New Jersey: Personal Property Memorandum Requirements
The short answer
Yes. A New Jersey will may refer to a separate writing or list for tangible personal property other than money that the will does not otherwise specifically dispose of. The writing must either be in the testator's handwriting or be signed by the testator, and it must describe the items and devisees with reasonable certainty. It may be prepared or altered before or after the will, but the statute states no date requirement or priority rule for conflicting writings.
Ask Ezel about your situation
This is the general rule in New Jersey. Ask about your specific facts and see which parts of current New Jersey law apply, with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law and device recognized | Yes; separate writing identifying devise of tangible personal property under N.J.S.A. § 3B:3-11 |
|---|---|
| Will reference required | Yes; will must refer to the written statement or list and may describe it as one to exist at death (§ 3B:3-11) |
| Eligible property and exclusions | Tangible personal property other than money, and only property not otherwise specifically disposed of by the will (§ 3B:3-11) |
| Signature, handwriting, and date | Either in testator's handwriting or signed by testator; no date, signature-placement, witness, or notary condition stated (§ 3B:3-11) |
| Item and devisee identification | Items and devisees must be described with reasonable certainty (§ 3B:3-11) |
| Timing before or after the will | May be prepared before or after will execution and may have no significance apart from the will's dispositions (§ 3B:3-11) |
| Alteration, replacement, and conflict priority | May be altered after preparation; resulting writing must still satisfy handwriting-or-signature rule; no dating or competing-writing priority rule stated |
| Probate use, effect, and failure consequence | Qualifying writing is admissible as evidence of intended disposition; § 3B:3-11 states no separate filing, delivery, lapse, or savings rule |
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Requirements one by one
Governing law and eligible property
N.J.S.A. § 3B:3-11 recognizes a separate written statement or list for tangible
personal property that the will does not otherwise specifically dispose of.
Money is expressly excluded. The section does not name additional exclusions
for business property, securities, title documents, or evidences of debt, but
the asset still must be tangible personal property.
Will reference
The testator's will must refer to the writing. It may describe a writing “to be
in existence at the time of the testator's death,” so the list may be prepared
after the will without executing a new will.
Handwriting or signature
New Jersey provides two alternatives. The writing may be in the testator's
handwriting, or it may be signed by the testator. Section 3B:3-11 states no
date, signature-placement, witness, or notarization requirement for the
writing.
Item and devisee identification
The writing must describe both the items and the devisees with reasonable
certainty. The statute does not prescribe serial numbers, addresses,
relationships, estimated values, or alternate recipients as universal fields.
Timing and later changes
The writing may be prepared before or after will execution, may be altered after
preparation, and may have no significance apart from its effect on the will's
dispositions. Section 3B:3-11 does not state a date requirement or a rule that
the newest of multiple writings automatically controls. An altered writing must
still satisfy the statute's handwriting-or-signature condition to be admissible
under the section.
What trips people up
The list cannot displace a specific gift already made by the will. Section
3B:3-11 reaches only tangible personal property “not otherwise specifically
disposed of by the will.” A conflict clause in the list cannot expand that
statutory boundary.
The statute permits alteration, but it does not say that a later writing
automatically revokes every earlier one. A blanket “supersedes all prior lists”
statement does not itself supply the missing statutory priority rule, and
multiple inconsistent writings can create a proof or construction issue.
Common questions
Must the writing be dated?
No date requirement appears in § 3B:3-11.
Must it be witnessed or notarized?
No. The section requires handwriting or the testator's signature, not witnesses
or a notary.
Can it be prepared after the will?
Yes. The will may refer to a writing to exist at death, and the writing may be
prepared before or after will execution.
Does the writing need to be filed during life?
Section 3B:3-11 states no lifetime filing or delivery condition. It describes a
qualifying writing as admissible evidence of the intended disposition.
Statutes and sources
- N.J.S.A. § 3B:3-11 — complete current rule for eligible property, will
reference, handwriting or signature, reasonable-certainty identification,
timing, alteration, independent significance, and admissibility. New Jersey
Legislature:
https://lis.njleg.state.nj.us/nxt/gateway.dll?xhitlist_vq=3B%3A3-11&f=xhitlist&xhitlist_q=%5BRank+100%5D3B%3A3-11&xhitlist_x=advanced&xhitlist_s=relevance-weight&xhitlist_mh=20&xhitlist_hc=%5BXML%5D%5BKwic%2C1000%5D&xhitlist_xsl=xhitlist.xsl&xhitlist_vpc=first&xhitlist_vps=20&xhitlist_sel=title%3Bpath%3Brelevance-weight%3Bcontent-type%3Bhome-title%3Bitem-bookmark%3Btitle-path%3Bhit-context&vid=Publish:10.1048/Enu
(accessed 2026-08-11; unannotated statutes updated through P.L.2025, c.405,
and J.R.22).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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