any valid will, whether meeting all statutory standards or not, be a “document or writing”. This requirement completely precludes any oral or video wills. Although the decedent’s video recording may assist in interpretation or elaboration of an existing paper will, it does not replace it. A video recording alone is invalid, and the decedent will be considered to have died intestate (without a will). As a result, despite the good intentions behind the video, the decedent’s estate may be distributed in a way completely inconsistent with his or her wishes.
If you have further questions about the validity of a will or require legal representation, then do not hesistate to contact the probate attorneys at Kershaw, Vititoe & Jedinak PLC for assistance today.
