Supplementing Your Will

When a loved one dies, families are consumed with grief.  Unfortunately, certain legal and organizational tasks should not be ignored or put off for long.  Yet you can ease the burden on your loved ones by making simple preparations in addition to a will. 

Consider augmenting your will with a letter of instruction, which is an informal document that you can draft yourself.  Unlike a will, the letter of instruction is not legally binding, but it can be helpful for your family in your absence, and can provide more detail than a customary will.  It might be best to organize your letter into three sections: funeral arrangements, financial and personal affairs, and distribution of personal effects. 

In the section covering funeral arrangements, include a list of people to notify upon your death, and include their contact information.  Also specify your wishes as to organ or tissue donation, burial method, and details about your funeral service. 

Make sure to list all financial accounts, including retirement accounts, stockholdings, pension and credit cards.  Provide contact information for your account beneficiaries so that your executor can easily contact them. 

Finally, you are able to go into greater detail in terms of allocating your possessions.  Here is where you can specify who gets what.  You can even write individual notes to family members in addition to the general document. 

See Lindsay Gellman, When a Will Is Not Enough, The Wall Street Journal, Nov. 15, 2014.

Special thanks to Brian Cohan (Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Brian J. Cohan, P.C.) for bringing this article to my attention.