What is a codicil to a will? If you’ve never heard the word before, you’re not alone. Most people haven’t, until they find themselves needing one.
A codicil (pronounced KOD-uh-sil) is simply a legal update to a will you’ve already signed. Think of it like an amendment to a contract, or a change-of-address form filed with the post office. You’re not throwing out the original and starting over. You’re just saying: everything in my will still stands, except for this one part, which I’m changing to say this instead.
That’s it. A codicil attaches to your original will, references it by date, spells out exactly what is different, and from that point forward, the two documents are read together as one.
People use codicils when life changes in ways their original will didn’t account for. A named executor moves across the country. A grandchild is born. Someone you left a specific piece of property to has passed away. A falling out happens with a family member you’d planned to include. None of these situations requires you to tear up your estate plan and rebuild from scratch. A codicil handles it.
In most of the country, the process is fairly simple. In Louisiana, there’s a layer that doesn’t exist anywhere else, and it matters.
What a Codicil to a Will Actually Does
A codicil attaches to your original will, references it by date, and spells out exactly what is changing. Everything not mentioned in the codicil stays in effect as written in the original. When the two documents are read together, they function as a single instrument.
Common reasons people execute a codicil to a will:
- Changing the executor named in the original
- Adding or removing a specific bequest
- Updating a beneficiary after a divorce or a death in the family
- Providing for a child born or adopted after the original will was drafted
- Adding a charitable gift that wasn’t part of the original plan
These are the situations where a codicil earns its place. The change is limited, the original document is otherwise solid, and drafting a whole new will would be unnecessary time and expense.
What Louisiana Law Actually Requires
Louisiana’s form rules are strict, and this is where informal attempts most often fail.
Louisiana recognizes only two forms of testament (the Civil Code’s word for a will). A codicil that modifies a will must take one of those two forms:
- Notarial: in writing, dated, and signed by you in front of a notary and two witnesses, who sign too.
- Olographic: written entirely in your own handwriting, dated, and signed by you. No notary or witnesses needed.
Either way, a good codicil identifies the original will by its date and spells out exactly what is changing. A notarial codicil can be self-proving, which means the court can accept it without witnesses coming in to testify. An olographic one has to be proved after your death by testimony that the handwriting is yours. How to Make a Will in Louisiana walks through both forms in more detail.
Forms that work in other states don’t carry over automatically. A typed will signed in front of two witnesses with no notary, for example, isn’t a valid notarial testament here.
Sticky notes and informal letters generally aren’t reliable ways to change your will. Whether a handwritten document has legal effect depends on whether it meets Louisiana’s requirements. Writing on the will itself follows its own rules. You can revoke a gift or another provision by writing a clear statement of revocation on the will itself and signing it. You can’t add something new that way to a notarial will, though. If you cross out one name and write in another, the new name gets nothing, and a cross-out by itself may not be enough to cancel the original gift. Olographic wills allow a little more: additions and deletions you make on the will in your own hand can be given effect. These rules are narrow, and leaning on them invites questions after your death about what you meant.
This also means there is no shortcut when circumstances become urgent. A codicil that doesn’t follow one of the two forms is absolutely null, which means it has no legal effect at all. The change simply never happens, and your original will controls as if the codicil had never been signed.
Codicil vs. New Will: Which Makes More Sense?
A codicil to a will works well when the change is narrow and clearly defined. One new executor. One different beneficiary for a specific asset. A single bequest to add. If you can describe what needs to change in a sentence or two, a codicil is probably the right tool. It costs less than drafting a new will, and the process is faster, often resolved in a single meeting.
A new will makes more sense when:
- Multiple provisions need updating at once
- Your family situation has changed substantially: remarriage, a blended family, the death of a spouse
- The original document is more than ten years old, and large portions no longer reflect your wishes
- You’ve already added one codicil and now find yourself needing to change something else
Multiple codicils layered on top of an old will create interpretation risk at the 22nd Judicial District Court. When a judge or your family has to reconcile provisions across three documents to figure out what you intended, the probability of dispute goes up. One current, well-drafted will eliminates that problem.
Charlton’s general rule: if the amendment touches more than two or three provisions, or if the original was drafted more than a decade ago, the cleaner path is usually a new will.
Forced Heirship: The Complication Most People Miss
If your estate involves children, forced heirship is the issue that deserves the most careful attention when amending a will in Louisiana.
Louisiana law protects the rights of forced heirs: children 23 years old or younger, and children of any age who are permanently incapable of self-care. These heirs are entitled to a guaranteed minimum share of your estate, called the legitime, regardless of what your will or any amendment to it says.
