Holographic will, DO IT YOURSELF FREE, PHILIPPINES LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT, NO LAWYER NEEDED

The good news is that there is a perfectly legal alternative, a beastie called the Holographic Will, similar to what in Europe is called a Living Will, a will made while the will maker is still in good health and mentally alert.

The Civil Code of the Philippines -- I have a copy in front of me now -- says "A holographic will is one entirely written, dated, and signed by the hand of the testator." Simplicity itself. Juan writes out a will in his usual handwriting, dates, signs and seals and either tucks it away or leaves it in the hands of a trusted individual.

The Civil Code goes on to point out the advantages of a holographic will -- easier to make, easy to revise, easier to keep secret. That middle clause is important -- a holographic will, by its author's revisions, keeps up with the will maker's situation and doesn't entail trotting down to a lawyer's office to make alterations which, naturally, will cost another arm and leg.

Don't die intestate -- only lawyers profit from squabbling relatives. Make a holographic will. I am.  Read the complete original article here http://www2.sunstar.com.ph/davao/covington-last-will-and-testamentd

Sample Wills and Last Testament

Sample wills to make your own will

LAST HOLOGRAPHIC WILL AND TESTAMENT

KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS:
 

I, ____name of testator_____ , Filipino citizen, of legal age, single/married to ___insert name of spouse if any___, born on the ____th of ______________ , 19__ , a resident of __insert address__ , being of sound and disposing mind and memory, and not acting under undue influence or intimidation from anyone, do hereby declare and proclaim this instrument to be my Last Will and Testament, in English, the language which I am well conversant. And I hereby declare that:

I. I desire that should I die, it is my wish to be buried according to the rites of the Roman Catholic Church and interred at our family mausoleum in Manila;

II. To my beloved wife _____name of wife_____, I give and bequeath the following property to wit:_________________________ ;

III. To my esteemed children, ________________________ and ______________________I give and bequeath the following properties to wit:_______________________________ in equal shares;
 

IV. To my dear brother, __________________________I give and bequeath the following properties to wit:_______________________________.

V. To my loyal assistant, __________________________I give and bequeath the following properties to wit:_______________________________.

VI. I hereby designate ____name of executor_____ the executor and administrator of this Last Will and Testament, and in his incapacity, I name and designate _____________________ as his substitute.

VII. I hereby direct that the executor and administrator of this Last Will and Testament or his substitute need not present any bond;

VIII. I hereby revoke, set aside and annul any and all of my other will or testamentary dispositions that I have made, executed, signed or published preceding this Last Will and Testament.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto affixed my signature this ________ day of _____________, 2008, in ________________, Philippines.
 

_______________________________________       
(Signature of Testator over Printed Name) 


http://legal-forms.philsite.net/will-testament.htm

HERE ARE SOME OTHER SAMPLES BUT REMEMBER NO WITNESSES NECESSARY AND YOU MUST DO IT IN YOUR OWN HANDWRITING

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071130092618AAALEeC
http://www.willarchives.com/

Will without the legal formalitiesM PHILIPPINES DO IT YOURSELF FREE

 
A person in contemplation of death may execute his own will, without need of lawyer’s assistance and the other formalities of a testament provided it is entirely written, dated and signed by the hand of the testator himself [Art. 810]. Under the Civil Code of the Philippines (R. A. 386 - approved: 18 June 1949), this is known as ‘holographic will’. It is subject to no other form, may be made in or out of the Philippines, and need not be witnessed.  http://soriano-ph.com/2008/01/28/will-without-the-legal-formalities/

Holographic will, under Article 810 of the New Civil Code Philippines

...holographic will, under Article 810 of the New Civil Code:

“A person may execute a holographic will which must be entirely written, dated, and signed by the hand of the testator himself. It is subject to no other form, and may be made in or out of the Philippines, and need not be witnessed.”

    This kind of will, unlike the ordinary type, requires no attestation by witnesses. A common requirement in both kinds of wills is that they should be in writing and must have been executed in a language or dialect known to the testator (Art. 804, Civil Code).

