Legal · Updated August 28, 2025
Last will and testament
Where the original is: With David Choi, Esq. Named agent: David Choi
The owner builds it while alive. An advisor the owner invites sees an outline of it. After a death, the executor opens the records the owner released, and nothing else.
The three stages, in order
Before
The owner builds the record
Accounts, beneficiaries, obligations and documents, entered while they are alive. The owner chooses which records an executor can ever open.
An advisor the owner invites sees an outline of each item, and not what is inside. The owner can end the connection.
See the four screensAt a death
A handover opens, slowly
A certificate, then sign-offs from the advisor and their firm, then 72 hours with nothing open. One person’s word cannot open it.
Read the four stepsAfter
The executor opens what was released
On their own GuardKin, with their own keys. Records the owner did not release stay closed.
See what they see
What the app holds
What is recorded, and what is still missing.
Keeping documents in one place is the easy part. The harder work is answering what a family has to settle in the first weeks: who inherits this, who to ring, what is still being charged. Four screens from the app.
Accounts
Everything they would have to go looking for.
10accounts and debts, each with who inherits it and who to call
Choose an account to see who inherits it, how it is titled, and who to call about it.
Look at a debt. On “Oakland home — mortgage” the app says “Not asked for a debt”. GuardKin does not count a debt as missing an heir.
Accounts
Your recorded accounts and assets, with current ownership and balance dates.
- Recorded assets · USD
- $605,350
- Recorded debts · USD
- $329,300
- Accounts to review
- 0 of 10
Entered balances, not live prices.
Accounts in this example vault. Choose one to see its details.
Assets · USD · 7
$605,350As of
Who inherits it
Jointly owned with Marcus Chen
Current ownership
Not recorded
How it is titled today. This is separate from who inherits it.
Document that covers it
No document recorded for this account.
Who to call
No contact recorded for this account.
As of
Who inherits it
Transfer-on-death / payable-on-death
Who receives it is not recorded here.
Current ownership
Not recorded
How it is titled today. This is separate from who inherits it.
Document that covers it
No document recorded for this account.
Who to call
advisor
Dana Okafor
As of
Who inherits it
No heir recorded
Current ownership
Not recorded
How it is titled today. This is separate from who inherits it.
Document that covers it
No document recorded for this account.
Who to call
No contact recorded for this account.
As of
Who inherits it
Named beneficiary: Marcus Chen
Current ownership
Not recorded
How it is titled today. This is separate from who inherits it.
Document that covers it
No document recorded for this account.
Who to call
No contact recorded for this account.
As of
Who inherits it
Named beneficiary: Marcus Chen
Current ownership
Not recorded
How it is titled today. This is separate from who inherits it.
Document that covers it
No document recorded for this account.
Who to call
No contact recorded for this account.
As of
Who inherits it
No heir recorded
Current ownership
Not recorded
How it is titled today. This is separate from who inherits it.
Document that covers it
No document recorded for this account.
Who to call
No contact recorded for this account.
As of
Who inherits it
No heir recorded
Current ownership
Not recorded
How it is titled today. This is separate from who inherits it.
Document that covers it
No document recorded for this account.
Who to call
No contact recorded for this account.
Debts · USD · 3
$329,300As of
Who inherits it
Not asked for a debt
GuardKin does not count a debt as missing an heir.
Current ownership
Not recorded
How it is titled today. This is separate from who inherits it.
Document that covers it
No document recorded for this account.
Who to call
No contact recorded for this account.
As of
Who inherits it
Not asked for a debt
GuardKin does not count a debt as missing an heir.
Current ownership
Not recorded
How it is titled today. This is separate from who inherits it.
Document that covers it
No document recorded for this account.
Who to call
No contact recorded for this account.
As of
Who inherits it
Not asked for a debt
GuardKin does not count a debt as missing an heir.
Current ownership
Not recorded
How it is titled today. This is separate from who inherits it.
Document that covers it
No document recorded for this account.
Who to call
No contact recorded for this account.
Every account, balance, and contact here is decrypted on this device — GuardKin never sees them.
Beneficiaries
Who inherits what, and where nobody is named.
3of 7
accounts have no heir recorded.
- 4 have an answer recorded
- 3 have none
- 3 are debts, which are not asked
Of the 4 that are answered, 2 name a beneficiary, 1 is jointly owned and 1 passes by transfer-on-death.
An answer on file is not a check. This is what you have told us, not a check with the institution.
