Questions about wills
Questions about wills
When is a will useful?
When you wish to depart from statutory succession or specify how the estate is divided. Compulsory shares and other commitments remain applicable. Periodic review is advisable when family or financial circumstances change.
Who inherits without a will?
Statutory succession depends on the surviving relatives. Spouses or registered partners have statutory shares alongside descendants or the parental branch. Unmarried partners do not inherit automatically; if there are no statutory heirs, the rules in favour of the public authorities apply.
How do I make a valid will?
A handwritten will must generally be written entirely by hand, dated with the year, month and day, and signed. A public will requires statutory notarisation with witnesses. An oral emergency will is permitted only under narrow exceptions.
What can I provide for in a will?
Appointment of heirs, legacies, division instructions and permissible conditions are possible. Compulsory shares and formally valid commitments must be considered. Not every financial benefit, such as pension benefits, forms part of the freely disposable estate.
Complex questions from practice
How are conflicting provisions in older and newer wills interpreted?
Revocation, chronological order and compatibility must be examined. A later document does not always revoke every earlier provision. Preserve clear originals and have amendments drafted consistently.
Compare all versions, dates and existing revocation statements. Examine whether a new disposition was intended to replace or merely supplement an earlier one. Clear originals and an understandable replacement help avoid interpretation disputes. Otherwise, a single new sentence may unintentionally conflict with several older provisions.
What formal risks arise from a handwritten will with printed additions?
Printed sections do not automatically satisfy the handwriting requirement. Their consequences for individual or all provisions must be examined. Use a fully formally valid replacement rather than unclear mixed formats.
Distinguish the statutory form of a will from a template used for preparation. A printed draft can provide guidance but does not become a handwritten will merely through signing. Existing mixed formats require examination of which instructions are affected. A formally compliant replacement can resolve uncertainties.
How can a business interest be allocated to a particular child in a will?
Inheritance shares, compulsory shares, valuation and financing of other claims must be coordinated. Corporate agreements and shareholders’ agreements may contain additional restrictions. Allocation alone does not provide all necessary liquidity.
An allocation should be combined with realistic business valuation and compensation for the other participants. Review existing shareholder agreements and transfer restrictions. Available liquidity and payment terms also matter so that the intended succession does not fail after death because of compensation claims that cannot realistically be met.
What effect does a foreign domicile have on a will made in Switzerland?
Applicable inheritance law, formal validity and any choice of law must be examined separately. Foreign assets may require additional administration. Have multiple documents reviewed across jurisdictions for inconsistencies.
Prepare an overview of the countries and assets concerned. Multiple national wills should be checked to establish whether they complement or inadvertently revoke each other. In addition to inheritance law, local evidentiary and registration procedures can affect administration. Coordinated drafting is therefore more helpful than several independently prepared documents.