Must I leave something to my spouse and children?

Disinheriting spouses. The law protects surviving spouses from being left with nothing. If you live in a community property state (Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, or Wisconsin -- or Alaska if you have made a written community property agreement), your spouse automatically owns half of all the property and earnings (with a few exceptions) acquired by either of you during your marriage. You can leave your half of the community property, and your separate property, to anyone you choose.

In all other states, a surviving spouse has a legal right to claim a portion of your estate, no matter what your will provides. But these provisions kick in only if your spouse goes to court and claims that share.

If you don't plan to leave at least half of your property to your spouse, either through your will or outside it, you should consult a lawyer -- unless your spouse willingly consents in writing to your plan.

Disinheriting children. Generally, it's perfectly legal to disinherit a child. If, however, it appears that you didn't mean to disinherit a child -- the most common example is a child born after you made your will -- then the child has the right to claim part of your property.

Can someone challenge my will after I die?

Very few wills are ever challenged in court. When they are, it's usually by a close relative who feels somehow cheated out of a share of the deceased person's property. To get an entire will invalidated, someone must go to court and prove that it suffers from a fatal flaw: the signature was forged, you weren't of sound mind when you made the will, or you were unduly influenced by someone.

How do I choose the right product to help me make a will?

Nolo offers several products to help you make your will. Which one you should use depends on the size of your estate, how you want to leave your property, and whether you prefer to use software or a good old-fashioned book.

Quicken WillMaker Plus is ideal for nearly any size estate and almost any estate plan. Use this product if you are comfortable using computer software and if you also need other estate planning documents, such as trusts, health care directives, or powers of attorney -- Willmaker comes with all of those as well as many other useful forms.

Nolo's Simple Will Book is better for those who prefer to use a book with word-processing documents on CD-ROM. Nolo's Simple Will Book allows you to customize a will to your circumstances and is appropriate for those with small to moderately sized estates and simple estate planning goals.

The Quick and Legal Will Book is best if you have a small estate, if you have simple estate planning goals, and if you prefer to use a book with word processing documents on CD-ROM. The Quick and Legal Will Book offers a choice of five basic will forms.

For a side-by-side comparison of these products, see Nolo's Will-Making Product Chooser.