Nicknames for Family Members and Other Individuals

What is the "Nicknames" field?

Some clients and lawyers prefer using short form names for people in Wills. Now you can choose to define the person once at the beginning of the Will and thereafter use their nickname.

For example, instead of repeating 'John McGregor Jones-Smith' throughout the Will, using their Nickname it would read 'John McGregor Jones-Smith ("John")' the first time the name appears and then 'John' throughout the rest of the Will.

Note: Nicknames are never used in the appointment of estate trustee section or the designation of beneficiaries.  This is deliberate to satisfy the financial institutions on beneficiary designations and the Court in issuing probate with the full executor's name.

Full Name: John McGregor Jones-Smith

First Time: John McGregor Jones-Smith ("John")

Nickname after: John

How do I ensure Nicknames are used in the Will?

1. Go to the Documents tab and select Single, Short or Multiple Wills
2. Scroll to the Name Options section and select Include under Nicknames
3. When editing the family member or other individual on the People tab, the document will generate using whatever has been inputted into the First Name field, if another name is not specified in the Nicknames field.

What if nothing is inputted into the Nicknames field but I have opted to Include Nicknames in my Document settings?

If nothing has been inputted into the Nicknames field, the name in the First Name field will be used. If a name has been inputted into the Nicknames field, that name will be used. You do not need to manually enter a name into the Nicknames field unless it is different than the name in the First Name field. 

Note: If two or more Nicknames are the same, you will receive a warning as one of them will need to be changed in order to use Nicknames in the document. 

What is the difference between "Nicknames" and "Other Legal Names"?

The Nicknames field is used as a shorter way to refer to an individual throughout the will. The Other Legal Names field is a place where you can include alternate full names if the person uses or has assets which list them with other names (ex. maiden names).