     However, before a person may execute a will, he or she must possess the following:

a. That the testator must must be at least eighteen years of age, and;
b. That he must be of sound mind.(Article 797 and 798, New Civil Code)

     To be of sound mind, it is not necessary that the testator be in full possession of all his reasoning faculties, or that his mind be wholly unbroken, unimpaired, or unshattered by disease, injury or other cause. It shall be sufficient if the testator was able at the time of making the will to know the nature of the estate to be disposed of, the proper objects of his bounty, and the character of the testamentary act. (Article 799, New Civil Code)  http://www.abogadomo.com/law-professor/law-professor-archives/making-a-last-will-and-testament
http://www.thetrustguru.com/lawdsuccess.htm

If a document is not entitled “last will and testament,” could it still be treated as a will?

Yes. In the same case of Dy Yieng Sangio vs. Reyes, the document is entitled “Kasulatan ng Pag-Aalis ng Mana.” The document, although it may initially come across as a mere disinheritance instrument, conforms to the formalities of a holographic will prescribed by law. It is written, dated and signed by the hand of the testator himself. An intent to dispose mortis causa (upon death) can be clearly deduced from the terms of the instrument, and while it does not make an affirmative disposition of the latter’s property, the disinheritance, nonetheless, is an act of disposition in itself. In other words, the disinheritance results in the disposition of the property of the testator in favor of those who would succeed in the disinherited heir.
 http://jlp-law.com/blog/last-will-and-testament-basic-discussion/

LAWYER DOESN'T NEED TO SIGN THE HOLOGRAPHIC WILL

I'd Like to ask if I am single and dont want to give or share my properties to my siblings and their children because they dont need it. I'd like to give my whole estate to other people, what will i do so that my forced heirs will not go after it.

Hi jayrsu,
Our law on succession merely requires that if one dies without a will, his properties will descend to his compulsory heirs, or in their absence, to the legal heirs. But the compulsory heirs, as distinguished from legal heirs, cannot be deprived of their legitimates (share in the estate of deceased) as the law provides.

Thus, since you do not have a descendant or ascendant or been married to anyone, which the law cconsiders as compulsory heirs, then you have every right to bequeth your entire estate to anyone. But if you leave without a will, the court may give it to your legal heirs - brother, sister, or their children. regards.

ANOTHER POINT, THE LAWYER DOESN'T NEED TO SIGN THE LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT. IT COULD BE DONE THRU A HOLOGRAPHIC WILL WHICH REQUIRES THE TESTATOR TO WRITE THE TESTAMENT IN HIS OWN HANDWRITING WITHOUT NEED FOR NOTARY.

THE OTHER FORM OF WILL REQUIRES AT LEAST 2 WITNESSES OF LEGAL AGE AND PROPER NOTARIZATION. ALSO, IF YOU WANT TO AVOID ARGUMENTS AFTER YOUR DEATH BETWEEN THE HEIRS AND LEGATEES, YOU MAY OPT TO FILE BEFORE THE COURT A CASE TO RULE ON THE AUTHENTICITIY OF YOUR WILL EVEN DURING YOUR LIFETIME. IT WILL TAKE EFFECT NAMAN AFTER THE DEATH OF THE TESTATOR SO NO NEED TO WORRY. THE PROCESS IS TO AVOID FURTHER QUESTION AS TO THE FREE WILL OF THE TESTATOR AND AS TO HIS SIGNATURE.
http://forums.gov.ph/thread.asp?rootID=124169&catID=23

Court case confirms holographic will

PHILIPPINE JURISPRUDENCE - FULL TEXT
The Lawphil Project - Arellano Law Foundation
G.R. No. L-14003 August 5, 1960
FEDERICO AZAOLA vs. CESARIO SINGSON

Republic of the Philippines
SUPREME COURT
Manila
EN BANC
G.R. No. L-14003 August 5, 1960
FEDERICO AZAOLA, petitioner-appellant,
vs.
CESARIO SINGSON, oppositor-appellee.
F. Lavides and L.B. Alcuaz for appellant.
Vicente J. Cuna and P.S. Singson for appellee.
REYES, J.B.L., J.:
This appeal, taken on points of law from a decision rendered on 15 January 1958 by the Court of First Instance of Quezon City in its Special Proceedings No. Q-2640, involves the determination of the quantity of evidence required for the probate of a holographic will.

