You might have signed your will years ago, tucked it in a drawer, and told yourself your affairs were “handled” for good. Since then, life has moved on. Maybe you welcomed a new grandchild, went through a divorce, bought a home in North Florida, or changed jobs and retirement accounts, but the documents that speak for you after you are gone still reflect the old version of your life.
That gap quietly worries many people who search for how to update a will in Florida. They are not looking for a law school lecture. They want to know whether the will they already have still works, what Florida law changes on its own, and where it leaves dangerous gaps. They also want to know whether fixing those gaps means starting over or making targeted changes, and how complicated that process really is.
I have been helping North Florida families create and update wills and wills and estate plans since 1987. Over the years, I have reviewed many documents that no longer matched the client’s current family, property, or wishes, especially when they were drafted in another state or at a very different stage of life. In this guide, I will walk you through when you should update your Florida will after major life changes, what your options are, and what a practical review process looks like.
Why Your Florida Will Is Not a One Time Document
A will is a snapshot of your life on the day you sign it. It reflects who is in your family, what you own, who you trust to handle things, and how Florida law applies at that moment. As your life changes, that snapshot gets older and less accurate. The names on the page may no longer match the actual people you rely on, and the assets described may no longer be the ones you own.
In Florida probate, the court looks first to what your written will actually says. If a named beneficiary has died, if a personal representative has moved away or become incapacitated, or if the document sends property you no longer own, the court and your family have to do extra work to interpret your true intent. That can mean delays, extra expense, and in some cases, disputes between people who genuinely believe they know what you would have wanted.
Florida’s laws also change over time, and they interact with your will in specific ways. Homestead protections for your primary residence, elective share rules for spouses, and rights of minor children can all affect how an old will operates in a modern probate. A clause that worked acceptably in another state, or in Florida many years ago, can create friction with today’s statutes and court practices. I regularly see this when clients bring me wills that were drafted in other states or long before they moved to North Florida.
Because I have been reviewing wills in this region for decades, I can usually tell within a few minutes whether a document is still doing its job or whether the gap between the “snapshot” and your current life has grown too wide. The goal is not to criticize the old plan. The goal is to make sure the instructions that will actually be followed in a Florida probate court match the life you are living now.
Major Life Changes That Should Trigger a Will Review in Florida
Most people do not need to update their will every year. Instead, certain life events are clear signals that it is time to sit down, pull out the old documents, and see whether they still fit. These events change your family, your property, or your priorities in ways that Florida law will not automatically accommodate.
Marriage and divorce are two of the biggest triggers. Marriage introduces new rights and expectations, especially around homestead and spousal shares. Divorce often changes who you want to inherit and who you trust to serve as personal representative, trustee, or guardian. Florida law may treat provisions in favor of an ex spouse differently after divorce, but it does not rewrite your entire plan or fix issues involving stepchildren and in laws. I often meet people in North Florida whose wills still name an ex spouse to handle their estate, even though the personal relationship ended years ago.
Birth or adoption of a child or grandchild is another major change. Your old will might distribute property only among existing children or other relatives. A new child or grandchild might be unintentionally left out if the wording is not broad enough. Florida has default rules that may protect certain after born children, but relying on those rules can produce unequal or unintended results. A review allows you to confirm that all the people you now consider part of your family are clearly included in the way you intend.
Relocations and property changes within Florida can also matter more than people expect. Moving from one county to another, buying a new primary home that qualifies as homestead, buying a rental property, or selling a long held family home all affect how your will operates. For example, if you bought a homestead in North Florida after signing your will, you need to be sure your instructions about that property respect Florida’s protections for spouses and minor children. Starting or selling a business, forming an LLC, or experiencing a significant change in wealth are further signs that your old will should be reviewed against your current asset picture.
When I meet with clients, I almost always begin with simple questions around these life events. If you have had even one of them since you last signed a will, it usually justifies at least a careful look at what your documents now say, compared to what you would choose if you were signing for the first time today.
