Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Georgia

The fact that you are asking this question makes it appear that you (or someone) has made the tremendously unwise move of trying to save a couple hundred dollars and written a will without a lawyer.

Wills must be specific as to what is known as per stirpes and per capita distributions. The failure to be clear on that could create unneeded litigation and confusion. See a lawyer.

It depends. Some states have "anti-lapse" provisions. What this means is that if a person leaves his or her assets the children and one child dies, then that dead child's children will take the share of his/her deceased parent. GA law provides:

� 53-4-64. Death of beneficiary before will executed or before death of testator

(a) If a beneficiary is dead when the will is executed or otherwise dies before the testator, but has any descendants living at the death of the testator, the testamentary gift, if absolute and without remainder or limitation, shall not lapse but shall vest in the descendants of the beneficiary in the same proportions as if inherited directly from the deceased beneficiary under the intestacy laws of this state.

However, don't rely on state law as an estate planning device. Whenever you have a life changing event (birth, death, adoption, divorce or marriage), get out your old will and see if it needs revised. Pay a lawyer for his/her time to redraft a new will for you. It will be well worth the cost as things can get very expensive very quickly if something happens to you and the heirs want to litigate over who gets what.