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Forum -> Judaism -> Halachic Questions and Discussions
Writing a halachic will



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amother
Lemon


 

Post Sun, Jul 10 2016, 5:33 am
Anyone written up a halachic will (not just a legal one).
So that daughters get an equal share & the bechor doesn't get double.
Also that the wife in the case the husband dies first isn't left penniless!
We would transfer all assets to my name only to avoid all of the above however that's neither simple nor wise for tax purposes.
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amother
Burgundy


 

Post Sun, Jul 10 2016, 6:48 am
Our (frum) lawyer told us that Rabbi Willig has a suggestion about how to do this. The lawyer incorporated this in our will.
I think it says that the bchor is entitled to pi shna'im but if he accepts it he will also accept upon himself a 1 million dollar debt to his siblings. He then has the option to decline pi shna'im and accept one portion. Same thing for the inheritance of sons and daughters.
Obviously you'll need to get the information from a more authoritative source but I think that's the gist.
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Maya




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jul 10 2016, 8:04 am
amother wrote:
Anyone written up a halachic will (not just a legal one).
So that daughters get an equal share & the bechor doesn't get double.
Also that the wife in the case the husband dies first isn't left penniless!
We would transfer all assets to my name only to avoid all of the above however that's neither simple nor wise for tax purposes.

Yes we did that. You need a lawyer who is familiar with the procedure.

If I recall correctly, there is something about putting everything into a trust if the husband dies so the wife can access it, and something about the bechor being cut out of the will if he decides to take more than is alotted to him. But don't quote me on this; I'm terrible with legal jargon. Just saying that there are ways around it and a lawyer would know.
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Mrs Bissli




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jul 10 2016, 4:07 pm
Please excuse my ignorance. But which country /jurisdiction permits bechor double inheritance and awards less to daughters? I thought most countries civil laws now assume equal inheritance for all children regardless of genders or birth order? If indeed this is not the case, why can't this be rectified with legal wills? Would family /civil court actually view halachic wills as legally binding? I'm rather perplexed, can someone educate me because I thought halachic wills are just nice letters to reiterate moral teachings that are important to you?
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amother
Magenta


 

Post Sun, Jul 10 2016, 5:06 pm
Mrs Bissli wrote:
Please excuse my ignorance. But which country /jurisdiction permits bechor double inheritance and awards less to daughters? I thought most countries civil laws now assume equal inheritance for all children regardless of genders or birth order? If indeed this is not the case, why can't this be rectified with legal wills? Would family /civil court actually view halachic wills as legally binding? I'm rather perplexed, can someone educate me because I thought halachic wills are just nice letters to reiterate moral teachings that are important to you?


If someone doesn't write up an halachik will then technically the ones who were supposed to inherit according to halacha can go to beis din to claim their inheritance. MY mother and I have a paper from my father stating moments before his death he is gifting us a certain amount. Since he did this during his life time he can give us the money.

For example Mr X wants to give his estate to charity and not to his sons, that is against Jewish law. Jewish law the money is divided equally between the sons except if one of the sons is a bachor and he gets a double portion. If he has no sons the money is divided between his daughters. If he wants to do something different he has to gift the money while he is alive. I am not an expert in this so I can have some of the facts wrong.
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Mrs Bissli




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Jul 11 2016, 4:02 am
Yes but isn't inheritance handled by civil /secular courts and probate rather than Bet Din?
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amother
Magenta


 

Post Mon, Jul 11 2016, 8:19 am
Mrs Bissli wrote:
Yes but isn't inheritance handled by civil /secular courts and probate rather than Bet Din?


Halacha supersedes this in this case. Therefore if you din't have a halachic will you are leaving the people you want to inherent open to losing their money if they follow Bais Din as most observant Jews do.

There are a few lawyers who work with making halachic wills which people use to protect their assets.
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Mrs Bissli




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Jul 11 2016, 5:16 pm
amother wrote:
Halacha supersedes this in this case. Therefore if you din't have a halachic will you are leaving the people you want to inherent open to losing their money if they follow Bais Din as most observant Jews do.

There are a few lawyers who work with making halachic wills which people use to protect their assets.


Curiouser and curiouser! What happened to dina d'malchuta? Is this only relevant in Israel or chutz? If this is indeed the case, there's no distinction between halachic will vs legal will (as per OP's inquiry) indeed?
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mha3484




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Jul 11 2016, 5:24 pm
I think at the end of the day it comes down to each family. In America, Bais Din is binding arbitration held up by the courts. If a family wants to contest a will using beis din versus court that is their choice.

The worst thing to do is die without a will. I worked for an estate planning attorney who specialized in this. There are many different ways of writing a will that allow for halacha if one chooses. There are also a variety of means of protecting assets such as a life insurance trust if that is the yerusha you are leaving your children. We also wrote powers of attorney for healthcare that incorporated the clients desire to do as halacha states in regards to a DNR and other life saving or ending measures.
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amother
Magenta


 

Post Mon, Jul 11 2016, 8:40 pm
Mrs Bissli wrote:
Curiouser and curiouser! What happened to dina d'malchuta? Is this only relevant in Israel or chutz? If this is indeed the case, there's no distinction between halachic will vs legal will (as per OP's inquiry) indeed?


Dina D'malchus Dina does not override halacha if there is a contradiction.

Example by law you need a license to drive a car but there is no such halacha but there is no halacha that you can't have a license so you have to get one according to halacha. It is illegal to do shechita you still have to do it in order to eat meat or bird.
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