Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Massachusetts

Re: Will

Attorneys who cannot or decide not to hold your original wills or other important documents should give you a chance to take possession of them prior to discarding them.

You should sit down with an attorney and create new wills. I would not rely on a copy of a will if you don't absolutely have to. And even if you could, a lot can happen in 20 years and your estate plan should be reviewed every 5 years or so - or upon the happening of any major life event, i.e. a new house, a new son-in-law, larger savings or retirement accounts, divorce, marriage, the passing of a parent or sibling, etc.

Please feel free to contact me if you would like to update your estate plan. I am located in Quincy.

Re: Will

A brief word on why it makes sense for the attorney to hold the will: if a will is lost and the original was in possession of the attorney, it is possible to probate a photocopy/carbon copy of the will. The presumption is that if the client was in possession, the will was destroyed, and it would be more difficult to probate a copy. Also, handwritten changes to the original will may not have the effect intended.

Many attorneys will hold the will for an indefinite period. Generally, they will have to make some effort to contact the client before disposing of the will.

Regardless of the above, there have been significant changes in laws, especially Massachusetts and federal estate tax laws, during the past twenty years.

At a bare minimum, you should have your wills reviewed, in conjunction with your current assets and debts and intended beneficiaries, to determine if the wills are still sufficient for your situation, or whether revisions will need to be made.

Please feel free to contact my office here in Wellesley. You can find our telephone number by clicking through to our website or send me an email. (They don't let us post our telephone with our responses.)

In the alternative, you should contact your old attorney and have your estate planning reviewed.

Good luck.