Juggling Life: When do you Need to Change Your Will? Pt 1

1. Life is Dynamic!

Life is dynamic and full of twists and changes. As much as we try to prepare and plan for the future, we know that any plan is just a basis for future changes. We plan based on the present as we see it today but can't contemplate what the future has in store for us.

Which brings us to situations in which we need to look back and review the past and double check if decisions that were made back then are still relevant today or we need to "recalculate the route".

2. The Paradox of the Will

You're writing your will today just in case something happens tomorrow (smart move!), but hoping at the same time it'll be practically implemented only in many many years to come (Amen!).

That is the "trick", so to say, of a well-written will. On one hand doing your best to make sure it makes sense and takes care of your family and assets if something were to happen in the immediate future, G-d forbid, while at the very same time taking into account foreseeable future developments and scenarios, so that you don't need to revise it every so often.

In other words, professional phrasing of the Will, should be specified to your current situation, but also generalized in a way that will ensure that it's not restricted or bound by it.

3. Do I Need to Change my Will?

You may have written your will in the past before you made Aliya or many years ago. Your children were young then, and now you have grandchildren (or even great-grandchildren).  

You may be asking yourself if you need to write a new Israeli will? What if your spouse isn't around anymore and you want everything to go directly to your children?

What changes in personal status or in the estate planning setup require a whole new document, and which can be changed outside the will?

4. Aliya and Asset Acquisition in Israel

So what happens if you have a foreign will you signed way back then in the States or the UK when you were a young couple and have now made Aliya? Do you need a new Israeli will or will your American one be sufficient?

Assuming you acquired assets in Israel (i.e. a house or other real estate), or even have a bank account in Israel, your will has to be valid according to Israeli standards (as well as the original country you drafted it in, assuming you still have assets there).

5. Do You Need a New Israeli Will?

The answer is that although not always obligatory, you probably should have an Israeli will for your Israeli assets. The reason for this is twofold:

A. Although English wills are valid in Israel, that is only if they were drafted and signed in Israel. If your original will was drafted and signed abroad, it'll probably be needed to be translated and notarized as part of the probate process in Israel, which will most likely be more costly and complicated than just preparing a simple Israeli will.

B. Many a time American (and other foreign) wills are extremely lengthy and long-winded due to regulatory and tax issues in those countries. These type of phrasings are on the most part not needed at all for Israeli purposes and have a high chance of complicating the probate process and creating extra unnecessary "red tape" for the heirs to deal with.

6. An Israeli Will in Addition to Your American/UK One?

If – for foreign purposes, assets abroad – you decide to keep your American will, and are drafting a different/new Israeli one for your Israeli assets, you need to make sure there is no contradiction between the documents.

You'll want to add a phrase stating very clearly that the Israeli will doesn't cancel your American one, and that the allocations in it are restricted to your Israeli assets only.

A note regarding the halachic supplement:

Since the halachic supplement which halachically validates your will is not needed for legal probate purposes, you can have one halachic supplement which validates both your wills, the American and Israeli one simultaneously.

In the next blog post, we'll discuss changes in the family, assets and custodian/trustee or executor nominations.