Can You Disinherit a Spouse or Child in California? (2026)

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One of the most common questions California residents ask when writing a will is blunt: can I leave someone out? Maybe an adult child you are estranged from, a spouse you are separated from but not divorced, or a relative you simply do not want to inherit. The short answer is that California gives you broad freedom to disinherit, but that freedom has two important edges: community property and the state's protections for a spouse or child who was left out by accident.

This guide walks through who you can and cannot cut out of a California will, and how to word your document so your intentions are actually honored. A handwritten (holographic) will is valid in California when the signature and the material provisions are in your own handwriting, with no witnesses required.1

California has no forced heirship

Unlike some countries, California does not force you to leave a fixed share of your estate to your children. There is no rule that a son or daughter automatically inherits a percentage. This means you may legally disinherit an adult child, a sibling, a parent, or almost any relative, as long as you make that choice clearly in your will.2

The key word is clearly. California law does not require you to explain why you are leaving someone out, and you do not need to leave them a token dollar. But you do need to show that the omission was intentional, because the law treats a silent omission very differently from a deliberate one. That distinction is where most homemade wills go wrong.

Your spouse: community property is the real limit

California is a community property state. Property and income acquired by either spouse during the marriage generally belongs to both of you equally, so your surviving spouse already owns one-half of the community property in their own right. You cannot give away your spouse's half in your will, because it was never yours to give. You can only direct your own one-half share of the community property, plus your separate property (assets you owned before marriage or received by gift or inheritance).3

The key limit to understand: In California you cannot disinherit your spouse from their own half of the community property. That half belongs to them by law, no matter what your will says. What you write in your will controls only your half of the community estate and your separate property. If you want to leave your spouse out of your share, you must say so intentionally in the document, or the omitted-spouse rule may hand them a portion anyway.

Note that California does not use a separate "elective share" system the way some jurisdictions do. Here, the spouse's built-in protection comes from community property ownership itself, combined with the omitted-spouse rule below.

The omitted-spouse rule (Probate Code 21610 to 21612)

California has a specific safeguard for a spouse who was left out of a will by oversight. If you marry after you sign your will and then die without updating it, your new spouse is treated as an "omitted spouse" and is entitled to a statutory share of your estate: one-half of the community property, one-half of any quasi-community property, and a share of your separate property up to one-half, roughly what they would have received if you had died with no will at all.4

The omitted spouse does not take that share if any of three things is true: your failure to provide for them was intentional and that intention appears in the will itself, you provided for them outside the will (for example through a life insurance beneficiary designation) and meant it to be in place of a bequest, or the spouse signed a valid waiver such as a prenuptial agreement.5

The practical lesson for anyone in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, or Sacramento writing their own will: if you get married after signing, update your will. And if you deliberately want to leave your spouse out, state that intention in plain words inside the document.

The omitted-child rule (Probate Code 21620)

A parallel rule protects children. If a child is born or adopted after you sign all of your testamentary documents and you fail to provide for that child, the omitted child is entitled to the share they would have received had you died without a will. Again, there is an exception: the child takes nothing under this rule if your failure to provide for them was intentional and that intention appears from the will.6

This is why the rule matters even for people who fully intend to include their kids: an existing adult child you deliberately leave out is not an "omitted child," but a baby born the year after you write your will could be, unless your will anticipates that situation. If you want to be certain a specific child inherits nothing, name them and say so.

How to make disinheritance stick

Because California law hinges on whether an omission was intentional, vague silence is risky. The safest approach is to name the person and state clearly that you are choosing not to provide for them. You do not have to give a reason. A simple sentence in a handwritten will might read like this:

Template: disinheritance clause

Last Will and Testament

I am making this will freely and intentionally.

I intentionally make no provision in this will for my son, Robert A. Smith, and it is my intention that he shall receive nothing from my estate.

I intentionally leave nothing to any person not specifically named in this will.

