West Palm Beach, FL
Will Attorneys

Getting married or divorced in Florida can quietly change what your existing will controls, whether you ever open the document again or not, and our attentive West Palm Beach will attorneys make sure your plan still says what you actually mean.

Key Takeaways:

• A divorce or remarriage in Florida can automatically rewrite parts of a will you signed years ago, with or without your knowledge.
• Florida requires two witnesses to watch you sign your will, and a self-proving affidavit saves your family an extra court step later.
• Elder Law, P.A. reviews wills brought here from out of state to confirm they hold up under Florida law.

Most West Palm Beach residents assume a signed will stays exactly as written until they change it. Florida law says otherwise. Under Florida Statute 732.507, a divorce automatically revokes any provision favoring your former spouse, and remarriage can entitle a new spouse to a share of your estate even if your will never mentions them. Your will falls out of date the moment your life changes, long before you get around to updating it.

At Elder Law, P.A., our West Palm Beach will attorneys have guided Palm Beach County families through more than 30 years of combined experience with these exact situations. We serve English- and Spanish-speaking clients throughout the area, and every will we draft is built around your actual family, not a generic form.

Schedule your free consultation today and find out whether the will you already have still says what you want it to say.

What Our Team Will Check Before Calling a Will Valid

Florida’s signing requirements are specific, and skipping even one of them is the most common reason a will gets challenged later, a topic our guide to will notarization covers in more depth.

• Two witnesses, present at the same time. Florida requires both witnesses to watch you sign your will in person, not separately or by video, or the document can be thrown out in probate.
• A self-proving affidavit saves time later. Without one, your family may need to track down your original witnesses years after your death just to prove the will is genuine.
• Divorce revokes certain provisions automatically. Any gift or appointment your will makes to a former spouse is void the moment your divorce is final, whether or not you rewrite the will.

As the seat of Palm Beach County, West Palm Beach is also home to the county’s main probate courthouse on North Dixie Highway, where a signed original will must eventually be filed with the Clerk’s office. Families who move here from another state often bring a will built for a different state’s rules.

What to Gather Before Meeting With a Will Attorney

A list of what you own matters most. Property deeds, bank statements, and account records give us a real picture of your estate before we draft anything.

Beneficiary designation forms on retirement accounts and life insurance policies often override what your will says, so we review these alongside your will rather than treating the will as the only document that matters.

Any prior will or estate planning documents, especially one signed in another state, let us see exactly what needs to be replaced rather than guessing at your intentions from scratch.

A short family list, including children, stepchildren, and anyone you want named as guardian or personal representative, keeps your new will specific instead of leaving gaps for a court to fill later. Bringing these to your first meeting helps our West Palm Beach will attorneys build a plan around your family instead of starting from blank paper.

Why Families Choose Elder Law, P.A.’s West Palm Beach Will Attorneys

Two versions of the same West Palm Beach family show the difference between us and the rest. In the first family, a will signed in another state twenty years ago sits in a drawer, never reviewed since a divorce, a remarriage, stepchildren, and a move to Palm Beach County. Their family later learns in probate court that parts of the will no longer apply, and other parts were never valid here.

In the second version, that family sat down with our attorneys after moving to West Palm Beach. We reviewed their old documents, explained what Florida law required, and revised their will to reflect their marriage, their children, and their new home. Their family already knows where they stand.

That difference comes from our deep knowledge of Florida’s specific will and estate planning rules, paired with the ongoing reviews we build into every plan as your circumstances change. Elder Law, P.A. has helped families throughout West Palm Beach and greater Palm Beach County put plans in place that hold up when they’re needed.

Whether your current will came from another state, another marriage, or another decade of your life, our attentive West Palm Beach will attorneys can tell you exactly where it stands under Florida law. Schedule your free consultation today and put a will in place built for the life you have now.