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Alamo Wills A Permanent Registry of Record
Read This First

Every disclaimer, in plain English

No fine print withheld. Here is everything we want you to understand before you record a will with us, stated in plain language.

  1. We are not a law firm. We do not give legal advice, we do not review your will, and using this service does not create an attorney–client relationship. This is a self-help records service.
  2. A photograph is not a will. We store a picture of your handwritten document. Courts generally require the original paper to probate a will. Keep your original somewhere safe and tell your executor where it is.
  3. The blockchain doesn’t make anything valid. Our stamp proves your document existed, unaltered, on a specific date. It cannot make an invalid will valid, and no court is required to accept anything. It is evidence, not magic.
    What makes a will invalid?

    Our stamp can’t cure any of these — it only proves your document existed, unchanged, on a date. Among the things that can make a handwritten will invalid or unenforceable:

    • It isn’t written entirely in your own hand — typed or pre-printed words mixed in can disqualify a holographic will.
    • It isn’t signed by you.
    • You lacked testamentary capacity — you didn’t understand that you were making a will, what you own, or who your heirs are — when you wrote it.
    • It was made under duress, fraud, or the undue influence of someone else.
    • It doesn’t clearly show you meant it to be your will (no testamentary intent).
    • A later will or codicil revoked it, or you revoked it — for example, by destroying it.
    • Your state doesn’t recognize handwritten wills signed without witnesses — roughly half do not.
    • The original paper can’t be produced — courts generally require the original, not a photo or a copy.

    This is general information, not legal advice. Requirements vary by state and change over time; a licensed attorney in your state is the one who can tell you whether your will is valid.

  4. Handwritten wills aren’t recognized everywhere. Texas recognizes holographic wills (Estates Code §251.052). Roughly half the states do; the rest don’t. Ask a licensed attorney in your state.
  5. Your will’s contents stay private. Before your file leaves your hands it is sealed with a key generated for your file alone, then kept on private storage. Anyone can confirm the seal exists and is unaltered, but no one can read the contents without that key. The key travels inside the archive package you download — so guard that download, because it is what opens your file.
  6. What happens after 30 days. A one-time filing can be downloaded from your dashboard for 30 days. When that window ends we move your sealed file off our web server and into long-term archival storage — cheaper for us to keep, but slower to reach, so it is no longer a self-service download. Nothing is thrown away: we keep that sealed file privately so we can honor your next-of-kin instructions whenever the day comes, and the blockchain stamp stays verifiable forever.
  7. The subscription is optional — and never automatic. The $18.36 recording is a one-time payment, full stop. Recording a will (or buying a Kit) never signs you up for anything recurring.
  8. Lost keys stay lost. We cannot recover the password inside your archive package if you lose the package and your dashboard window has passed. That’s what makes the encryption worth anything.
  9. We are not the custodian of your original will. We hold an image. On verified notice of death we deliver the image to the people you named, and to the probate court’s clerk if required.
  10. Death releases are reviewed by humans. A valid, certified death certificate is required; we may verify with state vital-records systems; we refuse and report suspected fraud. No automatic releases, ever.
  11. Identity verification is not live yet. Today you attest the will is yours; government-ID verification is coming and is honestly labeled as missing inside the filing process itself.
  12. The $18.36 fee is a genuine introductory price. It is the actual price you pay today; prices are subject to change. We do not show a crossed-out “former” price — $18.36 is simply what you are charged now.

These disclaimers summarize the binding versions in our Terms of Service. If anything here ever conflicts with the Terms, the Terms control — but we’ve worked hard to make sure they say the same thing.