First of all, we have to understand what is a Will. A Will is a legal declaration of the intention of the person as to how his estate i.e. movable, immovable properties, assets and funds will be managed and distributed among the recipients chosen by him after his death.

It is very significant for you to know that dying intestate i.e. without making a will, can lead to various complications and disagreements among your legal heirs. A person works for entire life to build wealth and a sustainable livelihood for his family members.  But you can’t even imagine the mess and inconvenience that might be caused to your loved ones because of your laziness in not drafting a will for them.

Unless and until you appropriately prepare a will, there is no certainty that the assets created by your life long efforts will be transferred to your beloved people. The law does not know that you wished to leave a larger portion of your wealth to your financially weaker child or you wanted to leave a token of appreciation to some special friends.

What I feel, every individual should plan for maintenance and division of assets between the person of his choice, irrespective of the size of his wealth. And, it is always better to make provisions to leave behind assets, from the very first day you acquire one. Therefore, you don’t need to wait till you own lots of assets to transfer or till you turn to be a senior citizen to create a Will. We know, life is unpredictable and uncertain, therefore it is always better to prepare or have a will in Place. Estate planning by way of Will is always beneficial which prevents the addition of financial and legal grief to the emotional grief your loved ones may already be facing upon your absence.

For your convenience, I am going to mention here certain important points which are to be considered while preparing a Will.

1. A will can be prepared by any individual who is 21 years of age, and of sound mind. A will created at old-age, when a person might not be in his or her right senses might create misunderstandings, doubts and disputes in the family later on. Hence, it is advisable to prepare your will at a relatively young age when you are fit and of sound mind, in order to avoid conflicts later on between the family members.  
2. A will should be free from any coercion, fraud and undue influence.
3. You must use the title that “This is my Last Will and Testament”.
4. A will can be hand written or typed out. It can be prepared on a plain paper. There is no need of stamp paper or letterhead for making a Will.
5. Details of Testator: Always mention the full name, current address, age, Aadhar Number or PAN Number of the Testator and the fact that he is of sound mental health and under no duress from any one to make this Will.
6. Details of Executor: Always mention the name of an Executor with ID number, who will carry on tenets of the Will. A trust worthy person should be named as an executor. And also mention the name of subsequent Executor in case first named executor fails or incapacitated due to any reason to carry out and complete the requirement of implementation of Will.
7. Details of Assets: Mention the full particulars of the immovable properties owned by the Testator. Also give full particulars of movable properties, details of bank accounts, deposits, lockers, insurance policies, investment details including shares and mutual funds, e-wallets, bitcoins details etc.
8. Cover other Assets: This clause will help to include any other assets if you may have left out inadvertently while mentioning the details of assets and properties. 
9. Details of beneficiaries: Clearly mention the name, address and ID number (if known) of each beneficiary and clearly mention the portion, percentage and/or share as to be given to each beneficiary out of each asset and property of the Testator to avoid dispute or difference of opinion later on.   
10. Signature: A will should be signed by the person making a Will i.e. Testator in the presence of two witnesses who will also put their signature, name, address, Aadhar Number or PAN.
11. Page numbers: Each page of the Will should be serially numbered and signed by the Testator. This is to prevent the Will being substituted, replaced, or pages being inserted by people intending to commit fraud. Corrections if any made in the Will, should be countersigned by the Testator.
12. Requirement of registration: Under the Indian Law, it is not compulsory to register a Will in the Sub-Registrar office, as unregistered Will is equally valid in India. However, in order to avoid frauds and tampering, it is always preferable to get it registered.
13. Amendment / revocation: A Will can be made, amended or revoked as many times as the Testator wishes to do so till he is alive and of sound mind. Please always mention the date of making a Will. If more than one Will is made, then the one having the latest date will nullify all other Wills.
14. When any beneficiary is minor:  If you have bequeathed your assets to a minor, make sure to appoint a guardian for the assets till the time the said minor reaches the age of an adult.
15. Format of Will: It is not necessary, that any technical words or terms of art be used in a will, but only that the wording be such that the intentions of the testator can be known from the will. It is very important of a will to be simple, precise and clear. Otherwise some people might misconstrue or misinterpret your intention and your assets might not be transferred or distributed to your choice of beneficiaries.
16. Help from a Lawyer: Although, it is possible to draft a will on your own, but it is always better to take the advice or help of a trusted lawyer while writing a Will. This will reduce the chances of misinterpretation or frauds from family members and it will also reduce the probability of the Will being claim as invalid in the court of law.

These are the points of concerns which are to be kept in mind while drafting a Will. However, whenever anyone needs any kind of legal advice or help, please feel free to contact me at any time at 9818865693 or adv.jeetkumarsingh@gmail.com