Spare your dependants agony when you’re gone; leave a will
The Law of Succession Act says that a will refers to all that a person wishes to happen upon his or her death. However, the contents of a written will prevail when there is a conflict between its contents and the contents of an oral will. PHOTO | FILE
A widow is entitled to her husband’s personal and household effects and can distribute the property among her children, but only if she does not remarry or go back to her parents.
Where there is no prenuptial agreement, matrimonial property vests in the spouses according to the contribution of either spouse towards its acquisition and shall be divided (not equally) between the spouses.
Sharing out property under intestacy can be lengthy and tiresome. In contrast, a will makes it easier for the court to dispose of the deceased’s assets and avoid problems.
Every once in a while, the public is treated to bitter inheritance battles in the media. This happens mostly because people die intestate (without leaving a will) says advocate Oreko Makori, adding that a will is one of the formal means of estate planning, the other being trusts.
“This leaves your property in a precarious position. In some instances, it gives room for the application of customary law, which is not only susceptible to gross manipulation, but is also sometimes biased against women,” he says.When a person dies intestate, or if his/her will is invalidated, the Law of Succession Act stipulates how his/her property should be shared out.
