California: Will Execution Requirements
The short answer
To sign a valid will in California you must be at least 18 and of sound mind, put the will in writing, sign it yourself (or have someone sign for you in your presence and at your direction), and have two witnesses who are together at the same time watch you sign or acknowledge the will. Notarization is not required, and California does not allow electronic wills. California also recognizes a handwritten (holographic) will with no witnesses if the signature and the will's key terms are in your own handwriting — and if you miss a formality, a court can still uphold the will where there is clear and convincing evidence you meant it as your will.
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This is the general rule in California. Ezel applies current California law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law | California Probate Code §§ 6100–6112 govern execution. California follows the common-law attested-will model — a written will signed before two witnesses — and is NOT a notarial-will or electronic-wills state. § 6110 is the core execution statute; § 6111 adds handwritten (holographic) wills |
|---|---|
| Minimum age & capacity | 18 or older and 'of sound mind' (§ 6100(a)). A person lacks capacity if they cannot understand the nature of making a will, recollect their property, or remember their relations to family, or if a delusion or hallucination drives the disposition (§ 6100.5) |
| Writing & signature | Must be in writing (§ 6110(a)). It must be signed by the testator, OR in the testator's name by another person 'in the testator's presence and by the testator's direction,' OR by a conservator under a court order (§ 6110(b)). There is no rule that the signature be at the end |
| Witnesses required | Two witnesses who, 'being present at the same time,' witnessed either the signing or the testator's acknowledgment of the signature or of the will, and who understand the document is the testator's will (§ 6110(c)(1)). An interested witness (a beneficiary) does not void the will, but absent two other disinterested witnesses their gift is presumed procured by undue influence (§ 6112) |
| Notarization & self-proving | Notarization is NOT required to sign a will — a notary is not a witness. California has no separate self-proving affidavit executed at signing; instead an uncontested will may be proved at probate by a subscribing witness's affidavit with a copy of the will attached (§ 8220(b)) |
| Handwritten (holographic) wills | Yes. A handwritten will is valid with no witnesses 'if the signature and the material provisions are in the handwriting of the testator' (§ 6111(a)). A date is not required, but its absence can defeat the will where another will conflicts or the testator's capacity is questioned (§ 6111(b)) |
| Electronic & remote wills | Not permitted. California has not adopted the Uniform Electronic Wills Act, and its electronic-transactions act does not apply to wills; § 6110 requires a physical signed writing witnessed by two people in person. A will 'signed' only electronically or by typing a name is not valid |
| Harmless-error / curative doctrine | Yes. A will not signed before two witnesses is still valid if the proponent proves 'by clear and convincing evidence that, at the time the testator signed the will, the testator intended the will to constitute the testator's will' (§ 6110(c)(2)) |
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Requirements one by one
Governing law
California's will-execution rules live in the Probate Code, Division 6, Part 1. The
core statute is § 6110 (writing, signature, and two witnesses); § 6100 sets who may
make a will; § 6111 recognizes handwritten (holographic) wills; and § 6112 handles
witnesses who are also beneficiaries. California uses the traditional common-law
"attested will" — a written document the testator signs in front of two witnesses. It
is not a civil-law "notarial will" state (a notary plays no required role), and it has
not adopted electronic wills.
Minimum age & capacity
Any "individual 18 or more years of age who is of sound mind may make a will"
(§ 6100(a)). "Sound mind" is defined in the negative by § 6100.5: a person is not
competent if they cannot understand that they are making a will, cannot recollect the
nature and extent of their property, or cannot remember their relationships to the
family members affected — or if a mental-health disorder produces delusions or
hallucinations that distort how they leave their property. The bar is not high, and
capacity is measured at the moment of signing.
Writing & signature
The will must be in writing (§ 6110(a)) — California has no oral (nuncupative) will.
It must be signed in one of three ways (§ 6110(b)): by the testator personally; by
someone else who signs the testator's name "in the testator's presence and by the
testator's direction" (for a testator who physically cannot sign); or by a conservator
acting under a court order. Unlike some states, California does not require the
signature to appear at the very end of the document.
Witnesses required
An ordinary California will needs two witnesses. Each must, "being present at the same
time," watch either the testator sign the will or the testator acknowledge that the
signature or the will is theirs, and each must understand that the document is the
testator's will (§ 6110(c)(1)). "Present at the same time" is the key phrase: both
witnesses have to be together with the testator for the signing or acknowledgment — a
will signed in front of one witness on Monday and another on Tuesday does not meet the
rule (though the harmless-error doctrine below may still save it). The witnesses need
not read the will or know its contents; they need only understand that it is a will.
Notarization & self-proving
A California will does not need to be notarized — a notary is not a substitute for a
witness, and notarizing a will does nothing to satisfy § 6110's two-witness rule.
California also differs from Uniform Probate Code states in that it has no separate
"self-proving affidavit" that witnesses sign at execution to lock in the will's
validity. Instead, § 8220(b) provides a functionally similar shortcut at probate: when
a will is not contested, its execution can be proved by a subscribing witness's
affidavit with a photographic copy of the will attached, so the witness need not appear
in court. Many California wills include an attestation clause worded as a declaration
under penalty of perjury to take advantage of this.
