How Do You Finalize and Store an Estate Plan in Massachusetts?

Massachusetts requires a will to be signed and witnessed by two people. We guide you through every step, including where to safely keep it.

By Marco A. Schiavo, Partner, Simmons & Schiavo, LLP | Last updated: September 10, 2026

What Happens After You Decide What You Want?

Once you know who should receive what and who should hold decision-making authority for you, your attorney drafts documents built around those choices. Generic online templates cannot do this, since they are not written to meet Massachusetts’s specific signing and witnessing rules.

What Does Massachusetts Require to Sign a Valid Will?

A valid will in Massachusetts must be in writing, signed by you, and witnessed by at least two people who watch you sign or acknowledge your signature. Missing any one of these steps can put the whole document at risk.

Do You Need to Notarize Your Documents?

Notarizing your will is not required to make it valid. What notarization does is create a “self-proved” will, where you and your witnesses sign sworn statements in front of a notary at the same time you sign the will.

A self-proved will speeds up probate later, since the court can accept it without tracking down your original witnesses to testify. We recommend it for that reason, even though it is not legally required.

Where Should You Store Your Estate Plan?

A signed plan only works if your family can find it when they need it. Massachusetts law also gives you a formal option for lifetime storage.

Ways to store your original documents include:

• A fireproof home safe, with copies given to your executor or health care agent
• Safekeeping with your estate planning attorney
• Deposit with the Probate and Family Court, where it stays sealed and confidential until your death

How We Help You Get to a Finished Plan

Our process does not end at drafting. After your documents are built, we help align your accounts, deeds, and beneficiary designations with your plan, since a plan that is not funded correctly will not work the way you intended.

Through our ongoing Client Care Program, we stay involved after signing to help keep your plan current as your life and Massachusetts law change.

Talk to a Massachusetts Estate Planning Attorney

If you are ready to finalize your estate plan, or want to make sure an existing one is properly signed and stored, contact Simmons & Schiavo, LLP at (781) 675-1315 to schedule a consultation.