How Florida Law Treats Divorce, New Children, and Outdated Beneficiaries
Many people take comfort in the idea that “the law will fix it” after divorce or the birth of a child. Florida law does make some adjustments, but it does not clean up everything, and it does not coordinate with all of your accounts and policies. Understanding where the law steps in, and where it does not, is essential when you decide whether to update your will.
After a divorce, Florida generally treats certain provisions in favor of an ex spouse as if that person died before you, unless your will clearly says otherwise. That can prevent many ex spouses from inheriting under old documents, but it does not automatically replace them with the person you would choose now. It also does not change roles like personal representative, guardian, or trustee in every situation, and it does not address ex in laws or stepchildren who may still appear in your plan. An outdated will can leave gaps where no clear alternate person is named, which forces the court to look to default rules.
New children or grandchildren raise different issues. Florida may protect children who are born or adopted after a will is signed, but those protections do not always match what a parent or grandparent would consider fair. If your will leaves everything to the children you had at the time, and a later child arrives, the court might have to balance your written instructions with statutory protections. That can produce shares that feel unbalanced or that do not match how you are supporting your family in life.
Beneficiary designations are another area where assumptions break down. Life insurance policies, retirement accounts, and pay on death or transfer on death accounts pass according to the beneficiary forms on file, not according to your will. Florida probate judges regularly see estates where a will leaves “everything to my children,” but a large retirement account still names an ex spouse from years ago. Without a coordinated update, that account usually goes to the named beneficiary, no matter what the will says.
In my practice, part of any thorough will review involves looking beyond the document itself. I ask about retirement plans, life insurance, bank and brokerage accounts, and how your home and other real estate are titled. The goal is to identify and correct mismatches between your written will and these designations so that your overall Florida plan functions as a single, coherent whole.
Codicil or New Will: Choosing the Right Way to Update in Florida
Once you know your will needs attention, the practical question is how to make the changes. Under Florida law, you have two main tools. You can add a codicil, or you can sign a new will. A codicil is a separate, written document that amends your existing will. It might, for example, replace a personal representative, add or remove a specific gift, or adjust who serves as guardian for a minor child.
Codicils can be useful in limited situations. If your will is relatively recent, drafted under Florida law, and you want to change only one or two specific items, a well drafted codicil can be efficient. A typical example is replacing a personal representative who has moved out of state or whose health no longer allows them to serve. Another might be adjusting a single bequest that no longer makes sense, while leaving the rest of the will intact.
There are, however, clear points where a new will is usually safer and more practical. If your existing will is from another state, if it is older, if your family structure has significantly changed, or if there are already one or more codicils attached, adding another layer can cause confusion. Florida probate courts and personal representatives tend to prefer a clear, consolidated document over a small stack of amendments that must be read together and reconciled.
It is also critical to understand that a codicil must be executed with the same formalities as a Florida will. Handwritten notes in the margin, crossing out and rewriting names, or attaching a loose page of instructions often do not meet Florida’s requirements. Those sorts of changes can invite challenges and leave your family guessing which version of your wishes the court will follow. I have seen more than one estate where a well meant handwritten note created more questions than it answered.
When I review documents, I look first at their age, origin, and complexity, and then at the scope of the changes you want to make. In many North Florida cases, especially where there have been several major life events, the cleanest solution is to sign a new Florida will that incorporates all your current wishes. That often makes administration smoother for your family and reduces the chances of misunderstanding years down the road.
Do Not Forget Your Other Florida Estate Planning Documents
Updating your will is a key step, but it is not the only piece of a sound Florida estate plan. Most people also have, or should have, a durable power of attorney, a health care surrogate designation, a living will, and in some situations, a revocable living trust. Major life changes that prompt a will review usually affect these documents as well.
Your durable power of attorney names someone to handle financial and legal matters if you cannot act for yourself. Your health care surrogate designation and living will govern who may make medical decisions and what types of treatment you want in serious situations. If you have a revocable trust, it may own your home, rental properties, or other investments, and your will probably works in tandem with that trust. If your will still points to one set of people, while your powers of attorney and medical documents point to another, your family can be left with conflicting instructions at the very moment they need clarity.
