What Changed in Louisiana Successions in 2025 (and What Didn’t)

Louisiana’s 2025 legislative session brought several practical changes to how successions and wills are handled — most of them aimed at making an already-difficult process a little less burdensome for grieving families. Here is a plain-language look at what changed, and, just as importantly, what did not.

Testament formalities were refined (Act 30)

Act 30 of 2025 refined the formal requirements for valid testaments — the technical rules governing how a will must be signed, dated, and witnessed to be valid. These formalities are exacting in Louisiana, and a will that fails them can be declared invalid, so the refinements matter to anyone making or relying on a will. Importantly, this was a change to testament formalities — not a change to forced heirship.

Uncontested probate was streamlined (Act 34)

Act 34 streamlined aspects of uncontested succession proceedings, reducing friction in the cases that should be the most straightforward — where no one is fighting and the estate simply needs to pass to the rightful heirs.

Notaries gained authority in small successions (Act 55)

Act 55 authorized notaries to obtain certified death certificates for purposes of small successions. That sounds technical, but it removes a real bottleneck: small-succession affidavits often stalled waiting on documentation, and this change helps modest estates clear title faster.

No-contest clauses were limited (new art. 1519.1)

Louisiana also added Civil Code article 1519.1, which limits the enforceability of no-contest clauses — provisions in a will that try to disinherit any heir who challenges it. The new article curtails how far those clauses can reach, protecting an heir’s ability to raise a good-faith challenge.

The headline that did not happen: forced heirship was not reformed in 2025. Its framework remains the one set by the 1995–96 constitutional amendments.

What did NOT change: forced heirship

There is a persistent rumor, every legislative session, that Louisiana has “done away with” or overhauled forced heirship. It did not happen in 2025. Louisiana remains the only state that retains forced heirship, and its structure — protecting children who are 23 or younger, or who are permanently incapacitated — continues unchanged from the 1995–96 constitutional framework. Any estate plan still must account for it. See the firm’s Estate Planning and Successions & Probate pages.

Why this matters for your plan

Even modest changes to testament formalities are reason to have an existing will reviewed, and the small-succession and probate changes can save families real time and expense. If you have a will drafted under the old formalities, or you are about to open a succession, it is worth confirming that everything reflects current law.