Handwritten (holographic) wills
California recognizes a holographic will — a will valid with no witnesses at all — "if
the signature and the material provisions are in the handwriting of the testator"
(§ 6111(a)). Only the operative terms (who gets what) and the signature must be
handwritten; § 6111(c) allows a statement of testamentary intent to appear on a
commercially printed form. A date is not required, but leaving one off is risky: if two
wills conflict, an undated holographic will can lose (§ 6111(b)(1)), and an undated
holographic will can fail entirely if the testator's capacity during the possible
signing window is in doubt (§ 6111(b)(2)).
Electronic & remote wills
California does not permit electronic wills. It has not enacted the Uniform Electronic
Wills Act, and the state's electronic-transactions law does not apply to wills, so
§ 6110's requirement of a physical signed writing witnessed by two people in person
still controls. A will that exists only as a computer file, or that was "signed" by
typing a name or clicking a button, is not valid in California — an online service that
emails a signed PDF has produced a draft, not a will, until it is printed and witnessed.
Harmless-error / curative doctrine
California has a harmless-error escape hatch. If a will was not signed before two
witnesses as § 6110(c)(1) requires, it is still treated as validly executed if the
person offering it "establishes by clear and convincing evidence that, at the time the
testator signed the will, the testator intended the will to constitute the testator's
will" (§ 6110(c)(2)). This can rescue a will with a witness problem — for example, one
witness instead of two — but the standard is demanding, and note its limit: by its
terms it cures a defect in the WITNESSING, not a missing signature or the absence of a
writing.
What trips people up
Notarizing a will is not the same as witnessing it. A common and costly mistake is
taking a will to a notary and assuming that makes it official. It does not. California
requires two witnesses under § 6110(c); a notary's acknowledgment satisfies nothing in
that subsection. Notarization matters only as part of an optional self-proving-style
declaration attached to an already properly witnessed will.
"Present at the same time" is a real requirement. Both witnesses must be together
with the testator for the signing or the acknowledgment (§ 6110(c)(1)). Gathering
signatures one at a time, on different days, does not satisfy the rule — and while
§ 6110(c)(2)'s harmless-error rule may save such a will, that requires convincing a
probate court after the fact, which is exactly the uncertainty a properly witnessed
will avoids.
A beneficiary can witness — but shouldn't. An interested witness does not
invalidate the will (§ 6112(b)), but if the will leaves that witness a gift and there
are not two other disinterested witnesses, the law presumes the gift was procured by
undue influence, and the witness can lose all but their intestate share unless they
rebut it (§ 6112(c)–(d)). The safe practice is to use two witnesses who inherit nothing.
A typed will you signed alone is neither witnessed nor holographic. It fails
§ 6110 (no witnesses) and § 6111 (not in your handwriting). People who print an online
form, sign it without witnesses, and stop there often leave no valid will at all.
Common questions
Does my California will have to be notarized? No. California requires two witnesses,
not a notary (§ 6110(c)). Notarization is optional and only supports a self-proving-type
declaration that speeds up probate; it never replaces the witnesses.
Can I write my will by hand instead? Yes. California accepts a holographic will with
no witnesses as long as the signature and the material provisions are in your own
handwriting (§ 6111(a)). Handwrite the key terms and sign it; adding a date is wise even
though it is not strictly required.
Can I sign my will online or over video? No. California has not adopted electronic
wills, and its electronic-transactions law excludes wills, so a will must be a physical
signed writing witnessed by two people who are present with you (§ 6110). Remote or
electronic-only signing does not make a valid California will.
What happens if only one person witnessed my will? It may still be valid, but only
the hard way: someone must prove to the probate court by clear and convincing evidence
that you intended the document as your will (§ 6110(c)(2)). That is far less certain
than simply having two witnesses present at the signing.
Statutes and sources
- Cal. Prob. Code § 6100 — who may make a will: an individual 18 or older and of sound mind (and a conservator by court order).
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PROB§ionNum=6100. (accessed 2026-07-11) - Cal. Prob. Code § 6100.5 — the testamentary-capacity ("sound mind") standard.
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PROB§ionNum=6100.5. (accessed 2026-07-11) - Cal. Prob. Code § 6110 — core execution rule: writing (a); who may sign (b); two witnesses present at the same time (c)(1); harmless-error cure (c)(2).
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PROB§ionNum=6110. (accessed 2026-07-11) - Cal. Prob. Code § 6111 — holographic (handwritten) wills, the handwriting test, and the date rules.
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PROB§ionNum=6111. (accessed 2026-07-11) - Cal. Prob. Code § 6112 — interested witnesses: a gift to a witness does not void the will but is presumed procured by undue influence absent two disinterested witnesses.
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PROB§ionNum=6112. (accessed 2026-07-11) - Cal. Prob. Code § 8220 — proof of an uncontested will at probate by a subscribing witness's affidavit (California's self-proving equivalent).
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PROB§ionNum=8220. (accessed 2026-07-11)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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