A “deathbed will” is not the best way to plan the distribution of one’s assets.  In addtion to the problem that you may not actually have a death bead, instead dying instantly and unexpectedly, there is also no guarantee that you will have capacity to create a will.   A New York court recently determined that a decedent’s last minute execution of his will was not valid precicely because of this lack of capacity. The decedent’s sisters contested the will and proved that the decedent was incapacitated at the time he executed his will.    . See here.  While probably better than not doing a will at all, it certainly pays to have your planning done in advance to avoid these types of uncertanties.