No, in Louisiana there is no requirement for a will.

There are a variety of reasons a person should have a will. Primarily, a will is the easiest way to ensure that your estate passes to your loved ones in the manner in which you would like it to. Depending on the complexities of your estate contents or the dynamics of your family life, a will can help avoid certain undesirable outcomes.

If you do not have a will in Louisiana, when you pass away, your estate will be distributed according to a preferred class of individuals, such as your children, spouse and extended family if necessary.

A valid will in Louisiana must be either a notarial testament or an olographic will. A notarial testament is typewritten, dated and signed by the testator on each page and at the end before a notary and two witnesses. An olographic will is entirely handwritten, dated and signed by the testator.

Generally speaking, pre-made form wills run into a variety of challenges in Louisiana, such as incorrect content, not taking into account laws particular to Louisiana (such as forced heirship) and not adhering to the form requirements under the Louisiana Civil Code. If a pre-made form will is found to be invalid during probate, then the entire will is set aside.

Under certain circumstances, yes, you must leave assets to certain heirs. For example, in Louisiana, if you have a child who is considered a forced heir, meaning they are under the age of 24 or are mentally or physically incapacitated, the law provides that they must receive a certain portion of your estate. In addition, if you are married and do not have a prenuptial agreement, the rules of community property apply to your estate.

Probate, known as the Succession process in Louisiana, is the legal process by which a decedent’s estate is distributed either according to the terms of their will or by the laws of the state, if there is no will. The probate process is required to actually transfer ownership of the decedent’s assets to their heirs.

Yes, in Louisiana every estate must go through probate, whether there is a will or not.

The length of time probate takes depends on a variety of factors, such as whether or not there is a will, how many heirs are involved, what type of property is involved in the estate, what are the debts of the estate, etc.

The cost varies by parish and depends on whether or not there is a will. The cost can also vary depending upon the number of heirs and whether or not there are disagreements among the heirs.

No, you cannot avoid probate. Oftentimes people believe that having a joint bank account, or a co-owned home means that the account or home will simply go to the co-owner. However, this is not the case, as simply having a person’s name on the bank account does not mean they are an owner. Furthermore, there are prohibitions against giving away all of your property before you die.

All of the property that you own at the time of your death makes up your estate. This can include homes, vehicles, bank and investment accounts, personal items and household contents. Your estate is also comprised of any debts that you may owe, such as a mortgage, car loan or outstanding credit card debts.

Generally, any sort of assets with a beneficiary designation, such as a life insurance policy, does not comprise a part of your estate.

No, a trust is not the same as a will. However, you can put a trust inside of your will should you chose to want to provide for future generations or place certain items in trust for the benefit of a beneficiary, while being managed by another.

Trusts are useful in a variety of situations, such as when you have young children, when you want to provide for future generations, or when you want to supplement funds for the needs of special needs relatives. Trusts come with their own set of rules, different from wills. Therefore, there are special considerations to be taken into account when determining whether or not a trust is the best route.