When a person dies, it is often said that they live on through the legacy they leave behind. But in Nigeria, that legacy can quickly become a source of bitter family disputes, legal entanglements, and prolonged court battles, especially when the deceased fails to leave a written will.
The issue of intestacy—dying without a will—remains a common and complex problem in Nigerian society, often due to cultural beliefs, religious uncertainty, and lack of awareness.
Sometimes, the struggle for properties of deceased persons can linger for so many years, a problem that a will could have solved. In some cases, even with the presence of a will, some families engage in very prolonged disputes, where they begin to contest the will of the deceased.
Many still view the drafting of a will as an invitation to death, a myth that legal experts have consistently worked to debunk.
In a chat with THE WHISTLER, legal practitioner Barrister Nelson Ilebor Kebordih explained the consequences of dying without a will, how Nigerian law handles such cases, and the importance of proper estate planning.
According to him, dying without a will creates a problem, but said the law has a way of creating a solution to the problem in a way that it will benefit all parties.
“Once a person dies, in Nigerian law, the person can either die testate or intestate When the person dies testate, it means they left a testamentary disposition that expresses their wishes after they’re gone. That’s what we call a will,” Kebordih said.
However, he noted that many Nigerians avoid writing wills due to cultural superstitions.
“People tend not to write their will because of the fear of death. They believe once they write their will, it means they are going to die. This belief is a big problem.”
“There is what we call conflict of law. The courts have to determine how to express the person’s afflictory disposition—in other words, how their property and goodwill will be managed.”
This process, Kebordih said, involves determining which system of law applied to the deceased: customary law, Islamic law, or English law. He however noted that there is a possibility he is not inclined to any law.
“If he had more than one wife and didn’t go to church, for instance, that points to him living under traditional laws, so the inheritance customs of his community would apply. If he was a practicing Muslim, Islamic law would apply,” he explained.
“He might have one wife, not go to church, and yet not follow tradition either. In such cases, the Administration of Estate Laws of the respective state comes in. For residents of Abuja, for instance, the Administration of Estate Act governs such matters. The distribution of the estate then follows a hierarchy of relationships.
“If he leaves behind a wife, she inherits the estate. If both spouses are dead, the next in line are the children. If there are no children, the court looks to the parents, first the man’s parents, then the woman’s. Then it moves to siblings and so on, until no family members are left. In that case, the estate goes to the Attorney-General’s office and is managed by the government.”
On whether a will can be challenged or overturned in favour of someone excluded from it, the lawyer said “Once a will is regular, it binds everyone connected to it.”
“But if a beneficiary or family member is dissatisfied, they can contest the will in court. The court will then assess the validity of the will,” he added.
Kebordih however stated that validity can be questioned on several grounds. According to him, a key requirement under Nigerian law is that the will must be signed by at least two adult witnesses.
He said, “If one of these witnesses is also a beneficiary of the will, the court may void that portion of the document.”
“Also, Mental capacity is another crucial factor. If there is sufficient evidence that the person who made the will lacked the mental capacity to understand what they were doing, the court can invalidate the will or parts of it,” Nelson added.
He also pointed out that customary laws in some Nigerian states reserve special rights for certain family members, particularly the first son.
“There are some state laws that reserve the father’s land or family compound for the first son. Even if the will says otherwise, the first son’s rights under customary law can override that. So that place they buried his father, it belongs to the first son—nobody can challenge it.”
The lawyer therefore urged Nigerians to rethink their aversion to writing wills, stating that the lack of proper estate planning has caused irreparable damage to many families.
He said, “This customary bias we have about death is very bad. Most families today are fighting because the father did not leave a clear-cut disposition,” “Making a will does not mean you’ll die tomorrow. It simply helps preserve your estate, protects your legacy, and prevents unnecessary conflict.”
Kebordih emphasized that a will is “a testamentary disposition of a person with respect to the administration of his estate upon death.” Without it, families are left to battle it out, sometimes for years over properties, money, and inheritance.
As Nigeria’s population grows and family structures become more complex, writing a will has never been more important.
The legal system offers clear processes for both testate and intestate deaths, but families suffer most when nothing is put in place. In the end, writing a will isn’t a curse, it’s a final act of care, foresight, and peace