Wills and probate in Georgia

Making and amending a will

A codicil adds to or removes provisions of a will and must be executed with the same formality as the original will document. It can also be self-proved.

A written statement or list meets the statutory requirements for disposing of items if it is signed and dated by the testator, describes items and beneficiaries with reasonable certainty, and is referred to in the testator's will document.

Self-proved wills

A will can be self-proved by a two-witness affidavit sworn before a notary.

Under the revised statute, a self-proved will is presumed to comply with execution requirements, and the presumption is rebuttable. No witness testimony is needed once the will and affidavit are filed.

Probate procedure and deadlines

Probate procedure makes any hearing discretionary with the court and not required if no caveat or objection is timely filed and maintained, unless the context requires otherwise.

Probate in common form is not conclusive on all parties until four years after the order, or four years after a minor reaches majority.

A petition based on one listed ground may be brought at any time. All other petitions under the article must be brought within three years of the order admitting a will to probate.

Dying without a will

Georgia guidance says dying without a will does not send property to the state when relatives can be found. State intestacy law determines which relatives take.

A close relative must be alive when the decedent dies to be an heir. An heir who outlived the decedent but later dies must be represented by a personal representative or guardian ad litem.

The form for a petition declaring no administration necessary is for use only when the decedent died intestate, and it requires unanimous consent of the heirs at law to the agreed division.

Year's support and small bank deposits

A surviving spouse and minor children of a testate or intestate decedent are entitled to year's support in property for 12 months from the date of death. If a petition is contested, the court sets apart an amount sufficient to maintain the survivors' pre-death standard of living.

When a person dies intestate with a deposit of not more than $15,000, the financial institution may pay it on affidavit directly to listed relatives, starting with the surviving spouse.

If no listed relative applies within 45 days of an intestate depositor's death, the institution may apply up to $15,000 of the deposit to funeral expenses.