Lilburn Wills Lawyer
A will that looks fine in a desk drawer can fall apart the first time a Gwinnett County probate clerk reviews it. A missing witness, a signature in the wrong order, or a handwritten note nobody else saw can leave a family with no valid will at all. Bowman Law Firm handles wills, trusts, powers of attorney, advance directives, and asset protection planning for families in Lilburn and across Gwinnett County, and we prepare each document so it holds up when your family needs it.
Working with a Lilburn wills lawyer matters because Georgia is strict about how a will is made. The state does not accept oral wills, and it does not recognize a handwritten will that was never witnessed. Georgia has no state estate tax and no inheritance tax, so a will here is not mainly a tax document. It is a control document: it decides who receives your property, who manages the estate, and who raises your minor children.
That control is the reason even a modest estate deserves a properly drafted will. A home in Lilburn, a retirement account, a vehicle, and a few bank accounts are enough to create real disputes if no one knows your wishes.
How Georgia Decides Whether a Will Is Valid
Georgia’s execution rules are specific, and the most common failures come from small departures from them. A will must be in writing and signed by the person making it, called the testator. Someone else may sign for the testator, but only in the testator’s presence and at the testator’s express direction. A signature can be a mark or any name the testator intends to use to authenticate the document as the will.
The will must then be attested and signed by at least two competent witnesses. Witnesses must sign for themselves; no one may sign a witness’s name for them, even in their presence and at their request. A person must be at least 14 to make a will, and witnesses must also be at least 14, though we always recommend adult witnesses who have no stake in the outcome and can be located years later if needed.
Notarization is not required for a Georgia will. What many families do not know is that a self-proving affidavit is permitted, and it can make the will much easier to admit to probate later because the witnesses do not have to be tracked down to confirm what happened at signing. A codicil, which is an amendment to an existing will, must be executed with the same formality as the will itself, including witnesses. Scribbling a change in the margin or attaching an unsigned note does not work.
Why Choose Bowman Law Firm for Wills in Lilburn
Bowman Law Firm is an estate planning, trust, and elder law firm serving Lilburn, Gwinnett County, and the greater Atlanta area, including Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb, Forsyth, and Hall counties. Her background includes trying cases for a national consumer law firm, serving as Law Clerk to a Federal Judge in Georgia, and handling personal injury cases on the defense side for a large Florida law firm. That mix of courtroom and chambers experience shapes how she drafts: she knows how documents are read when a dispute reaches a judge, and she writes them to survive that scrutiny.
Clients work directly with an attorney who knows their family and their goals, not a rotating cast of strangers. The firm’s guiding principle is that every client is a person first, a client second, and never a file number. Staff speak English, Spanish, and Vietnamese, which matters in a community like Lilburn where many families want to plan in the language they use at home. Virtual consultations are available for clients who prefer them.
Client reviews describe an attorney who is honest, hardworking, and thoughtful, and a team that is knowledgeable, reassuring, and attentive to detail. The process is straightforward: a free discovery call, an initial consultation to design your plan for $100, and an in-person signing meeting where your finished documents are presented and explained before you sign anything.
What a Georgia Will Can and Cannot Do
- Naming Beneficiaries: A will directs who receives your probate property, whether that is a spouse, children, siblings, or a charity. Without one, Georgia’s intestacy rules divide the estate by a fixed formula that may look nothing like your wishes.
- Appointing Guardians for Minor Children: Parents of young children often make this the main reason to sign a will. A trust cannot name a guardian; a will can, and the choice carries enormous weight.
- Choosing an Executor: The person you name manages the estate through probate, pays debts, and distributes property. Naming a backup protects you if your first choice cannot serve.
- Pour-Over Wills: For clients with a revocable living trust, a pour-over will catches any asset never retitled into the trust and directs it there, serving as a safety net for the plan.
- Codicils and Updates: Marriage, divorce, a new grandchild, or a falling-out can change your wishes. Georgia requires a codicil to be signed and witnessed like the original will, so informal edits do not count.
- Digital Assets: Georgia’s digital assets statute lets you say in your will whether a fiduciary may access online accounts. An online tool setting offered by a platform can override your will, so the two should be coordinated.
- Limits of a Will: A will does nothing during incapacity, and it generally does not control assets that pass by beneficiary designation or joint ownership. Those need separate attention.
Signing and Safeguarding Your Will: What to Do and Where It Goes
Start by taking inventory: real estate, bank and brokerage accounts, retirement plans, life insurance, vehicles, business interests, and online accounts. Then decide on your executor, your backup executor, and a guardian if you have minor children. Those choices matter more than any clause that follows. Bring the inventory and your questions to the discovery call, where there is no charge, so you know what you are walking into before the $100 design consultation.
At signing, the details are what count. You sign in front of two competent witnesses, who then sign in your presence, and a self-proving affidavit is typically completed at the same sitting. Beneficiaries and spouses of beneficiaries make poor witnesses because their interest invites challenges later. After signing, keep the original in a secure, known location and tell your executor where it is. A will no one can find causes the same trouble as no will at all.
When a death occurs, the original will is filed with the Probate Court of Gwinnett County for a Lilburn resident, which handles the probate of wills, estate administration, and guardianships. The court accepts electronic filing through eFile GA. If property sits in another county, or the decedent lived elsewhere, the probate court of that county takes over. A will does not skip probate; it tells the court what you wanted. Families who want to avoid that court process for major assets usually add a funded revocable trust, and we explain how the two fit together.
