Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Kentucky

Re: wills

The key to answering this question is that wills are not like contracts. They have NO legal affect until one is deceased. Therefore, you cannot have a joint will - at least not one that is binding.

Married couples often have "mirror wills" that essentially give everything to the survivor and may make other special designations upon the death of the surviving spouse. The problem is, only the will of the deceased is binding. So, if Husband wants his Rolls Royce to go to his wife and then to his son by a prior marriage upon Wife's death, he can only hope Wife follow's through. She can change her will after he is deceased and give the Rolls Royce to her new boyfriend and there isn't much Husband can do about it.

So, one way to address this issue is to have "mirror wills" PLUS a contract that is enforceable NOW. The survivor can still change his or her will, but the deceased's beneficiaries can sue to enforce the contract.

There are other ways to accomplish the same result, but it takes creativity and knowledge of the law.