Civil will in Halacha | Sheilot

Civil will in Halacha

Question

My father wrote a will only in a civil court, in which he determines what is to be done with his property after his death. Does such a will have any monetary validity according to Halacha for the sons, or does it have no halachic significance at all? And in such a case, does the mitzvah of “mitzvah lekayem divrei hamet” (the mitzvah to fulfill the words of the deceased) or the law of honoring one’s father after his death apply?

Answer

Shalom u-vracha 

A will that was made in this manner has no validity at all. 

Answered 19 March 2026 How answers are reviewed
Rabbi Israel Cohen
Answered by
Answers questions at Rav Amram Fried's Beit Horaah
Smicha "Yoreh-Yoreh" (2012), Rav Amram Fried's Beit Horaah
Orach Chaim, Yoreh Deah
About the Rabbi

Source

The opinion of the Achiezer (vol. 3, siman 34) is that there is a mitzvah here, but in practice we do not rule in accordance with his view.

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