Is a handwritten will valid in California?

A note on a kitchen table, a page in a journal, a letter to a child: families find handwritten wills in all of these places. Our estate planning page notes that California recognizes certain handwritten wills but that homemade plans carry real risks. This page explains exactly what the Probate Code requires for a handwritten, or holographic, will, how it compares with a witnessed will and the California statutory will, and what happens to one after a death in Los Angeles County.

What happens to a handwritten will after a death, step by step?

1. Keep the original safe and unmarked. If a will last in the person's possession cannot be found after death, the law presumes the person destroyed it intending to revoke it (section 6124). Do not write on it, staple it or remove pages.
2. Deliver it to the court within 30 days. Unless a petition for probate has already been filed, whoever has custody of the will must deliver it to the clerk of the superior court, in person or by registered or certified mail, within 30 days after learning of the death, and send a copy to the named executor or, if unknown, a beneficiary (section 8200). The fee for delivering a will is $50. In Los Angeles County, the probate clerk's office is at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse, 111 N. Hill St., Room 429.
3. Open the estate if needed. Any interested person may petition to probate the will and appoint a personal representative, even if the will is lost or not in the petitioner's possession (section 8000). The first petition costs $435 to file.
4. Prove the handwriting. A holographic will may be proved in the same manner as other writings (section 8222), and extrinsic evidence is admissible to decide whether a document is a will and what an unclear will means (section 6111.5).
5. Resolve any objection. Someone who disputes the will can file an objection to its probate; the first objection costs $435 under Government Code section 70650(b). The Probate Division hears these matters in its courtrooms at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse, described in our Stanley Mosk Courthouse guide.
6. Administer the estate. Once the will is admitted, the estate is administered like any other, with the statutory fees we explain in how much probate costs in California.

How does a handwritten will compare with other California wills?

Section 6110(c)(2) adds a safety valve for witnessed wills: if the witnessing was defective, the will is treated as properly witnessed if its proponent shows by clear and convincing evidence that the testator intended it to be the will when signing it. A holographic will does not need that rule, because it needs no witnesses at all.

What changes the answer?

Whether the key terms are in the person's own handwriting

Section 6111(a) requires the signature and the material provisions to be handwritten by the testator. A typed list of gifts with a handwritten signature is not a holographic will, though it could still be valid as a witnessed will if section 6110 is met. Under section 6111(c), the statement of intent, such as "This is my will," may be printed on a commercial form.

Whether it is dated

A missing date does not make a holographic will invalid by itself. It matters in two situations under section 6111(b): if there is doubt whether this will or an inconsistent provision of another will controls, the holographic will is invalid to the extent of the inconsistency unless it is shown to have been written after the other will; and if the person lacked capacity at any time when the will might have been written, it is invalid unless it is shown to have been written when the person had capacity.

Capacity and pressure

Anyone 18 or older and of sound mind may make a will (section 6100). Section 6100.5 sets the test: a person lacks capacity if they cannot understand the nature of the act, understand and recall the nature of their property, or remember and understand their relations to family and others affected, or if delusions or hallucinations caused gifts they would not otherwise have made. A will, or part of one, procured by duress, menace, fraud or undue influence is ineffective to that extent (section 6104).

Later changes, divorce and lost originals

A will is revoked by a later will that revokes it expressly or by inconsistency, or by being burned, torn, canceled, obliterated or destroyed with the intent to revoke it (section 6120). Divorce or annulment revokes gifts to the former spouse and their nomination as executor, unless the will says otherwise (section 6122). A will that cannot be found after death is presumed revoked if it was last in the testator's possession (section 6124).

What the will cannot reach

The statutory will form explains that joint tenancy accounts, a house held in joint tenancy, and life insurance or retirement benefits with named beneficiaries may pass outside a will. A recorded transfer on death deed also cannot be revoked by will, as the statutory TOD form says; our comparison of a transfer on death deed and a living trust explains how those deeds work.