The established facts are thus summarized in the decision appealed from (Rec. App. pp. 22-24):
"Briefly speaking, the following facts were established by the petitioner; that on September 9, 1957, Fortunata S. Vda. de Yance died at 13 Luskot, Quezon City, known to be the last residence of said testatrix; that Francisco Azaola, petitioner herein for probate of the holographic will, submitted the said holographic will (Exh. C) whereby Maria Milagros Azaola was made the sole heir as against the nephew of deceased Cesario Singson; that witness Francisco Azaola testified that he saw the holographic will (Exh. C) one month, more or less, before the death of the testatrix, as the same was handed to him and his wife; that the witness testified also that he recognized all the signatures appearing in the holographic will (Exh. C) as the handwriting of the testatrix and to reinforce said statement, witness presented the mortgage (Exh. E), the special power of the attorney (Exh. F), and the general power of attorney (Exh. F-1), besides the deeds of sale (Exhs. G and G-1) including an affidavit (Exh. G-2), and that there were further exhibited in court two residence certificates (Exhs. H and H-1) to show the signatures of the testatrix, for comparison purposes; that said witness, Azaola, testified that the penmanship appearing in the aforesaid documentary evidence is in the handwriting of the testatrix as well as the signatures appearing in the aforesaid documentary evidence is in the handwriting of the testatrix as well as the signatures appearing therein are the signatures of the testatrix; that said witness, in answer to a question of his counsel admitted that the holographic will was handed to him by the testatrix. "apparently it must have been written by her" (t.s.n., p. 11). However, on page 16 on the same transcript of the stenographic notes, when the same witness was asked by counsel if he was familiar with the penmanship and handwriting of the deceased Fortunata Vda. de Yance, he answered positively in the affirmative and when he was asked again whether the penmanship referred to in the previous answer as appearing in the holographic will (Exh. C) was hers (testatrix'), he answered, "I would definitely say it is hers"; that it was also established in the proceedings that the assessed value of the property of the deceased in Luskot, Quezon City, is in the amount of P7,000.00.

The opposition to the probate was on the ground that (1) the execution of the will was procured by undue and improper pressure and influence on the part of the petitioner and his wife, and (2) that the testatrix did not seriously intend the instrument to be her last will, and that the same was actually written either on the 5th or 6th day of August 1957 and not on November 20, 1956 as appears on the will.

The probate was denied on the ground that under Article 811 of the Civil Code, the proponent must present three witnesses who could declare that the will and the signature are in the writing of the testatrix, the probate being contested; and because the lone witness presented by the proponent "did not prove sufficiently that the body of the will was written in the handwriting of the testatrix."

The proponent appealed, urging: first, that he was not bound to produce more than one witness because the will's authenticity was not questioned; and second, that Article 811 does not mandatorily require the production of three witnesses to identify the handwriting and signature of a holographic will, even if its authenticity should be denied by the adverse party.

Article 811 of the Civil Code of the Philippines is to the following effect:
ART. 811. In the probate of a holographic will, it shall be necessary that at least one witness who knows the handwriting and signature of the testator explicitly declare that the will and the signature are in the handwriting of the testator. If the will is contested, at least three of such witnesses shall be required.

In the absence of any competent witnesses referred to in the preceding paragraph, and if the court deems it necessary, expert testimony may be resorted to. (691a).

We agree with the appellant that since the authenticity of the will was not contested, he was not required to produce more than one witness; but even if the genuineness of the holographic will were contested, we are of the opinion that Article 811 of our present Civil Code can not be interpreted as to require the compulsory presentation of three witnesses to identify the handwriting of the testator, under penalty of having the probate denied. Since no witness may have been present at the execution of a holographic will, none being required by law (Art. 810, new Civil Code), it becomes obvious that the existence of witness possessing the requisite qualifications is a matter beyond the control of the proponent. For it is not merely a question of finding and producing any three witnesses; they must be witnesses "who know the handwriting and signature of the testator" and who can declare (truthfully, of course, even if the law does not so express) "that the will and the signature are in the handwriting of the testator". There may be no available witness of the testator's hand; or even if so familiarized, the witnesses may be unwilling to give a positive opinion. Compliance with the rule of paragraph 1 of Article 811 may thus become an impossibility. That is evidently the reason why the second paragraph of Article 811 prescribes that http://www.lawphil.net/judjuris/juri1960/aug1960/gr_l-14003_1960.html