Ohio Last Will and Testament

Introduction

Key Things to Know

1. 1

   A last will and testament is a legal document that states who receives your property and names the executor who will administer your estate after you die. It can also name a guardian for your minor children.

2. 2

   Ohio requires 2 or more competent witnesses who attest and subscribe the will in the testator's conscious presence (Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.03). Under the purging statute at Section 2107.15, if a beneficiary is one of only two witnesses, the gift to that witness is void, though the witness stays competent to testify and may still take up to the intestate share they would otherwise receive. Use disinterested witnesses whenever possible.

3. 3

   Ohio does not have a statutory self-proving affidavit. Chapter 2107 of the Ohio Revised Code contains no such section, so admitting a will to probate ordinarily requires the testimony or deposition of one of the attesting witnesses rather than a notarized affidavit.

4. 4

   Ohio does not recognize an unwitnessed handwritten (holographic) will. A handwritten will is allowed, but it must still be signed and attested by two or more competent witnesses like any other will (Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.03). A narrow oral-will exception applies only to personal property during a last illness (Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.60).

5. 5

   A will itself does not need to be notarized in Ohio. What makes it valid is proper witnessing, not a notary's seal, since Ohio has no self-proving affidavit that would call for one.

6. 6

   You must be at least 18 years old and of sound mind and memory, and not under restraint, to make a will in Ohio (Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.02). Witnesses must also be 18 or older (Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.06).

7. 7

   You can revoke an Ohio will by a later will or codicil, a written direction, or by tearing, canceling, obliterating, or destroying it with intent to revoke, provided you have the same capacity required to make a will (Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.33). Divorce automatically revokes gifts and appointments made to a former spouse.

Ohio Requirements for Last Will and Testament

• Sign in the Conscious Presence of Two Witnesses

  An Ohio will must be attested and subscribed in the conscious presence of the testator by two or more competent witnesses, who saw the testator sign or heard the testator acknowledge the signature (Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.03).

• Do Not Use a Beneficiary as One of Only Two Witnesses

  Under Ohio's purging statute, if a devise or bequest is made to a person who is one of only two witnesses to the will, the gift to that witness is void, though the witness stays competent to testify and may still take up to the intestate share they would otherwise receive (Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.15).

• No Notary Is Required for the Will Itself

  Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.03 requires attestation and subscription by two or more competent witnesses; it does not require the will itself to be notarized. Witnessing, not notarization, is what makes the will valid.

• Ohio Has No Self-Proving Affidavit

  Chapter 2107 of the Ohio Revised Code contains no self-proving affidavit section. A will is instead proved for probate through the testimony or deposition of an attesting witness (Ohio Rev. Code Sections 2107.16 through 2107.18).

• Handwritten Wills Must Still Be Witnessed

  Ohio does not recognize an unwitnessed handwritten (holographic) will. A handwritten will is allowed, but Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.03 still requires it to be signed and attested by two or more competent witnesses. A narrow oral-will exception, limited to personal property in a last illness and requiring two disinterested witnesses within ten days, appears at Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.60.

• Testator Must Be 18 and of Sound Mind

  A person who is eighteen years of age or older, of sound mind and memory, and not under restraint may make a will in Ohio (Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.02). Witnesses must also be at least eighteen years old (Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.06).

• Revocation Requires Testamentary Capacity

  You may revoke an Ohio will by a later will, codicil, or other properly executed writing, by a written direction, or by tearing, canceling, obliterating, or destroying the will with intent to revoke it, but the revocation is valid only if you have the same capacity the law requires to execute a will (Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.33).

• Divorce Revokes Gifts to a Former Spouse

  Upon divorce, dissolution, annulment, or legal separation, dispositions and appointments of property to a former spouse, powers of appointment conferred on a former spouse, and nominations of a former spouse as executor, trustee, or guardian are revoked, unless the will expressly provides otherwise (Ohio Rev. Code Section 2107.33).