A codicil that inadvertently reduces a forced heir’s protected share, or that attempts to disinherit one without a legally recognized cause, can be challenged after your death. A gift that cuts into a forced heir’s share isn’t thrown out; it gets cut back as far as needed to restore that share. Either way, it means a fight your family pays for in time and money in succession court.
What looks like a simple executor change on the surface sometimes touches beneficiary provisions in ways that matter when forced heirs are part of the picture. Charlton reviews every proposed amendment for forced heirship implications before anything is drafted.
When a Codicil to a Will Isn't the Right Tool at All
There are situations where neither a codicil nor a new will is the right answer, and knowing the difference matters.
If you transferred assets into a Revocable Living Trust, those assets pass outside your will entirely. A codicil to a will does not affect them. Trust amendments require a separate trust amendment document.
Retirement accounts, life insurance policies, and payable-on-death accounts pass directly to whoever is named as beneficiary on file at the financial institution, regardless of what your will says. If you want those assets to go to someone else, the fix is an update to your beneficiary designation at the institution, not a change to your will.
Charlton regularly encounters estates where the will is perfectly current, but a retirement account still lists an ex-spouse or a beneficiary who died years ago. Those mismatches cause real complications when succession opens. A codicil that doesn’t account for the full asset picture is only a partial solution.
How This Works in Practice with Charlton
When a client comes in wanting to make changes to an existing will, the conversation starts with two questions: what has changed, and how much of it? Those answers determine whether a codicil makes sense, whether a new will is the cleaner path, or whether the issue is actually with a trust or a beneficiary designation rather than the will itself.
If a codicil to a will is the right call, Charlton drafts it to meet Louisiana’s execution requirements, using language that avoids ambiguity and aligns with the original document. If a new will makes more sense, he walks through the full picture to ensure everything is captured correctly the first time.
Most amendment engagements are straightforward and resolve quickly. If the circumstances are more complicated than a one-clause fix can address, that initial conversation sometimes broadens into a fuller review. That’s not a pitch; it’s just what tends to surface when documents haven’t been touched in several years, and a lot of life has happened since.
Charlton serves clients in Covington, Mandeville, Madisonville, and across St. Tammany Parish. Call (985) 892-8592 or use the contact form to schedule a consultation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a codicil to a will, exactly?
A codicil is a formal legal document that amends your existing will. It attaches to the original, identifies what is being changed, and leaves everything else in place. In Louisiana, it has to be made in one of the two forms the Civil Code allows: notarial (signed before a notary and two witnesses) or olographic (entirely handwritten, dated, and signed by you).
Does a codicil have to be notarized in Louisiana?
Not always. A notarial codicil needs a notary and two witnesses. An olographic codicil, written entirely in your own hand, dated, and signed, needs neither. A codicil that fits neither form isn’t valid here, no matter how clearly it states your intentions.
Can I just write in changes on my existing will?
Usually not. You can revoke a gift by writing a clear statement of revocation on the will and signing it, but you can’t add a new gift or a new name that way to a notarial will. On an olographic will, changes in your own hand can be given effect, but that rule is narrow and easy to fight over. The reliable way to change a Louisiana will is a properly executed codicil or a new will.
How many codicils can I add to a Louisiana will?
There’s no legal limit, but more is rarely better. Multiple amendments layered on a single original will create the risk of conflicting provisions and interpretation problems at succession. If you’re looking at a third amendment to the same document, a new will that consolidates everything is almost always the cleaner choice.
When does a codicil to a will make sense vs. writing a new will?
A codicil works well for narrow, isolated changes: one new executor, one updated beneficiary, one additional bequest. A new will makes more sense when multiple provisions need updating, when the original document is significantly outdated, or when the family situation has changed substantially since the original was drafted.
Charlton “Chink” Ogden is a Louisiana attorney based in Covington who has practiced estate planning and successions since 1981. He serves clients across St. Tammany Parish and the Northshore, including Covington, Mandeville, and Madisonville. This post is for general informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. For guidance specific to your situation, contact Ogden Law LLC at (985) 892-8592.
About Charlton “Chink” Ogden III
Charlton “Chink” Ogden III is a Louisiana attorney with more than forty-five years of experience in estate planning, Louisiana successions, and property law under the Louisiana Civil Code. A Tulane Law graduate admitted to the bar in 1981, he holds the Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent rating and has served clients on the Northshore from his Covington office since 2001.
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