LAW OFFICES OF
Boyd & Boyd, P.C.
WILLS · MAKE YOUR FAMILY’S NEXT STEPS CLEAR.
Your Family Should Know What You Want—and Who Will Carry It Out.
Put your inheritance instructions in place, choose the people who will serve, and coordinate your will with the rest of your estate plan. Start with the questions that matter to your family.
What Does a Will Do for Your Family?
A will records important choices about property and the people who will carry out your instructions. It is one part of a coordinated estate plan.
Begin with the people you want to provide for and the responsibilities someone will need to handle. Then connect those choices with your documents, asset ownership, and beneficiary arrangements.
Having a Will Is the Beginning of the Review.
A will may name your beneficiaries, yet an account may have a different beneficiary designation. A trust may hold some assets while others remain in your individual name. A person named years ago may no longer be able to serve.
A useful review checks the instructions against your family and property as they are today. The goal is a plan that the people you leave behind can understand and carry out.
Start With Your Will Question.
Choose the question on your mind. The answer and next steps below will adjust to match.
You can change your question at any time.
YOUR QUESTION, ANSWERED
What Does a Will Do—and What Happens Without One?
Put Your Instructions in Writing.
A will directs the distribution of property it governs and can name people to carry out important responsibilities. It should reflect your family, intended gifts, and backup choices.
In Massachusetts, estate property not effectively disposed of by a will generally passes under intestacy rules. Those rules may produce a different result from the one you would choose.
YOUR FAMILY’S FUTURE
What This Means for Your Family
Clear instructions can help the people you leave behind understand your choices and reduce unanswered questions about your intentions.
THE DETAIL THAT MATTERS
What to Review Before You Act
Identify beneficiaries, alternate beneficiaries, specific gifts, and who receives the remaining estate. Review family circumstances and any legal rights that may limit your choices.
YOUR NEXT DECISION
Make Your Inheritance Instructions Clear.
Discuss your family, intended beneficiaries, and existing documents so the role of a will in your plan can be evaluated.
YOUR QUESTION, ANSWERED
Does Having a Will Avoid Probate?
A Will Gives Instructions. Ownership Determines the Transfer Process.
No. A will does not itself avoid probate. Property owned individually without a surviving joint owner or effective beneficiary arrangement may need court administration.
Other property may pass by survivorship, beneficiary designation, or trust ownership. Review each asset’s actual title and transfer instructions; the will does not automatically override them.
YOUR FAMILY’S FUTURE
What This Means for Your Family
Knowing which assets need court authority can help your family prepare for the administration work instead of assuming the will handles every transfer.
THE DETAIL THAT MATTERS
What to Review Before You Act
List bank accounts, investments, retirement accounts, insurance, real estate, and business interests. Compare the will with their current ownership and beneficiary records.
YOUR NEXT DECISION
Find Out How Your Assets Would Actually Transfer.
Review your asset overview and transfer arrangements to identify probate exposure and coordination gaps.
YOUR QUESTION, ANSWERED
Do I Need a Will if I Already Have a Trust?
Your Trust and Will Should Support the Same Plan.
A pour-over will can direct estate property to an identified trust. Massachusetts law permits qualifying additions to a trust through a will.
That backup does not replace trust funding. Property passing under the will may still require probate before reaching the trust. Coordinate both documents with asset ownership and beneficiary choices.
YOUR FAMILY’S FUTURE
What This Means for Your Family
Coordinated documents give the person administering your estate and the successor trustee a clearer set of instructions.
THE DETAIL THAT MATTERS
What to Review Before You Act
Confirm the will identifies the intended trust and that the trust is still in effect. Review amendments, trust funding, and property acquired after the original plan was signed.
YOUR NEXT DECISION
Coordinate Your Will With Your Trust.
Discuss your will, trust, and asset arrangements so the documents and funding can be reviewed together.
YOUR QUESTION, ANSWERED
Can My Will Name a Guardian for My Children?
Plan for Care—and for the Inheritance Separately.
A Massachusetts parent may appoint a guardian for a minor child through a will or other qualifying witnessed writing. Effectiveness, acceptance, court confirmation, and objections are governed by law.
The appointment does not override another parent’s parental rights. Also plan separately for who manages the child’s inheritance and how funds may be used.
YOUR FAMILY’S FUTURE
What This Means for Your Family
Discuss your choice with the proposed guardian and consider practical matters such as location, household circumstances, and your child’s needs.
THE DETAIL THAT MATTERS
What to Review Before You Act
Name alternatives and coordinate the guardian choice with any trustee or other person managing property. Caring for a child and administering money involve different responsibilities.
YOUR NEXT DECISION
Plan for Your Children’s Care and Financial Support.
Discuss guardian choices, alternatives, and how an inheritance should be managed for your children.
YOUR QUESTION, ANSWERED
Who Should I Name as Personal Representative?
Choose Someone Who Can Carry Out the Work.
The personal representative, sometimes called an executor, administers the estate after court appointment. A person nominated in a probated will generally has priority, subject to qualification and applicable rules.
Choose someone with sound judgment, availability, and organizational ability. Name an alternate and discuss the role before relying on that person.
YOUR FAMILY’S FUTURE
What This Means for Your Family
A capable person in charge can help your family navigate the paperwork and coordinate with the advisers handling estate administration.