Signed: __________________ Date: __________________

Include a date. California does not strictly require a holographic will to be dated, but an undated handwritten will can be held invalid where it conflicts with another will and the order cannot be established, so dating your document removes a needless risk.7

What happens if you leave no will at all

If you skip a will entirely, you lose all control over who is disinherited. California's intestate succession rules take over: your community property passes entirely to your surviving spouse, and your separate property is divided between your spouse and your children (or other relatives) according to a fixed formula, one-half or one-third to the spouse depending on how many children you leave.3 You can read more about that outcome in our guide on dying without a will in California. The bottom line: the only way to decide who inherits, and who does not, is to write a valid will and say so plainly.

When you are ready, our California will builder walks you step by step through naming your beneficiaries and stating any intentional exclusions, then produces a document you complete in your own handwriting to meet California's holographic will requirements.

Sources

  1. 1California Probate Code § 6111 (holographic wills) (leginfo.legislature.ca.gov)
  2. 2Albertson & Davidson: Omitted Spouses and Exceptions Under California Law (aldavlaw.com)
  3. 3California Probate Code § 6401 (intestate share of surviving spouse) (leginfo.legislature.ca.gov)
  4. 4California Probate Code §§ 21610-21612 (omitted spouse) (leginfo.legislature.ca.gov)
  5. 5FindLaw: California Probate Code § 21610 (codes.findlaw.com)
  6. 6California Probate Code §§ 21620-21623 (omitted children) (leginfo.legislature.ca.gov)
  7. 7Botti & Morison: Is a Handwritten Will Valid in California? (bottilaw.com)
Max Kuch

About the author

Max Kuch

Max Kuch writes about estate planning, wills and inheritance for California Will Template. He gathers the rules from the California statutes and the leading public data, then explains them in plain, accessible language so anyone can put their wishes in writing.

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Frequently asked questions

Yes, if you finish it correctly. California Probate Code Section 6111 recognizes a holographic will, which is one where your signature and all of the material provisions (the parts that say who gets what) are in your own handwriting. No witnesses are required. Our service gives you a clean, California-specific draft. To make it valid you copy the operative wording out by hand, then sign it. We strongly recommend you also date it, because Section 6111(b) allows an undated holographic will to be challenged if it conflicts with another will and the order cannot be established.

Because that is exactly what makes a holographic will valid under California law. Section 6111 requires that the material provisions and your signature be in your own handwriting. A printed or typed document that you only sign is not a valid holographic will in California and would need witnesses to qualify as a formal will. We give you the full text and a clear guide, so you simply transcribe the substantive parts (names, gifts, executor) in your own hand, sign, and date it.

California has no forced heirship, so you are generally free to decide who inherits. Two protections still apply. California is a community property state, so your surviving spouse already owns one half of the community property regardless of your will. Separately, the omitted spouse and omitted child rules (Probate Code Sections 21610 to 21612) protect a spouse you married, or a child born or adopted, after you signed the will: they may still take a share unless your will shows the omission was intentional. If you truly want to leave someone out, say so clearly in the will.

Keep the original signed handwritten document somewhere safe, such as a fireproof home safe or a bank safe deposit box, and make sure the person you name as executor knows where it is and can reach it. California has no statewide registry for holographic wills. If you prefer an official option, you may lodge the original with the clerk of the superior court in your county for safekeeping during your lifetime. Do not staple, alter, or mark the original after you sign it.

We do not recommend a single joint document. A California holographic will must be in the testator's own handwriting, and one page written by two people creates confusion about whose words are whose and complicates changes later. The clean approach is two separate mirror wills, one written and signed entirely by each spouse, that reflect the same wishes. Our tool produces an individual draft for each of you so you can each write and sign your own.

Yes. You can revise your California will whenever your circumstances change, for example after a marriage, a divorce, a birth, or a move. The safest method is to write a fresh holographic will that revokes all previous wills, then copy it out by hand, sign it, and date it. Dating matters here: if two handwritten wills conflict and one is undated, Section 6111(b) can make the undated one invalid. Destroy the old original once the new one is signed.

No. This service helps you create a valid holographic will for straightforward situations, but it is not legal advice and does not replace an attorney. If your estate is large, you own a business, you have blended family issues, property in more than one state, minor children needing guardianship planning, or you expect a dispute, consult a California estate planning attorney. For many people with simple wishes, a properly handwritten, signed, and dated will is a solid starting point.

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