The most frequent mistakes we see are home-drafted wills with only one witness, forms downloaded from out of state, and wills never updated after a divorce or remarriage. Beneficiary designations that contradict the will are another trap; a retirement account passes to the person named on the account, whatever the will says. Review your plan every three to five years and after any major life event.
Wills Alongside Trusts, Powers of Attorney, and Medicaid Planning
A will is one piece of a plan, and it works best when coordinated with the others. A revocable trust can hold your major assets so they pass privately without probate, but it must be funded, meaning real estate and accounts are retitled into it. Georgia law lets a settlor modify or revoke a trust only if that power was expressly reserved, and any change must be in writing and signed by the settlor. We handle trust funding, trust amendments, and later trust administration for successor trustees.
Incapacity planning matters as much as death planning because a will does nothing while you are alive. A Georgia durable power of attorney must be signed by the principal, attested by a witness, and acknowledged before a notary who is not that witness, with all signatures completed in the presence of everyone involved. It is durable unless it says otherwise, and it ends at death. An advance directive for health care names your agent and records your wishes; it needs two adult witnesses, neither of whom may be your agent or someone who stands to gain from your death, and notarization is not required.
For families worried about nursing home costs, Georgia Medicaid reviews transfers made during a 60-month look-back period, and gifts for less than fair market value can trigger a penalty period of ineligibility. Starting early preserves the most options, and a will drafted without that planning in mind can leave a home exposed. We build wills and Medicaid asset protection strategies together when the situation calls for it.
Lilburn Wills Questions Families Ask
Does Georgia accept a handwritten will?
Not unless it meets the same requirements as any other will. Georgia does not recognize holographic wills, meaning handwritten documents without two witnesses. A note in your own handwriting, however sincere, will not be probated as a will on its own.
How many witnesses do I need for a will in Georgia?
At least two competent witnesses must attest and sign. They sign for themselves, and no one may sign a witness’s name. Choose adults who are not beneficiaries so the will is hard to challenge.
Does a Georgia will have to be notarized?
No. Notarization is not required for validity. A self-proving affidavit is allowed, though, and it simplifies admitting the will to probate because the witnesses generally do not need to testify later.
What happens if I die without a will?
Georgia’s intestacy laws divide your estate among your spouse, children, and other relatives under a fixed formula. You lose the ability to pick your executor or name a guardian for minor children, and the court makes those decisions.
Do I still need a will if I have a living trust?
Yes. A pour-over will catches any asset that never made it into the trust and sends it there. It is also the document where parents name a guardian for minor children.
Can I change my will after it is signed?
Yes, by signing a new will or a codicil. A codicil must be signed and witnessed with the same formality as the original will. Crossing out lines or writing in the margins is not a safe way to make changes.
Will my estate owe Georgia estate tax or inheritance tax?
No. Georgia levies neither one. Federal estate tax applies only to estates above a very high exclusion amount, so most Lilburn families will not owe it. Planning is mainly about control, privacy, and avoiding court trouble rather than tax savings.
How old do I have to be to make a will in Georgia?
The minimum age to make a will is 14. Witnesses must also be at least 14, but we recommend adults. Anyone with real property and family responsibilities should not wait.
Does my will control my retirement accounts and life insurance?
Generally not. Those assets pass to whoever is named on the beneficiary designation form, regardless of what the will says. We review these designations alongside your will so they do not undercut each other.
What happens to my email, photos, and online accounts?
Georgia’s fiduciary access statute lets you authorize or prohibit disclosure of digital assets in your will, subject to platform terms of service and copyright law. If a platform offers its own online tool for naming a legacy contact, that setting can override your will, so the two should match.
Is a will enough to protect my home from nursing home costs?
No. A will takes effect only at death and does not shield assets while you are alive. Medicaid reviews transfers made within a 60-month look-back period, so protecting a home requires planning well in advance, often through a Medicaid asset protection trust.
Can I meet with the firm if I cannot come in person?
Yes. Virtual consultations are available, and the discovery call is free. Staff also speak Spanish and Vietnamese, so family members can take part in the language they are most comfortable with.
Wills Representation for Lilburn and Neighboring Communities
We begin in Lilburn and Gwinnett County, working with families in Lilburn, Lawrenceville, Duluth, Suwanee, Buford, and Peachtree Corners, all of which fall under the Probate Court of Gwinnett County for will filings. Along the Buford Highway corridor, we serve the diverse communities of Doraville, Chamblee, and Brookhaven, where multilingual service often makes the difference in whether a family completes a plan at all.
Beyond Gwinnett, we serve clients in north Fulton, including Johns Creek, Alpharetta, and Roswell, and in the Perimeter area, including Dunwoody and Sandy Springs. We also work with families in Marietta in Cobb County, Decatur in DeKalb County, Cumming in Forsyth County, and Gainesville in Hall County, as well as Dalton. Wherever you live in the Atlanta area, the same personal attention applies.
Speak With a Lilburn Wills Attorney at Bowman Law Firm
A signed, witnessed, properly coordinated will gives your family clear instructions instead of a court proceeding built on guesses. If you are drafting your first will, replacing one that no longer fits your life, or wondering whether the document in your drawer would hold up, a conversation with a Lilburn wills attorney is the right place to start.
Call Bowman Law Firm or schedule a free discovery call to talk through your situation with attorney Shireen Hormozdi Bowman. From there, the $100 initial consultation designs your plan, and the signing meeting puts finished documents in your hands with every provision explained in plain language.