Louisiana Estate Planning Checklist: A Civil Law Roadmap

Estate planning in Louisiana operates under a completely different legal framework than the other 49 states. Louisiana uses the civil law system — descended from French and Spanish colonial law — which means the terminology, the required documents, and the inheritance rules all differ from what you will find in generic online guides.

A common law "power of attorney" is a "mandate" in Louisiana. "Probate" is "succession." "Guardianship" is "tutorship." And Louisiana is the only state that restricts your freedom to leave property to whoever you want, through a doctrine called forced heirship.

Here is the actual checklist, organized in the order you should tackle it.

Step 1: Map Your Assets as Community or Separate Property

Louisiana is a community property state. All assets acquired during marriage are presumed community property unless they qualify as separate property — assets owned before marriage, inherited individually, or covered by a valid prenuptial agreement.

This distinction matters because when one spouse dies, the surviving spouse automatically retains their 50% share of community property. Only the deceased spouse's half goes through succession. Separate property passes entirely through succession, and the surviving spouse inherits nothing from separate property under intestate rules.

Create two lists:

• Community property: Joint bank accounts, home purchased during marriage, retirement contributions made during marriage, vehicles titled during marriage
• Separate property: Inherited assets, premarital savings, gifts received individually, property covered by a matrimonial agreement

Step 2: Identify Your Forced Heirs

Under Civil Code Article 1493, Louisiana reserves a portion of your estate — the "legitime" or forced portion — for certain descendants. You cannot disinherit them except for narrow, legally defined causes.

Forced heirs include:

• Children under age 24 at the time of your death
• Children of any age with a permanent mental or physical disability
• Children of any age with an inherited, incurable condition that will likely render them incapable of self-care in the future

If you have one forced heir, they are entitled to 25% of your estate. If you have two or more, they collectively receive 50%, divided equally.

The legitime is calculated on the "notional mass" — your assets at death minus debts, plus the value of certain lifetime gifts you made. This prevents parents from giving everything away before death to avoid the forced portion.

Step 3: Execute a Valid Testament

Louisiana recognizes only two valid testament forms:

Olographic testament: Written entirely, dated, and signed in the testator's own handwriting. No witnesses required. Never self-proving — heirs must verify the handwriting in court after your death.

Notarial testament: Written, dated, and executed before a notary public and two witnesses. Can be self-proving if it includes a proper attestation clause, meaning it is admitted to succession court without witness testimony. This is the gold standard.

Act 30 of 2025 relaxed signature placement rules for both forms — signatures and dates can now appear anywhere on the document — but the attestation clause and page-by-page signing remain essential for self-proving status.

Your testament should include:

• Specific bequests that respect the forced portion
• Lifetime spousal usufruct clause (overrides the default remarriage termination)
• Bond waiver for the surviving spouse's usufruct
• Independent administration authorization under C.C.P. Article 3396 (lets your executor act without constant court approval)
• Tutorship nominations for minor children

Step 4: Execute a Durable Financial Mandate

In Louisiana, this replaces the common law "power of attorney." Under Civil Code Articles 2989–2997, a mandate authorizes another person (the mandatary) to handle your financial affairs if you become incapacitated.

Critical details:

• The mandate must include "durable" language stating it survives your mental incapacity
• If your mandatary needs authority to sell real estate, the mandate must be executed as an authentic act (before a notary and two witnesses) under the equal dignity rule
• Financial institutions must receive written notice of any revocation under La. R.S. 6:311.1

Without a durable mandate, your family may need to pursue a court-supervised interdiction proceeding to manage your affairs — a process that costs thousands and takes months.

Step 5: Complete Healthcare Directives

Louisiana uses two separate healthcare documents:

Healthcare mandate (medical power of attorney): Names an agent to make healthcare decisions when you cannot. Must be signed before two witnesses.

Living will (Declaration Concerning Life-Sustaining Procedures): Under La. R.S. 40:1151, this documents your wishes about life support, feeding tubes, and resuscitation. It does not name a decision-maker — it declares your preferences directly.

Additionally, the Louisiana Physician Order for Scope of Treatment (LaPOST) translates your living will preferences into actionable medical orders. Unlike the living will, a LaPOST is a physician order that first responders and hospital staff are trained to follow immediately.

Step 6: Address Non-Probate Transfer Gaps

Louisiana has significant gaps in non-probate transfer options compared to common law states:

• Real estate: Louisiana does not recognize Transfer on Death (TOD) deeds. Your home must go through succession unless held in a trust.
• Bank accounts: Payable on Death (POD) designations work and transfer automatically outside succession.
• Brokerage accounts: TOD registration exists under La. R.S. 9:1711, but it only protects the broker — heirs can still claw back funds under a will or intestacy claim.
• Retirement accounts and life insurance: Beneficiary designations transfer these completely outside succession.
• Vehicles: Can be retitled using an OMV Affidavit of Heirship (Form DPSMV 1696) without a court order, if all heirs agree.

Review every account and update beneficiary designations to coordinate with your testament and forced heirship obligations.

Step 7: Consider a Trust (If Appropriate)

Trusts in Louisiana are creatures of statute under the Louisiana Trust Code (La. R.S. 9:1721 et seq.), not common law tradition. They can bypass succession and are useful for:

• Avoiding succession on real estate (the one asset class with no non-probate transfer option)
• Medicaid asset protection (an irrevocable trust funded at least 5 years before applying shields assets from estate recovery)
• Special needs planning (protecting a disabled heir's government benefits)

The forced portion can be placed into a trust, but the trust must pay the forced heir income at least annually and terminate no later than the heir's death.

Step 8: Plan for Medicaid Estate Recovery

If you are 55 or older and may need long-term care, Louisiana's Medicaid Estate Recovery program will seek repayment from your succession estate after death. The family home — exempt during your lifetime up to $752,000 in equity — becomes the primary target.

Protections include hardship waivers (mandatory if a first-degree heir's income is at or below 300% of the Federal Poverty Level) and deferrals while a surviving spouse or disabled child lives in the home.

The Louisiana Estate Planning Kit walks through each of these steps with Louisiana-specific templates, worksheets, and the exact civil law terminology your notary and parish court require.

See more Louisiana guides →