The question isn’t whether you need a will. It’s whether you have a reason to skip one.
Most people don’t.
Will & Won’t
Most people know that a will is a legal document that expresses your wishes for how your assets and affairs should be handled after you die. But what most people overlook is that a will has several unique strengths as a legal document that other estate management tools can’t fully replicate.
Will Power1
Name a guardian for minor children. This is one of a will’s most irreplaceable functions. A will lets you formally designate who should raise your children if you die. Courts aren’t bound by your choice, but they give it enormous weight.
Name an executor. In your will, you get to designate who manages your estate through probate, pays debts, and distributes assets. This gives you control over who handles the process, not just what happens.
Directly disinherit someone. A will lets you explicitly exclude a person by name from your estate. Other tools simply omit people; a will can actively shut the door.
Q&A1
If a will is so great, why does it go through probate?
The main weakness of a will is that it does go through probate. Trusts, beneficiary designations, and joint ownership are designed to bypass probate entirely. If your goal is to avoid probate, a will may not be the best tool to use. If your goal is to name a guardian for your minor children, a will can play a critical role. In general, a sound estate strategy employs many tools that complement each other.
Did You Know? August is Make-A-Will Month. If you don’t have one or haven’t revisited yours in years, this is your opportunity to act.
What’s a pour-over will?
A pour-over will is designed to work in tandem with a trust. Its job is to catch any assets that didn’t make it into the trust during your lifetime and “pour” them into the trust at death. Think of a pour-over will as a backup, not a strategy. Its goal is always to have as little as possible pass through it.
If you are considering adding a trust to your strategy, it’s important to remember that trusts involve a complex set of tax rules and regulations. Before moving forward, consider working with a professional who is familiar with the rules and regulations.
Why does a will going through probate make people uneasy?
Probate is a public process. Once your will goes through probate, anyone can look up and read the details about your estate. Go to any internet search engine and say, “Where can I find the public records for…” (Warning: some services may have a fee for pulling records.) If having your personal information available makes you uneasy, it might be time to explore other estate tools.
Did you know that marriage, divorce, or having a child can automatically affect your will?
Depending on your state, a major life event like getting married or divorced can partially or fully revoke an existing will. Similarly, a child born after the will was written may be entitled to a share of the estate, even if not mentioned. In legalese, it’s called a “pretermitted heir.”
Wills are powerful and a bit tricky at the same time. With estates, sometimes it’s the questions you don’t know to ask that are the most important.
FINRA.org, 2026
