Important: For general educational information only. This is not legal, tax or financial advice, and reading it does not create a professional-client relationship. Laws and procedures vary by jurisdiction and can change. Consult a qualified professional in each place relevant to you and your assets before making decisions.
Check what property the will-maker can actually dispose of
The Marshall Islands Probate Code published through the Nitijela's official legislation website includes a provision stating that a person making a will under that Part may dispose only of property the person has a right to dispose of without another person's or an official's consent. That is a reason to gather ownership records and ask a qualified practitioner what rights they show—not a way to decide from a family description who owns an asset.
The Code also says that its chapter does not prevent a will made under the Republic's customary or prior written law, and does not affect the validity of such a will. A reader should therefore avoid assuming that the chapter's ordinary will provisions tell the whole story for every document or circumstance.
Questions to bring to an adviser
- What property records identify the holder and any other person's interest?
- Could a will made under customary or prior written law be relevant?
- Which current law and facts should a Marshall Islands lawyer check before a will is relied on?
Treat execution and foreign wills as questions for counsel
For wills made under the Code's ordinary execution provision, the text describes the testator signing or acknowledging the signature in the presence of at least two witnesses, with the witnesses signing in the testator's presence and in each other's presence. The same chapter has separate provisions for holographic and oral wills; this brief account does not establish whether any particular document satisfies those rules.
The Code also addresses a will executed outside the Republic in a manner prescribed by the law of the place of execution or the testator's domicile at that time. That text is a prompt to bring the complete will, execution details, and relevant foreign-law questions to counsel. It is not a determination that a specific overseas will is valid or effective for a particular asset.
Questions to bring to an adviser
- Where and when was each will or codicil signed, and who witnessed it?
- Is the document handwritten, oral, or made under a different legal or customary framework?
- Does the person's domicile or another country's law need to be established?
Separate personal-property settlement from the whole estate
The Code's estate-settlement part addresses complaints seeking transfer of a deceased person's personal property when entitled people cannot readily obtain possession. It also has a separate small-estate provision framed around personal property and an affidavit. Those headings and limited provisions do not describe every estate asset, resolve who is entitled, or establish the procedure for a particular case.
The parliamentary PDF identifies earlier amendments, including amendments from 1988 and 2004 in its text. Because the copy and amendments may not capture every later change or every relevant source, confirm the current law and thresholds rather than relying on an old figure or an online summary. Land, property subject to other rights, disputed estates, and assets outside the Republic may call for distinct advice.
Questions to bring to an adviser
- Is the asset personal property, land, or something whose legal character is unclear?
- Can the people who may be entitled access it, or is there a dispute or institutional requirement?
- Has counsel checked the current version of the statute and any later amendments?
Scope, source limits, and non-advice
This guide concerns only selected provisions in the Marshall Islands Probate Code as published on the Nitijela's legislation website. It is not a comprehensive guide to Marshall Islands succession law, customary practice, land rights, tax, estate administration, or any state's or country's law elsewhere. Do not treat a summary of a statute as a conclusion about a family's rights.
This article has not been reviewed by a lawyer or human editor. It is not legal, tax, financial, or estate-planning advice and does not determine will validity, property ownership, entitlement, or a required court process. Consult qualified local counsel in the Marshall Islands and in any other jurisdiction connected to the person, document, or property before acting.
Official starting points
Check these sources for updates; their guidance may have changed since our last source check.
This guide cannot determine which rules apply to you. Speak with a qualified professional in each jurisdiction relevant to your family and assets.