West Virginia's Requirements for a Will

Summary of West Virginia's Will Requirements:

Statutes Governing West Virginia's Will Requirements:

Who may make will and as to what property

Every person not prohibited by the following section may, by will, dispose of any estate to which he shall be entitled at his death, and which, if not so disposed of, would devolve upon his heirs, personal representative, or next of kin. The power hereby given shall extend to any estate, right, or interest, to which the testator may be entitled at his death, notwithstanding he may become so entitled after the execution of the will.

West Virginia Code, §41-1-1.

Who may not make will

No person of unsound mind, or under the age of eighteen years, shall be capable of making a will.

West Virginia Code, §41-1-2.

Must be in writing; witnesses

No will shall be valid unless it be in writing and signed by the testator, or by some other person in his presence and by his direction, in such manner as to make it manifest that the name is intended as a signature; and moreover, unless it be wholly in the handwriting of the testator, the signature shall be made or the will acknowledged by him in the presence of at least two competent witnesses, present at the same time; and such witnesses shall subscribe the will in the presence of the testator, and of each other, but no form of attestation shall be necessary.

West Virginia Code, §41-1-3.

Wills of personal estate by soldiers, sailors or nonresidents

Notwithstanding the two preceding sections, a soldier being in actual military service, or a mariner or seaman being at sea, may dispose of his personal estate as he might heretofore have done; and the will of a person domiciled out of this state at the time of his death shall be valid as to his personal property in this state, if it be executed according to the law of the state or country in which he was so domiciled.

West Virginia Code, §41-1-5.

Competency of witnesses who are beneficiaries

If a will be attested by a person to whom, or to whose wife or husband, any beneficial interest in any estate is thereby devised or bequeathed, if the will may not be otherwise proved such person shall be deemed a competent witness; but such devise or bequest shall be void, except that, if such witness would be entitled to any share of the estate of the testator, in case the will is not established, so much of his share shall be saved to him as shall not exceed the value of what is so devised or bequeathed. In case the will be contested any such attesting witness may, at the instance of any contestant, be required, either in court or by deposition, to testify as upon, and with the effect of, cross-examination; and the giving of such testimony or testimony in rebuttal thereto by such attesting witness, shall not, if the will be established or admitted to probate, affect in any manner the devise or bequest to such attesting witness, or to the wife or husband of such witness.

West Virginia Code, §41-2-1.

Creditors may be witnesses

If a will charging any estate with debts be attested by a creditor, or the wife or husband of a creditor, whose debt is so charged, such creditor shall, notwithstanding, be admitted a witness for or against the will.

West Virginia Code, §41-2-2.

Executor may be witness

No person shall, on account of his being executor of a will, be incompetent as a witness for or against the will.

West Virginia Code, §41-2-3.

[Reference - West Virginia Requirments for a Will]