Will a Notarized Statement stating who would get custody if something were to happen hold up in court?

by **cochlain** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 2:43 pm

Will a Notarized Statement stating who would get custody of our son if something were to happen to both my husband and I hold up in court? I ask this because my son is 8 months old and my husband and I are flying to Florida in September for a few days. If something were to happen to us while gone we want to make sure he is taken care of and written how we want our life insurance disbursed. We do not have the money for a will or anything like that right now so I am wondering if we type up something stating who would get custody of our son and how we want our Life Insurance disbursed and get it notarized if it will hold up in court. Thank you!

by **welborne2** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 2:49 pm

Having a document notarized does NOT give it any legal authority. A notary public will watch someone sign a document, and then ask to see some ID. The NP will then enter the particulars of the ID, the time and date, and notarize the document. A document that's been notarized just means that there was a legal witness to the signing of the document. The document can be complete nonsense, and if it's signed, and the person who signed it produced proper ID, the NP will notarize it.

Having said that, a notarized statement would indicate what your wishes were. But if you didn't word your statement correctly, or if there's some legal basis to overturn the document, it won't hold up in court.

Most lawyers don't charge much for a simple will, and many will even give a discount if a married couple both get their wills drawn up at the same time. It sounds like you don't have much in the way of assets, and your wills would be very simple. If you have a child, you really do need to make wills.

by **acher** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 2:54 pm

1. You should already have a beneficiary designation on file with your life insurance carrier. If you do not, shame on you. Call your agent and take care of that ASAP.

2. A court is not going to just blindly turn custody over to a person just because you wish that person to have custody. For instance, if that person turns out to have a past child molestation conviction, there is NO WAY that person is going to be granted custody, no matter how many notarized memos you leave behind. Now, a court may take your wishes into consideration, but your wishes are not going to be automatically fulfilled in every case.

by **sutherland** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 3:01 pm

You can write up your own wills. You should have one. You can find on line how to word it. At this stage of your lives you should basically say that if something happens to you everything goes to your spouse and him the same for you. Then say that if something happens to both of you at the same time that your son gets everything with it held in trust by someone you pick and say who you want to raise him.....but be sure that person is willing and able! You can always change it later.

by **jaye41** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 3:06 pm

Make up a paper and get it notarized and witness to sign. Make sure people have it or know where to get it. Best to have a lawyer or person in charge of your estate but you can do this for now. Usually judges will grant it as long as it is in child's best interest.
Later on you could apt an executor of your estate and I do not think it has to be an attorney but it can.

by **telutci44** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 3:11 pm

Even a will cannot force a judge to place a child in a situation which the judge believes is not in the child's best interests. So, if by "hold up" you mean would it override the judge's authority over the child, no. There is no document that can do that.

by **ulmar10** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 3:18 pm

It's depends on your age and where you live as well, type of car, etc. I would shop insurance coverage online and get quotes from various insurance companies. Try a reputable site like:

http://www.insurance-cost.org

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