A client came to me last year with a will he’d signed in the late 90s. It was a well-drafted document—for its time. It named his then-wife as his primary beneficiary and his business partner as his executor. The problem? He had divorced and remarried a decade ago, and his business partner had since passed away. Had he died, his entire estate would have been entangled in a protracted, painful battle in a Manhattan Surrogate’s Court, pitting his ex-wife against his current one. His will had become a liability, not a protection.
This is a situation I see far too often. A will is not a static document you sign and file away forever. It is a living instrument that must evolve as your life does. Viewing it as a one-time task is a fundamental misunderstanding of its purpose. The real work is stewardship—the ongoing, deliberate act of ensuring your plan remains aligned with your reality.
Why a Will Demands Periodic Review
A will reflects a single moment in time. But families grow, assets shift, and relationships change. What was a prudent plan five years ago may be completely unworkable today. We generally advise clients to review their wills—and their broader estate plan—every three to five years, or immediately following a significant life event.
What qualifies as a significant event? The list is long, but some of the most common triggers include:
- Changes in Marital Status: Marriage, divorce, or the death of a spouse are the most critical reasons to update a will. Divorce does not automatically revoke gifts to an ex-spouse’s family members, for instance—a detail that can cause unintended consequences.
- Births and Deaths: The birth of a child or grandchild, or the death of a beneficiary or a named fiduciary like an executor or trustee, requires immediate attention.
- Substantial Financial Changes: A major inheritance, the sale of a business, or a significant change in the value of your assets can unbalance your intended distribution and create tax implications that your old will did not account for.
- Changes in Fiduciary Fitness: The person you named as your executor or a child’s guardian may have moved away, aged, or may no longer be the right person for the job. Appointing a fiduciary is an act of profound trust, and that trust must be periodically re-evaluated.
Ignoring these events means you are allowing circumstances—not your intentions—to dictate your legacy. The result is often conflict, unnecessary expense, and a distribution of your life’s work that you never would have wanted.
The Two Methods for Amending a Will: Codicil vs. New Will
When a change is needed, New York law provides two primary paths: executing a codicil or drafting an entirely new will. The right choice depends on the scope of the changes.
The Codicil: For Minor Adjustments
A codicil is a legal document that modifies, amends, or adds to an existing will. It is best used for a single, straightforward change. For example, if you simply want to change your named executor from your brother to your sister, a codicil is an efficient way to do so. Or perhaps you want to add a small cash bequest to a charity that wasn’t in the original will.
A codicil does not stand alone. It must be executed with the exact same legal formalities as a will. Under New York’s Estates, Powers and Trusts Law (EPTL) § 3-2.1, this means it must be in writing, signed by you at the end, and witnessed by at least two people who sign in your presence. A codicil is then attached to the original will. Any failure to meet these strict requirements will render the codicil invalid.
The New Will: For Substantive Revisions
For more significant changes, drafting a new will is almost always the more prudent course. If you are getting divorced, remarrying, fundamentally changing how your assets are divided, or disinheriting a previous beneficiary, a new will is the only responsible option. Trying to accomplish these major revisions with a series of complex codicils can create ambiguity and invite a will contest.
A new will provides clarity. It contains language that explicitly revokes all prior wills and codicils, creating a single, definitive document for the Surrogate’s Court to interpret. This clean break prevents confusion and reduces the likelihood that a disgruntled heir will challenge your intentions by arguing over conflicting language between an old will and a newer codicil.
The Peril of Handwritten Changes
I must caution against the temptation of “do-it-yourself” amendments. I have seen wills where the testator simply crossed out a name with a pen or wrote a new beneficiary’s name in the margin. In New York, these handwritten changes are legally void. They have no effect.
Worse, they can create a legal nightmare. By physically altering the document, you may cast doubt on the validity of the entire will, opening the door for a challenge that could have been easily avoided. There is no shortcut to proper execution. The law demands precision for a reason—to protect the integrity of your final wishes from fraud or misinterpretation.
Stewardship.
Your will is the primary instrument of that stewardship. Keeping it current is not a matter of paperwork; it is a fundamental act of responsibility to the people you care about. If your will is more than a few years old or your life has changed since you last signed it, now is the time to review it. Schedule a meeting with our firm to conduct a thorough review of your existing will and confirm it accurately reflects your intentions.
