| What You Should Know About Wills |
by: Legal Services of the Virgin Islands, Inc.-STX
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| Q. | What Is a Will? |
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| A. | A will is a document that provides for the way in which a person’s probate property will be distributed upon death. To be valid it must meet certain formal requirements as provided by the laws of the U.S. Virgin Islands. |
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| Q. | Who May Make a Will? |
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| A. | A person who makes a will in the U.S. Virgin Islands must be free from improper influences, must be at least 18 years old, and must be of sound mind. |
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| Q. | How Is A Will Made? |
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| A. | A will must be written. A will must be witnessed in a special manner provided by law, and it must be signed in strict accordance with the law. The easiest way to ensure that these conditions are met legally is to have a will drawn up by an attorney. |
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| Q. | May a Will Be Changed? |
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| A. | A will may be changed as often as the person who wrote it wishes. Changes are frequently made by the simple device of an addition called a “codicil.” However, changes should not be made without the assistance and advice of a lawyer to assure changes will be legally valid and not adversely affect other portions of the will. |
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| Q. | How Long Does a Will Last? |
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| A. | A properly drawn and executed will is generally effective until it is changed or revoked. Changes in circumstances after a will has been made, such as tax law changes, marriage, birth of children, or even a substantial change in the nature or amount of a person’s estate, may raise questions about the adequacy of that will. All changes in circumstances require a careful analysis and reconsideration of all the provisions of a will and may make it advisable to change the will to reflect the new situation. |
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| Q. | How Large an Estate is Necessary to Justify a Will? |
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| A. | Everyone who owns any real or personal property should have a will regardless of the present amount of the estate. Estates grow in value almost unnoticed through the repayment of mortgages, appreciation of stocks and other investments inheritances from relatives and other sources. |
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| Q. | May a Person Dispose of Property in Any Way by Making a Will? |
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| A. | Almost, but not quite; for example, married persons cannot completely exclude their spouses. There are certain other restrictions that a lawyer can explain. |
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| Q. | What Happens to Property Held in the Names of Both Husband and Wife? |
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| A. | With a few minor exceptions such as joint bank accounts, property held in the names of both husband and wife does not automatically pass to the survivor upon the death of one of them. However, there are some cases in which property does pass to the survivor automatically. Sometimes it is to your advantage to hold property in this manner. An attorney can advise you as to the type of property that can be held in this way and the advantages that you might gain. |
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| Q. | Does A Will Let Me Avoid Inheritance Taxes and Other “Death” Taxes? |
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| A. | Everyone who owns more than a home has an estate, which may have tax problems. However, a properly drafted will may reduce the amount of taxes that have to be paid. Many wills written without consideration of recent federal tax laws should be reexamined in light of lax law changes. A lawyer skilled in these matters can give you safe advice, since he or she must not only know the laws of wills and property, but must be familiar with both state and federal inheritance and estate tax problems. |
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| Q. | What Happens If I Don’t Make a Will? |
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| A. | When a person dies without a will, or dies “ intestate” as the law calls it, the property of the deceased is distributed according to a formula fixed by law. In other words, if you don’t make a will, you don’t have any say about how your property will be distributed. In the U.S. Virgin Islands, for example, if a man dies without a will, leaving small children, the wife would take a fixed sum of money and one-third of the remainder of the estate. The rest of the estate would be distributed equally among the children. If minor children are involved, the court will require that a Guardian be appointed to manage their share of the estate. |
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| Q. | Who Will Manage My Estate? |
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| A. | If you make a will, you may name the person whom you want to manage the administration of your estate (the executor). If you do not make a will, the Probate Court will appoint someone (the administrator), whom you may or may not know, to handle your estate. |
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| Q. | Who Should Draft a Will? |
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| A. | The drafting of a will requires professional judgment. A lawyer can help you avoid pitfalls and choose the course best suited for your situation.
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