My mother's will was written in New York state. She now lives in Georgia. Is that will still legal in Georgia. Does she need to do anything?

If your mother's Will was executed in New York at a time when she had her principal residence there, then it should not have become invalid just because she moved to Georgia. However, due to differences in Georgia and New York law, a New York Will often does not make the probate and administration process as smooth as it could be. One example, which I have run into a few times now in my practice, is that both Georgia and New York have a thing called a "self-proving affidavit." The self-proving affidavit is intended to let a Will be offered for probate without the would-be Executor having to also offer an affidavit from a witness to the Will stating that everything happened correctly. However, in Georgia, the self-proving affidavit must be signed by both the testator (the person making the Will) and the witnesses to the Will, all in front of a notary public who then notarizes the affidavit. In New York, only the witnesses have to sign the affidavit in front of the notary. So, a New York self-proving affidavit does not meet the requirements for a self-proving affidavit in Georgia, and we end up having to get an affidavit from at least one witness to the Will. If we can't locate a witness who is willing to sign the affidavit after a documented, diligent search for one, then we have to dig up two people who knew the deceased and are willing to sign affidavits stating that it does look like the deceased's actual signature on the Will. Both procedures add a significant amount of time and effort to having a Will offered for probate. In addition, many New York Wills do not contain broad enough and language to give the Executor as much power to act indepdently of the probate court as Georgia law allows. In that case, we often have to request (with the consent of every single heir, which is not always possible), we can ask the court to grant it, but again it adds a good deal of time and cost to the probate process. Finally, if she's made a big change like moving from NY to Georgia, she may also have other things in the Will she wants to change, so it is a good time for a review. In summary, she may not HAVE to update her Will, but it's a good idea.