Do I Have To Include My Children In My Will?

Creating a will can be a stressful situation for some people. Of course, no one really wants to think about what will happen to their estate when they pass away but it is inevitable and preparations should be in place in the event of your untimely death. It can also be stressful to decide who gets what depending on the size of your family. They may not be entirely sure who to leave certain assets to or they may feel obligated to include certain family members, especially when those family members are children. Certain family members may put pressure on you to include them in your will but you don’t have to. The truth of the matter is that you only have to include the people that you actually want to include in your will. Who you leave your estate to is 100-percent your decision and yours alone.

There are some instances when a person does not feel that their children are responsible enough to handle their estate and in order to protect it, they can avoid that altogether by leaving it to a more responsible family member. There are also situations in which the relationship between the parent and the child has been tarnished over the years and therefore, the child may not be included in the will. Whatever your situation may be, who is included in your will is entirely up to you. You should leave your assets to whoever you feel is most responsible and can respect your wishes for the future of the asset.

However, it is incredibly important that you do have a will. Otherwise, there may be litigation between family members over certain assets if there has been no will left for the family members to reference. This can bring additional stress in a time that is already difficult for your loved ones. If you need to create a will, contact our experienced attorneys today and we would be happy to assist your with your estate planning matters.

The law office of Weinstein, Chase, Messinger & Peters serves Brooklyn and the greater New York area with effective legal services regarding personal injury, medical malpractice, real estate and estate planning. If you need our help, contact Weinstein Chase, Messinger & Peters for you free initial consultation.