How to Make a Will in Louisiana: What the Law Requires

Louisiana Allows Only Two Kinds of Wills

Louisiana law calls a will a “testament,” and it recognizes exactly two forms: the notarial testament and the olographic testament. That’s it. A will that doesn’t fit one of those two forms isn’t a weaker will. Under Civil Code Article 1573, it’s absolutely null, meaning the law treats it as though it was never written.

The Notarial Testament

This is the typed will most people picture. Under Article 1576, a notarial testament has to be:

• in writing and dated;
• executed before a notary public in the presence of two witnesses; and
• signed by you, by each witness, and by the notary.

If you can’t physically sign, you can make your mark or direct someone to sign for you in your presence.

What changed in 2025. Before August 1, 2025, Louisiana required a specific declaration by the testator and a formal attestation clause, and a small mistake in that language could sink an entire will. Act 30 of 2025 removed those as conditions of validity. Your signature and the date can now appear anywhere in the document, as long as they serve their purpose. The Legislature made the change apply retroactively, too, so older wills benefit as well.

Why the old formalities still matter. The same law created what’s called a self-proving notarial testament. Under Article 2887 of the Code of Civil Procedure, you have to sign every page when the will is executed. To qualify as self-proving, the will also needs a declaration signed by the notary and witnesses, either written into the will itself or added later in an affidavit they sign. A will that meets those requirements doesn’t have to be proved to be probated. (Probate here just means getting the court to recognize the will as valid.) A later affidavit can supply the declaration, but it can’t fix pages you didn’t sign at the time.

A will without those features is still valid, but your family will have to prove it, usually through testimony or affidavits from the notary and witnesses. The law has fallbacks if they can’t be found, including testimony from people who recognize your signature. Still, twenty years from now, tracking anyone down may be the hard part.

The Olographic (Handwritten) Testament

“Olographic” is an old word for handwritten. You’ll also see it spelled “holographic.” Under Article 1575, an olographic will must be entirely written, dated, and signed in your own handwriting. No notary. No witnesses. No other requirement as to form. Since the 2025 changes, the signature and date can appear anywhere in the document, and an unclear date can be clarified with outside evidence.

That simplicity is real, but it comes with two catches.

First, “entirely” means entirely. A preprinted form with your handwriting in the blanks isn’t an olographic will, because part of it was printed rather than written by you. And it isn’t a notarial will either, unless it was signed before a notary and two witnesses.

Second, an olographic will has to be proved after your death. Under Article 2883 of the Code of Civil Procedure, two credible witnesses must confirm that the will was entirely written, dated, and signed in your handwriting. That proof can come by affidavit, but someone has to be able to recognize your handwriting and say so.

Why Generic Will Templates Often Fail in Louisiana

If you try to make a will in Louisiana from a free download, check where the form came from. Many online will templates are built for the other 49 states. A common format is a typed will signed in front of two witnesses, with no notary. In most states, that works. In Louisiana, it fits neither form. It isn’t olographic, because it’s typed. And it isn’t notarial, because no notary was present.

Article 3528 does give some protection to wills made elsewhere. A will is valid as to form if it follows Louisiana law, the law of the state where it was made, or the law of the state where you lived when you made it or when you died. That can protect someone who signed a valid will in Texas before moving to Mandeville. But a Louisiana resident shouldn’t assume that a form written for another state becomes valid just because they signed it at home in Covington.

Form is only half the problem. Even a template that gets the signatures right can’t account for the Louisiana rules that control what a will is allowed to say.

The Louisiana Rules That Shape What Your Will Can Say

Forced Heirship

Louisiana guarantees certain children a minimum share of your estate, called the legitime, regardless of what your will says. Forced heirs are children 23 or younger, and children of any age who are permanently unable to care for themselves. Under Article 1495, the portion reserved for forced heirs is generally one-quarter of your estate if you have one forced heir, or one-half shared among them if you have two or more. The calculation can get more complicated depending on your family’s circumstances. A will that ignores the forced portion invites a challenge.

