There are several ways to revoke a will in California. It’s extremely important that these methods are carefully followed as failure to revoke a will properly means the old will is stiff in effect!

1) WRITE A NEW WILL. It’s really simple to write a new will and in that will state “I revoke all previous wills. This is a very good way to revoke a previous will. One of the keys to this method is that the people you care about know where the new original will is!

2) DESTROY THE OLD WILL. Ripping, burning, or other method of destroying an old will is certainly very clear. However, photocopies of wills can be admissible in probate court so also writing a new will is important in addition to destroying the old will.

3) I REVOKE. You can write on each page of the will “I REVOKE.”

In all the key is working with a competent and experienced California estate planning attorney as there are many pitfalls. Failure to revoke a will in full or failure to revoke it correctly can lead to problems after your death.