Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Georgia

Lawyers do wills for family members - that alone does not make it invalid. People get wills from the internet and forms from office supply stores, so they don't have to be done by lawyers. Your cousin may have violated the law by practicing law without a license, but that does not necessarily help you. The only way to get firm answers is to take the will to a reputable wills and estates lawyer for a review. It may or may not be valid, and the answer might involve details other than, or in addition to, the ones you raised.

Attorney Riddle is correct. While non-lawyers cannot practice law, that fact alone does not render the will invalid as long as it is properly witnessed and notarized.

The will is not invalid because it does not list assets. Many people truly have simple plans that just say, I leave all my property, real, person and mixed, to someone. It doesn't have to have a laundry list of items. Also, many people are concerned with disposing of personal items of sentimental value - again, there does not have to be a laundry list and people may include these on a separate writing referenced in the will.

The will also is not invalid because your aunt has discretion. Many people leave the disposal of their assets to the executor's discretion. While lawyers generally cannot draft wills so as to benefit the lawyer or the lawyer's family, here, everyone is related. And your aunt is the child (I assume) of your grandfather. Maybe this is what your grandfather wanted?

The will should be probated in the county/state where your grandfather resided at the time of his death. Whoever is the executor will have to probate the will. It is the executor's job to figure out what your grandfather owned and take an inventory of assets which has to be filed with the court.

You ask how you can ensure that the assets are fairly distributed. What's fair? The issue is not what's fair but what the will says. If your grandfather left everything to charity, is that fair? Maybe, maybe not. As long as the executor does whatever the will says, it is fair.

So you need to get a copy of the will and have it reviewed by a probate lawyer who practices in the county/state where the estate is pending. You first need to see if the will is valid. If you question its validity, then you need to file what is called a caveat challening the will. If the court declares that the will is invalid, then all of your grandfather's children will inherit an equal share. If any of your grandfather's children are dead, then the grandchildren can generally inherit the share of their deceased parent.

If the will is valid, then you need to make sure that the executor does what the will says in terms of distributing assets. If the executor is not doing the job, she can be removed.