A testator () is a
person
A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...
who has written and executed a
last will and testament
A will or testament is a legal document that expresses a person's (testator) wishes as to how their property ( estate) is to be distributed after their death and as to which person (executor) is to manage the property until its final distributio ...
that is in effect at the time of their
death
Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...
.
It is any "person who makes a will."
[Gordon Brown, ''Administration of Wills, Trusts, and Estates'', 3d ed. (2003), p. 556. .]
Related terms
* A female testator is sometimes referred to as a testatrix (), plural testatrices (), particularly in older cases.
*In
Ahmadiyya Islam, a testator is referred to as a moosi,
who is someone that has signed up for Wasiyyat or a will, under the plan initiated by the
Promised Messiah, thus committing a portion, not less than one-tenth, of his lifetime earnings and any property to a cause.
* The
adjectival form of the word is testamentary, as in:
#
Testamentary capacity, or mental capacity or ability to execute a will and
#
Testamentary disposition, or gift made in a will (see that article for types).
#
Testamentary trust, a
trust that is created in a will.
* A
will
Will may refer to:
Common meanings
* Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death
* Will (philosophy), or willpower
* Will (sociology)
* Will, volition (psychology)
* Will, a modal verb - see Shall and wi ...
is also known as a last will and testament.
* Testacy means the status of being testate, that is, having executed a will. The property of such a person goes through the
probate
Probate is the judicial process whereby a will is "proved" in a court of law and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased, or whereby the estate is settled according to the laws of intestacy in the st ...
process.
* Intestacy means the status of ''not'' having made a will, or to have died ''without'' a valid will. The estate of a person who dies intestate, undergoes
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...
, rather than probate.
* The
attestation clause of a will is where the witnesses to a will attest to certain facts concerning the making of the will by the testator, and where they sign their names as witnesses.
See also
*
Witnessing of a testator's will
References
Wills and trusts
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