A worked example

For example, imagine a hypothetical woman in Glendale who signed a typed, witnessed will in 2015 leaving everything to her brother. Years later, she writes on a single sheet of notebook paper, entirely in her own hand, "I leave my house to my niece Ana," and signs it, but does not date it. After her death, her brother finds the 2015 will and her niece finds the note.

The note has a handwritten signature and handwritten material provisions, so it can qualify under section 6111(a). Because it is undated and conflicts with the 2015 will about the house, section 6111(b)(1) makes it invalid to the extent of that inconsistency unless the niece can show it was written after 2015. Section 6111.5 allows extrinsic evidence, so a reference in the note to something that happened after 2015, or testimony about when it was written, could matter. The 2015 will still governs everything the note does not address.

The example does not predict who would prevail; it shows why the date, and the person's capacity at the time, can become the center of the dispute.

Common mistakes with handwritten wills

• Typing the important parts. The material provisions must be in the testator's handwriting for the holographic rule to apply (section 6111(a)).
• Leaving out the date. It is not fatal by itself, but it invites the disputes described in section 6111(b).
• Notarizing a statutory will instead of having it witnessed. The form's instructions say notarization will not fulfill the witness requirement.
• Adding words to the statutory will form. The form warns that added or crossed-out words may make the will invalid or be ignored.
• Using a beneficiary as a witness on a typed will. Unless two other witnesses are disinterested, it creates a presumption that the gift was procured by undue influence (section 6112(c)).
• Hiding the original. If no one can find it, the law may presume it was revoked (section 6124).

What to do this week

1. If you found a handwritten will, keep the original in a safe place exactly as you found it and make a copy for reference.
2. Note the date you learned of the death and deliver the original to the superior court clerk within 30 days, unless a probate petition has already been filed.
3. Send a copy to the person named as executor, or to a named beneficiary if the executor cannot be found.
4. Search for other wills, codicils, trusts and transfer on death deeds, and note any dates on them.
5. List the people who know the writer's handwriting and could confirm it.
6. If the estate is modest, check whether it qualifies for California's small estate procedures before opening a full probate.
7. If you are writing your own will, also put an incapacity plan in place; see advance health care directive or power of attorney.

Frequently asked questions

Does a handwritten will need witnesses in California?

No. Section 6111(a) makes a will valid as a holographic will "whether or not witnessed" if the signature and material provisions are in the testator's handwriting.

Does it need to be notarized?

No. Section 6111 does not require a notary. For the statutory will form, the instructions add that notarization does not satisfy the witness requirement.

Can I fill in a printed will form by hand?

Partly. Section 6111(c) allows the statement of testamentary intent to be part of a commercially printed form, but the signature and the material provisions still must be in your handwriting. The California statutory will in section 6240 is a different route that requires two witnesses.

What if the original was lost and we only have a copy?

A petition for probate may be filed even if the will is lost or destroyed (section 8000(b)). But if the will was last in the person's possession and cannot be found, the law presumes it was revoked, and that presumption has to be overcome (section 6124).

Does a handwritten will avoid probate?

No. The statutory will form says that with or without a will, assets in a person's name alone usually go through probate. A funded trust is the usual alternative; see our guide to putting your house into a living trust in Los Angeles County.

Can a will be challenged after a trust notice deadline?

They are different deadlines. The 120-day rule in section 16061.8 applies to contesting a trust, which we explain in the trustee's notice and the 120-day deadline. A will is contested in the probate case, through an objection to its probate.

Can someone else write my will for me by hand?

Not as a holographic will, which must be in your own handwriting. Section 6110(b)(2) allows another person to sign a witnessed will in your name, in your presence and at your direction, with the usual two witnesses.

How can Glendale Law help?

We review handwritten wills that families find, help executors deliver and prove them, and prepare wills and trusts for clients who want something more reliable. When a will is disputed in court, our overview of the civil litigation process explains the general stages of a contested case. Call (818) 244-9000 or request a consultation.