Can I handwrite my own will?

In classic television drama style, Maude hand wrote her own will. She also decided to change the will from time to time and left various copies of her handwritten wishes around her very messy apartment. When she died, Sylvia, her daughter came from out of state and began going through her piles of papers. By the time Silvia went to the attorneys' office, she had found six copies of the will, none of which were dated.

Life has no guarantees, but one way to avoid a family fight is to have an adequate will. Although most jurisdictions recognize a handwritten (holographic) will, even a will written entirely in the handwriting of the deceased may be suspect and cause a disagreement among family members especially if there are various copies of the will with either no date or different dates.

A holographic or handwritten will is valid in Arizona, if the material provisions are in the handwriting of the testator (person making the will). Sylvia, her attorney and the Court may be able to figure out which of the handwritten wills was the last one, but absent some specific language revoking the prior wills, there may be a problem deciding which of the various changes and provisions were the last will of the deceased.