Last Will and Testament Interesting Facts....

The shortest Legal Will Ever....

To date, the shortest valid Will in the world is attributed to Karl Tausch of Germany, who simply stated "All to wife" in January of 1967.

Longest Will Ever....

Although American housewife Frederica Cook did not have many possessions, she still managed to write an extremley Long Last Will and Testament. When she was finished, her final wishes and goodbyes totalled 95,940 words-a length comparable to a novel. The bulk of her Will contained farewells, best wishes, and other words to her family, friends, and even enemies. At probate, the Will was not read.

Rejected Donations....

When actress Vivien Leigh (from Gone with the Wind fame) prepared her Will, she left her stunning eyes to an organ bank. The were unforutnately rejected because at the time of her death, she had suffered from tuberculosis.

Oldest Found Last Will and Testament....

The concept of a Will dates back to ancient days. In the past, the word 'Will' was used to specify real estate left to others, while 'Testament' was used to identify the personal belongings that one wished to leave to loved ones and friends. Today, the word 'Will' is used to refer to anything (real estate or personal pocessions) that is left behind by another. The oldest document that represents a Will was discovered by an archaeologist named Sir Flinders Petrie during an excavation in a tomb in Egypt. The tomb dated back to 2500 BC.

Roman Influence in Documenting Final Wishes...

During the 1st century, the Romans are credited with using the Will as a legally binding document. The ancient Romans acknowledge that the inheritance of property or goods could not occur unless the items in question belong to an individual and not a group or to the state. Thanks to Roman lawyers, the 'Living Will' was born.

During those times, a middleman (called a Familae Emptor) acted as the executor. For example, a husband would execute a fake sale of his estate to a middleman who would promise to let the husband keep his real estate for the duration of his life. When the husband died, the middleman 'owned' the estate and was responsible for distributing it according to how the deceased wished.

This practice allowed the direct transfer of goods from a dead person to the living. The Romans deemed this necessary to appease religious and legal obstacles. The dead no longer possessed any rights and as a corpse, the Romans believed that their possessions became property of the gods. The middleman was a way for 'sold' goods to remain amongst he living. Eventually, the Romans abandoned the use of middlemen and started to recognize that the testament of a dead man could be followed without angering the gods.