What happens if a will is signed but not witnessed?
What happens if a will is signed but not witnessed? Assistant at Law Assistant at Parklin Law It's a common misconception that signing a will is the same as witnessing it. Unlike witnesses, though, the signers of the will only need to be present at its signing. The witnesses are an essential part of the process because they ensure that the person signing the will has done so voluntarily; for this reason, their presence is required by law. When a will is signed without witnesses, it is not valid and cannot be used in any legal proceedings. However, there are some exceptions to this rule: The person who signs without witnesses does not need to fear being disinherited. While their will could not be used to distribute property, they could leave their belongings as gifts in a letter or in another document that would be considered valid by law. The document would only have to specify what they wanted to leave where—it would not need to include anything about why they chose each ite...