Usufruct and Naked Ownership

A usufruct is the right to use and enjoy property that someone else owns. The underlying ownership is called naked ownership. A common Louisiana arrangement leaves a surviving spouse the usufruct of the family home while the children receive the naked ownership. Your spouse keeps living there, and the children generally get full enjoyment of their ownership when the usufruct ends. It works well for many families. In a blended family, though, it needs careful drafting, because it ties a stepparent and stepchildren together over the same property for years.

Community Property

Louisiana is a community property state. During a marriage, each spouse owns a present, undivided half of the community property. Your will controls your half. It can’t give away your spouse’s half, no matter how it’s worded.

Choosing Who Handles It

Your will also names the executor who will manage your succession. Who you choose, and whether you give them independent executor authority, can make the process faster and cheaper for your family. This guide to choosing a Louisiana executor walks through it step by step.

Already Have a Will? What the 2025 Changes Mean for You

The Act 30 changes apply to existing wills, not just new ones. The Legislature made them retroactive, with limits: they don’t revive claims that have already prescribed (expired under the time limits in the law), and they don’t undo final court judgments. In practical terms, a notarial will that would have failed under the old rules only because the declaration or attestation language was wrong may now hold up.

That’s good news, but it isn’t a reason to stop reviewing your will. If your will was signed in another state before you moved to Louisiana, Article 3528 may keep its form valid. Its content is another matter. A will drafted for Texas or Florida law won’t have been written with forced heirship, usufruct, or Louisiana community property in mind. And any will written before a marriage, a divorce, a new child, or a major property purchase deserves a fresh look. Updating it is usually simpler than people expect.

Watch Who Signs as a Witness

If you use a notarial will, choose your two witnesses carefully. Under Article 1582, naming a witness or the notary as a beneficiary doesn’t invalidate the will, but it can invalidate that person’s inheritance under the will. There’s one exception: a witness who would have inherited from you anyway without a will can receive the smaller of their intestate share or the amount you left them. Similar restrictions apply when a witness is married to a beneficiary. The safest approach is to use witnesses who have no financial interest in your estate.

Do You Need a Lawyer to Make a Will in Louisiana?

No law requires a lawyer to make a will in Louisiana. A handwritten olographic will that meets Article 1575 is valid without any lawyer involved.

Where an attorney earns the fee is in what the form can’t do on its own:

• planning around forced heirs, especially young children or a child with a disability;
• structuring a usufruct for a surviving spouse, particularly in a blended family;
• including independent executor language and naming a backup;
• making the will self-proving, so your family doesn’t need witnesses tracked down later; and
• coordinating the will with powers of attorney and a living will.

The goal isn’t paperwork for its own sake. It’s a will your family can actually use: one that’s easier for the court to recognize and less likely to create avoidable disputes, written within what Louisiana law allows.

You can also keep a will current without starting over. A codicil can update one provision and leave the rest intact.

Before You Make a Will in Louisiana: A Short Checklist

• Decide which form you’re using, notarial or olographic, and follow it exactly.
• If you have children 23 or younger, or a child with a permanent disability, account for the legitime.
• If you’re married, sort out what’s community property and what’s separate.
• Name an executor and an alternate.
• Use witnesses who inherit nothing, and whose spouses inherit nothing.
• Store the original somewhere safe, and tell your executor where it is.

What Happens Without a Valid Will?

If your will fails on form, or you never make one, Louisiana’s intestacy rules decide who inherits. Those rules follow a fixed order set by the Civil Code, not your wishes. A surviving spouse often receives less than people assume, sometimes only a usufruct rather than full ownership. Your family will still go through a succession to get your property into their names, and without a will to guide it, that process can be slower and more expensive. The Covington succession page explains what that process involves.

Ready to Put Your Will in Writing?

If you live in Covington, Mandeville, or anywhere on the Northshore, I can help you make a will in Louisiana that meets the form requirements and fits your family. Learn more about my Covington estate planning and Mandeville estate planning work, call (985) 892-8592, or send a message through my contact page. For more on why a will matters in the first place, see the benefits of having a will in Louisiana and the importance of estate planning in Louisiana.