my granddad has 2 sons and 1 daughter…I am the 2nd son’s son…I have one older brother and older sister…so my granddad left some stuff for me in the will but only left very little for my older brother…now in Taiwan law can my brother sue me or something? since he is older brother…and can have the right to get certain amount of the will? some people said he can? but I doubt it…you have to follow whatever the will say isn’t it…thanks in advance
If the will is valid, the distribution should be made per your grandfather’s directions.
Of course, your brother can sue you… but, he will need to show that the will is for some reason invalid in order to succeed.
Taiwan’s Civil Code, Book V Succession, Chpt III, Wills, stipulates that five different types of wills are acceptable in Taiwan. These include the holographic (self-written) will, notarial will, secret will, dictated will and the oral will. The basic requirements for each (except the oral will) of these are as follows:
Holographic Will:
The testator must himself write the entire text of the will, indicating the complete date and sign the same. If any amendment or deletion is subsequently made by the testator, he must sign an additional note at the place of the amendment or deletion and indicate the number of words in the amendment/deletion. A handwriting expert will need to verify the signature of the testator on the will.
Notarial Will
Testator must designate at least two (2) witnesses and make an oral statement of his testamentary wishes before a notary public. The statement must be written down, read over and explained by the notary public, and after the testator has given approval, the will must be signed by the testator and the witnesses, with the complete date indicated. If the testator for any reason cannot sign his name, the notary must record the reason for this inability and make an imprint of the testator’s finger print where his signature would otherwise be made.
Secret Will
Testator must, after signing the will, have the same securely sealed within an envelope and then sign his name again across the seam of the envelope seal, designate at least two (2) witnesses and declare before a notary public that the document inside the envelope is his will, and if not written by himself, also declare the name and address of the third party who drafted the will. The notary public must indicate on the envelope the date on which the will was brought to her and the declaration of the testator and sign the envelope together with the testator and the witnesses.
Dictated Will
The testator must designate at least three (3) witnesses, make an oral statement of his testamentary wishes, have the same written down, and have the statement read over and explained by one of the witnesses. After the testator approves the will, the complete date is indicated on the will and the name of the witness who wrote the will is indicated as well. The will must then be signed by the testator and all three witnesses.
The oral will is used when the testataor is in imminent danger of dying and unable to make any of the other above-types of wills. If the testator, within three (3) months of the date of an oral will regains the ability to make another will, the oral will presumably becomes invalid.
ok it was done the Notarial Will one…with 3 witnesses…so now…some say my granddad has 3 children so each children have the right to at least 1/3? what if the will didn’t give that child min of 1/3? you still follow will or what…
now they are trying to say my grandfather had alzheimer’s so the will doesn’t count…he didn’t have it but if they sue with that reason and wants their share…what will happen…
so my grandfather did the will when he was 94…had notary public and 3 witnesses…
one more thing my grandfather was trustee of this private school…he stated in the will he wants to give his “share” of the school stock to whoever but isn’t private school they don’t have stock holders? they just pick trustees I guess? some say the board doesn’t need to go by the will they can pick anyone from our family…is that true? how does that work…
thanks
Why would the fact that the Will is a Notarial Will result in your grandfather being required to divide his property into three equal shares? Such a requirement would defeat the purpose of making a Will, would it not?
They will have to prove their claim.
You cannot (IMO) claim on the one hand that his Will should be binding because it is a written declaration of his intention and then claim that the insurance policy (also a written declaration of his intent) should not be binding.
Sorry, I don’t think anyone can answer that without seeing all of the relevant documents. You need to consult an attorney.
if they want to sue they have 2 years from the date my grandfather pass away right?
thanks