Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

In California, wills do not need to be notarized. They have to be witnesses by two persons. If that is the only will your brother executed, then that is the one that will take effect if the appropriate formalities were followed.

If the Will is entirely in the handwriting of the deceased, without any thing machine printed, then it also is a valid Will. But the Will speaks ofwhat exists at the time of death, so if it refers to my wife and there was a valid divorce, then she gets nothing. If it states her name instead, then she might inherit what is specified.

I agree with Mr. Shers. The old will applies until someone comes in with a new will. The will does not have to be notarized to be valid, it just has to either have all material terms in his handwriting and be signed by him, or typed and properly attested to by two witnesses.

If the old will was executed prior to the divorce occurring it is likely that the ex-wife gets nothing. But this entire situation and a copy of the old will would need to be reviewed by an attorney before you would know what to do.