A last will and testament should reflect your family, the people you want to provide for, and the person you trust to handle your estate. Willis Law Group helps New Jersey individuals and families prepare or update wills as part of a coordinated estate plan.

What We Review When Preparing Your Will

Start with the decisions behind the document. Who should receive property? Who should serve if your first-choice executor cannot act? Are there children, beneficiaries with disabilities, or family circumstances that require continuing management rather than an outright gift?

  • Beneficiaries and backup provisions: identify intended recipients and what should happen if circumstances change.
  • Executors and alternates: discuss willingness to serve, practical availability, and administration responsibilities.
  • Guardian nominations: discuss your wishes for minor children and the separate role of managing their inheritance.
  • Existing ownership: review jointly held property, trusts, and beneficiary designations alongside the will.

A Will Does Not Replace Every Estate-Planning Document

A will addresses estate directions after death. It does not supply the lifetime financial authority addressed in a durable financial power of attorney or the treatment decisions covered by health care directives and living wills. Review those documents together so important responsibilities are not left unclear.

Wills, Probate, and Beneficiary Designations

The Bergen County Surrogate’s official probate guide explains probate and the executor’s appointment. A will does not itself avoid probate or automatically control every asset. Account ownership and beneficiary arrangements require a separate review. Our probate and estate administration services address the work after a death.

Planning for Children or a Blended Family

An outright inheritance may not fit a child’s age or a beneficiary’s circumstances. A will can be coordinated with testamentary trusts and trusts for children. Bring information about prior relationships, existing obligations, and any benefits a beneficiary receives. We can discuss the choices and limits before drafting instructions.

New Jersey Will Signing Requirements: Witnesses and Self-Proving Affidavits

For a conventional witnessed will, N.J.S.A. 3B:3-2 generally requires a writing, the testator’s signature or a signature made as the statute permits, and signatures from at least two witnesses after witnessing the signing or acknowledgment within a reasonable time. A self-proving affidavit is a separate step intended to simplify later probate; notarization alone does not replace the witnesses for a conventional witnessed will. The Bergen County Surrogate’s will requirements guide explains the usual signing arrangement and self-proving affidavit. Different rules can apply to handwritten wills and other writings, so have an unusual or incompletely signed document reviewed rather than assuming it is valid or invalid.

Updating an Existing Will

Bring the complete signed document and any amendments. Tell us about marriages, divorces, births, deaths, moves, significant property changes, or changes in the people named to serve. Avoid handwritten edits to the signed original; ask what review and execution steps are appropriate for the proposed update.

Official New Jersey Will Resources

The Bergen County Surrogate’s Last Will & Testament resource provides public information. The New Jersey Department of State Will Registry records basic will information through a voluntary program; registration is not a substitute for preparing and properly executing a will. Execution requirements are addressed in N.J.S.A. 3B:3-2 and related provisions.

Compare a will-based plan with revocable living trust planning. Bring a list of assets and how they are owned, beneficiary information, existing documents, and the people you are considering as fiduciaries.

Founding attorney Michael T. Willis brings 25 years of legal experience. Request a 30-minute initial estate planning meeting to discuss your circumstances, existing documents, and proposed scope of work. Confirm your appointment at one of our office locations before traveling. For New York matters, use our separate New York estate-planning guidance.

Return to New Jersey estate planning or organize your questions with our client forms and intake resources. Do not send confidential financial or medical documents through the general website inquiry form.