Wills are legal documents that allow individuals to specifically state how they would like their possessions handled and divided after their death. When you write a valid will, you avoid the time-consuming and often-frustrating probate process, in which the court decides how your property should be divided. State laws with regard to wills are very similar from one state to the next, with differences in witness requirements or the validity of oral or handwritten wills. Most states also allow individuals to include a separate list of personal items and their intentions (this can be handwritten), which can help grieving family members and friends named in the will.
Oklahoma Wills Law: The Basics
In Oklahoma, the testator (the person writing and signing the will) must be 18 years old and of sound mind. The state also requires two witnesses to sign the will in the presence of the testator. Oral wills, also called "noncupative" wills, are only valid under certain limited conditions, but handwritten (or "holographic") wills written, dated, and signed in the testator's own writing need not be witnessed.
Additional details of Oklahoma laws concerning wills are listed below. See FindLaw's Making a Will section to get started.
| Code Section | 84 §41, et seq. |
| Age of Testator | 18 years or older and of sound mind |
| Number of Witnesses | Two attesting witnesses signed in presence of testator at end of the will. |
| Nuncupative (Oral Wills) | Valid with following requirements: (1) no more than $1000; (2) must be proved by two witnesses present at making, one of whom was asked by testator to bear witness as such; (3) testator must have been in actual military service in field or duty at sea and in actual contemplation, fear, or peril of death or testator must have been in expectation of immediate death from injury received same day. |
| Holographic Wills | Must be entirely written, dated, and signed by testator's hand; need not be witnessed. |
Note: State laws are never etched in stone and are subject to change at any time, most often through the enactment of new statutes. You may want to contact an Oklahoma estate planning attorney or conduct your own legal research to verify the state law(s) you are researching.
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