Consider how a divorce, a remarriage, an estranged child, or a move to be closer to a particular family member can shift who you want in charge. You may have originally named a spouse who is no longer in your life, a sibling who has moved far away, or a parent who is now elderly. Leaving those choices untouched while you update only the will can produce a plan that functions well after death but not during a period of incapacity, or the other way around.
Because my practice includes estate planning, LLC formation, and real estate closings, I see how these documents interact in real North Florida situations. When a client comes in to update a will after buying a homestead property or forming a small business, we look at how the deed, any operating agreement, the will, and the trust (if there is one) fit together. This coordinated review approach tends to prevent gaps and overlaps that might not be obvious when you look at each document in isolation.
What a Florida Will Review and Update Process Looks Like
Many people put off updating a will because they imagine a long, complicated process. In practice, a focused review in Florida is usually straightforward when you know what to expect. My goal is to make that process clear so you can decide, comfortably, whether now is the right time to schedule a review.
We typically begin with a free, no obligation consultation. You bring your existing will and any related documents you have, such as powers of attorney, health care directives, and trust papers. I ask you to outline your current family situation, including marriages, children, stepchildren, and any key relationships that have changed since the documents were signed. We also talk through your major assets, including your home, other real estate, retirement accounts, life insurance, and any business interests or LLCs.
As we go through this information, I compare the picture you describe with the instructions in your existing documents. I look for things like deceased or inappropriate fiduciaries, beneficiaries who no longer match your wishes, homestead issues, and conflicts between the will and known non probate assets. Based on what we find, I explain whether a targeted amendment, such as a codicil, might be sufficient or whether signing a new Florida will and updated accompanying documents would make more sense.
If you decide to move forward, we discuss specific changes and I prepare draft documents for your review. We schedule a signing meeting where you execute the will, and any related documents, with the witnesses and formalities that Florida law requires. I also address practical questions about how to store the originals, who should get copies, and how to handle communication with your chosen personal representative and other key people.
Clients appreciate that they meet directly with me throughout this process rather than being handed off entirely to staff. The consultation remains no obligation, so you can use it simply to find out where you stand. Some clients leave our first meeting reassured that their existing documents still work, while others choose to update right away. Either outcome provides more certainty than leaving an old will unchecked.
How Often Should You Update Your Will in Florida?
A natural question after any review is how long your updated will will remain useful. There is no fixed expiration date. Instead, think in terms of life events and reasonable intervals. A common approach is to review after any significant change in family, property, or health, and to take a fresh look every few years even if nothing major has happened.
One reason for this is capacity. Florida courts look carefully at wills signed late in life, especially if there are signs of cognitive decline or if the changes are dramatic compared to prior documents. When you adjust your plan steadily over the years, keeping it aligned with your actual life, you reduce the chances that a final, last minute change will be challenged by someone who feels surprised or excluded.
It can help to ask yourself a few simple questions. Does your current will still name the people you would choose today to handle your affairs, care for minor children, and receive your property? Does it reflect your current marriage, children, and stepchildren, including those who joined your family after the document was signed? Does it fit with how your home, retirement accounts, and other major assets are actually titled and designated? If any of those answers is “no” or “not sure,” that is a sign a Florida will review would be worthwhile.
In my North Florida practice, I have seen how much smoother an estate administration can be when the person who passed kept their plan reasonably current. The more closely your written instructions match the life your family is living now, the less room there is for confusion, delay, and conflict.
Talk With a North Florida Attorney About Updating Your Will
An up to date Florida will, coordinated with your other estate planning documents and beneficiary designations, turns a nagging worry into a clear, written plan. Instead of hoping that old papers from another time will somehow match your current life, you can know that your instructions reflect the people you care about and the property you actually own today.
If you are unsure whether your existing will still fits, the most practical next step is a focused review with an attorney who regularly works with Florida wills and North Florida families. At The Law Office of Robert J. Warren, P.A., I offer a free, no obligation consultation where we can sit down together, look at your documents, and discuss how your life has changed since you signed them. From there, you can decide, with clear information, whether an update makes sense for you.