Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Florida
Mothers Will
My mother died in April in Sarasota county. She had terminal cancer and prior to passing away lived with my sister in Illinois for 4 months. While staying at my sisters my grandfather passed away (her father) and left a sizeable estate. After he passed away my mother and her husband wrote out will from a form they apparently obtained online. It appears that the will refers to being an Illionois will. She wrote the will and went to the bank with her husband and friend to have the will notarized. For some unknown reason it was not notarized. Later that day she left Illinois with her husband and friend to return to Florida. On the way they stopped in southern Illinois and visited with her friends son and daughter who signed the will as witnesses. They have not seen my mother in probably 10 years. The signatures on the will are not notarized and not dated either. My mom left everything to her husband although she does acknowledge have 5 children. My question now is can this will be considered valid since two of the witness hardly knew my mother and cannot attest to her mental state? If so, does the fact that the signatures are not dated nor notarized invalidate the will.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Mothers Will
Since prepared in Ill., their laws will apply. If valid there, it is valid everywhere.
Re: Mothers Will
In Florida, the witnesses to a will do not need to know the person making the will. However, the will does need to be notarized. If Mother was a resident of Illinois at the time the will was made, then Florida would look to Illinois law to determine if the will was valid. It is possible she was still a Florida resident who was only visiting Illinois, in which case Florida law would determine if the will was valid. Because there are issues here that cannot be resolved without more information, you need to talk to an attorney in more detail about your situation. Good luck.
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