A will is one of the types of disposition of property upon death. A will is a revocable statement of intent under which the testator personally leaves, upon their death, at least a share of their estate and, where appropriate, a bequest to one or more persons. It is the testator’s personal right to name an heir. A will must be interpreted in a way that, as far as possible, complies with the testator’s wishes.
The testator may include a condition, the stipulation of a time factor, or an order in the will. They may also name the executor of the will or the administrator of the estate.
If the day, month and year in which a will has been made is not clear and the testator has made several wills that contradict each other, or if the legal effects of a will otherwise depend on when the will was made, the will is null and void.
As a matter of principle, a will needs to be drawn up in writing.
A will may be drawn up as a private document, in which case a person wishing to make a will in writing without witnesses writes the entire will in their own hand and signs it by hand. A will that the testator has not written in their own hand must be signed in their own hand, and the testator must explicitly declare, before two witnesses who are present at the same time, that the document contains the testator’s last will and testament.
The testator may make a will in the form of an authentic instrument (i.e. a notarial deed). Notaries who draw up a notarial deed on a will must satisfy themselves that the testator is making this last will and testament prudently, seriously and without coercion.
The law lays down specific requirements for wills made by a blind testator, a testator with a sensory impairment, or a testator who cannot read and write. In addition, the law provides for concessions when wills are made in certain situations (e.g. in life-threatening circumstances).