

Hanno Bekker, founder and director of Bekker Attorneys, provides insight into what you should be aware of and what is crucial when it comes to your own will:
A will does not have an expiry date – strictly speaking: However, it is recommended that you review your will at least once every three years. You should also do it sooner when major life events take place, ranging from illness, marriage, divorce, death in the family, newborns etc.
When you draw up a new will, stipulate that any others are no longer valid: At the top of your latest will, you should be very clear that this is the latest and only will that declares all older versions as void. By stating this, it will be helpful in the court should someone dispute the outcome of the will, as it will showcase the latest date and state that all others have expired as a result.
Make sure you name the executor of your will: This way, you will know that a competent individual is the one looking after your affairs when you are no longer there. However, an executor cannot be someone that is a beneficiary in the will.
Be as specific as possible in your will about who inherits what:Do not simply state that you are leaving all of your belongings to a spouse or other party. Specify each and every item of any value with clear instructions of who inherits it. Be as specific as you possibly can.
Communicate a death plan ahead of time: This way you can ensure that your most recent will be the one made available. State where your will is being held at all times, together with all other documents such as policies and more. That way, your loved ones will be aware of where your final testament and will is being stored. Remember, you will not be there to guide them while they are mourning you and you do not want to leave them behind with any unnecessary confusion.
Try and draw up your will at the same institute at all times: Whether you are using an attorney, a bank or another qualified individual or institution to help with your will, try to stick to one – that way their will not be confusion about what your last will says and what it stipulates.
You must have two witnesses, older than 14 years old, to sign your will: However, as with the executor of the will, these witnesses cannot be beneficiaries named in the will who will inherit something. Be very careful with this, because if one or both witnesses are beneficiaries, it can be claimed that they had influence on your decisions regarding your will, and it might lead to them inheriting a bare minimum, if not nothing at all.
Anyone drawing up a will must be of sound mind at the time of drawing it up: An invalid can therefore not draw up a will as it will not be considered as a legal document as it can be successfully argued that they were not in a sane state of mind.
You can specify what must happen to an asset after your beneficiaries death: This means that you can decide who will inherit the asset in turn after your specific beneficiary dies. You may do this for up to two generations. For example, you can leave your house to your son, but stipulate that he can only benefit from it after your spouse dies. Your spouse can therefore live there, rent it out as a source of income or benefit from it in similar ways. It is only after your spouse’s death then that your son will benefit from the house in anyway and the asset then transferred into his name.