THE DETAIL THAT MATTERS
What to Review Before You Act
Consider family dynamics, the complexity of your assets, and the need for professional assistance. The personal representative’s role is different from a lifetime agent under a power of attorney.
YOUR NEXT DECISION
Choose the Right Person to Administer Your Estate.
Discuss your proposed representative, alternatives, and the work your estate may require.
YOUR QUESTION, ANSWERED
What Makes a Will Valid in Massachusetts?
The Signing Process Matters as Much as the Words.
A Massachusetts will generally must be in writing, signed as the statute requires, and signed by at least two witnesses who witness the signing or the required acknowledgment.
Witness eligibility and gifts to interested witnesses require care. A properly completed self-proving affidavit can assist the probate process; notarization alone does not replace the will’s witness requirements.
YOUR FAMILY’S FUTURE
What This Means for Your Family
A properly completed signing process can reduce avoidable questions about whether the document is ready to be used when needed.
THE DETAIL THAT MATTERS
What to Review Before You Act
Arrange signing with appropriate guidance. Capacity, undue influence, execution details, and the law governing an out-of-state document can affect validity; do not assume a downloaded form resolves them.
YOUR NEXT DECISION
Review the Document and Signing Requirements.
Discuss your existing or proposed will so its terms and execution can be evaluated under the applicable law.
YOUR QUESTION, ANSWERED
When Should I Update My Will—and Where Should I Keep It?
Keep Your Instructions Current and Accessible.
Review your will after significant family, financial, or residence changes, and when a named beneficiary or representative can no longer serve. Changes should be made through a properly executed document.
Massachusetts law recognizes revocation by a later will or certain intentional acts. Avoid handwritten edits or destroying documents without advice. Keep the original secure and tell the appropriate person how to locate it.
YOUR FAMILY’S FUTURE
What This Means for Your Family
A current document and a clear retrieval plan help your family avoid uncertainty about which instructions to follow.
THE DETAIL THAT MATTERS
What to Review Before You Act
Bring earlier wills and amendments to a review. Check related trusts, beneficiary designations, and lifetime decision-making documents at the same time, especially after marriage, divorce, a death, or a move.
YOUR NEXT DECISION
Check Whether Your Will Still Matches Your Life.
Discuss what has changed and where your documents are kept so needed updates and coordination can be identified.
IN A REVIEWER’S OWN WORDS
Clarity and Confidence
★★★★★ 5-Star Google Review
“Everyone was extremely helpful during the entire process and we feel confident that we have a sensible and comprehensive estate plan.”
— Pamela Gordon
Review excerpts reflect individual experiences and do not guarantee an outcome for another family.
Your Family at the Center. Our Team Beside You.
F. Keats Boyd III and Whitney N. Tashjian help families think through important Estate Planning and Wealth Protection Planning decisions. At Boyd Boyd, P.C., the conversation begins with what you want to protect and what you want the next generation to understand.
Seven Will Questions, Answered
What Does a Will Do—and What Happens Without One?
A will supplies inheritance instructions. Property not effectively covered by a will may pass under the state’s intestacy rules.
Does Having a Will Avoid Probate?
A will does not itself avoid probate. Ownership and beneficiary arrangements determine how different assets transfer.
Do I Need a Will if I Already Have a Trust?
A pour-over will can direct estate assets to a trust, but those assets may first require probate. Trust funding still matters.
Can My Will Name a Guardian for My Children?
A will can include a guardian appointment, subject to legal requirements and parental rights. Inheritance management needs separate planning.
Who Should I Name as Personal Representative?
A will can nominate a personal representative. Court appointment, qualification, and practical ability to administer the estate still matter.
What Makes a Will Valid in Massachusetts?
Massachusetts generally requires a written, properly signed will with two witnesses. A notarized signature alone is not a substitute for those requirements.
When Should I Update My Will—and Where Should I Keep It?
Review major changes with counsel, use proper documents for updates, and make sure the original will can be located.
Related Planning and Primary Sources
Updated October 4, 2026. The document, signing circumstances, family rights, property, and applicable law determine the analysis.
Can We Work Together if You Live Outside Massachusetts?
Boyd Boyd, P.C. assists families nationwide. Families outside Massachusetts may come to our office to sign, or we may work with co-counsel licensed in their home state. The property, applicable law, and proposed role determine how the work should be structured.
YOUR FREE ESTATE PLANNING STRATEGY SESSION
Make Your Inheritance Instructions Clear.
Discuss your family, intended beneficiaries, and existing documents so the role of a will in your plan can be evaluated.
Give Your Family a Clear, Coordinated Plan.
Bring your existing will and other planning documents, an asset overview, and your questions about beneficiaries and people who will serve. Boyd Boyd, P.C. can discuss the choices and areas requiring further review.
The free session is an initial planning conversation. Document preparation, updates, implementation, and estate administration are separately scoped and priced.
Call 508-444-9688 to request your session.
1555 Iyannough Road, Unit 1BW • Hyannis, Massachusetts 02601
(508) 444-9688 • plan@boydandboydpc.com
© 2026 Boyd Boyd, P.C.
General information only. Legal advice depends on your circumstances and an attorney-client engagement.