Legal Help When Buying and Selling Property

Legal Help When Buying and Selling Property

Can You Leave Your Cat In A Will?

by Louise Boyd

Your will is supposed to take care of your family, and your cat is part of your family. So can you leave your cat to someone in a will? Yes, but there are some things you need to think about.

Can You Leave a Cat in a Will?

A cat is technically property under the law. Therefore, you can leave a cat to someone in your will the same way you could leave them a painting. You just write down the cat's name and who it is supposed to go to.

Of course, you want to make sure that person actually wants your cat. The will doesn't mean they have to take it. Not everyone is willing or able to take care of a cat no matter how they got it.

If the person you leave your cat to doesn't want it, you would have to hope your family can agree on who should take it. If you have a valuable cat, the person who got it technically has the right to sell it. If no one takes the cat, it could end up in a shelter.

Can You Say How Someone Should Take Care of Your Cat?

It's hard to enforce in a will how someone will take care of your cat. You can set conditions on who gets your cat such as their house needs to be a certain size or they can't live in a rental that doesn't allow pets.

You can also put in things like what kind of food they have to feed it. However, once they take the cat, there's really no way to legally enforce your will if they decide to switch to a different type of food.

Can You Leave Your Cat Money?

You may want to leave your cat money to make sure it's cared for properly. The problem is that a cat is a piece of property. It can't actually own anything.

Most people will just agree the cat's toys and bed go with the cat, but money can be a more complicated subject. The best way to leave money for your cat's care is to set up a trust. You can set rules for how the money is used then designate one person to care for your cat and a second person to manage the money in the trust.

To learn more about what you can put in a will, contact a local estate planning lawyer today. 


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About Me

Legal Help When Buying and Selling Property

I am a real estate attorney, and I have been helping clients buy and sell property for many years. Some clients do not realize their legal obligations and options when it comes to purchasing or selling a house or land. I hope that this blog will be a way for people to get information about legal issues in real estate and what they need to know when doing business. Buying and selling property can be complicated, and all parties involved have legal obligations. Know what is expected of you, and you will be able to get the best out of your real estate transactions.