Your estate
Beneficiaries
3 of 7 accounts have no heir answer recorded
- Named beneficiary
- 2
- Jointly owned
- 1
- TOD / POD
- 1
- Unassigned
- 3
- Worth checking
Who inherits each account, unassigned first Account Who inherits How Status Coinbase — self-custody wallet — not set Unassigned No answer Fidelity 401(k) — Studio Pottery LLC — not set Unassigned No answer Wells Fargo — checking — not set Unassigned No answer Fidelity Roth IRA Marcus Chen Named beneficiary Recorded Wells Fargo — high-yield savings Marcus Chen Named beneficiary Recorded Oakland home Marcus Chen Joint owner Recorded Vanguard — taxable brokerage — TOD / POD Recorded Computed on your device — GuardKin never sees your records.
Obligations
What keeps going out, and what stops coming in.
$1,996
a month short, once the income that stops has stopped and what can be cancelled is cancelled.
Social Security ($2,910 a month) stops. Fidelity pension ($1,760 a month) falls to 50%.
The 3 outgoings marked must not lapse come to $2,876 a month. The 1 marked cancel on death is $16 a month. A bill does not stop because someone died. Only cancelling it stops it, and somebody has to do that.
Obligations
- Monthly income today
- $4,670
- Monthly income after
- $880
- On the conservative reading — see below
- Monthly outgoing
- $2,892
- Survivor shortfall
- $1,996
After cancelling what you’ve marked cancellable, about $1,996 a month is still unaccounted for — roughly $21,956 across the 11 months an estate typically takes to settle.
Arithmetic on your own entries. Not tax advice, and it says nothing about what anyone may be entitled to.
Monthly lines, and what happens to each when the person dies What Per month At death Status Mortgage — Wells FargoOutgoing $2,480 Must not lapse Covered Term life — Example MutualOutgoing $184 Must not lapse Covered Social SecurityIncome $2,910 Stops Gap Fidelity pensionIncome $1,760 Reduces Gap PG&EOutgoing $212 Must not lapse Covered Streaming subscriptionOutgoing $16 Cancel on death Cancel Computed on your device from your encrypted records — GuardKin never sees an amount or a payee.
Documents
Every document, and where it is.
17records in 7 categories
Choose a category above the list to narrow it. Choose Letters to see where each one goes: sealed until handover, then to Marcus, the executor.
The app also searches by title, type or category and sorts by latest updated, document name and category. Both work on this device, over the titles already open on it.
A record whose title cannot be shown stays in the list as Untitled instead of dropping out. One the app cannot read at all is marked Needs a look.
Your estate
Documents
- Documents
- 17
- Legal
- 4
- Letters
- 2
- Access
- 5
17 of 17 documents
4 of 17 documents
2 of 17 documents
3 of 17 documents
5 of 17 documents
1 of 17 documents
1 of 17 documents
1 of 17 documents
Your documents, latest updated first Document Category Updated Family term life — Example Mutual Insurance Oct 20, 2026 David Choi — family attorney Contact Oct 19, 2026 1Password vault Digital Asset · Access Oct 11, 2026 Apple ID Digital Asset · Access Oct 11, 2026 For Eduardo — about the studio Personal Letter · Letters Sep 24, 2026 For Marcus, when the day comes Personal Letter · Letters Sep 24, 2026 What I want for the studio Instruction Sep 24, 2026 Last Will and Testament — 2024 revision Will · Legal Sep 21, 2026 Chen Family Living Trust Trust · Legal Sep 7, 2026 Durable Power of Attorney — financial Power of Attorney · Legal Sep 7, 2026 Funeral preferences Instruction Aug 23, 2026 Hazel (the cat) Instruction Aug 23, 2026 Healthcare directive + DNR Medical Directive · Legal Aug 23, 2026 Safe deposit box — Wells Fargo branch 0418 Other May 25, 2026 studiopottery.com — registrar + DNS Digital Asset · Access Apr 25, 2026 studiopottery.com email + admin Password · Access Apr 25, 2026 Untitled Password · Access Mar 16, 2026 - For Eduardo — about the studioSealed until handover · goes to Marcus
- For Marcus, when the day comesSealed until handover · goes to Marcus
Encrypted on this device before it ever reaches us — GuardKin never sees a title, a scan, or what any of these say.
Sample household. Names and figures come from the app’s own demo vault, not a real client.
What happens after a death.
Records put in order, a handover that waits before anything opens, and an executor who opens only what was released, in 27 seconds.
No sound. Sample household: names and records come from the app’s own demo vault, not a real client.
Read the film as text
GuardKin: what happens after a death
A 27-second silent film. It has no audio track. Everything it says is on screen and is written out below.
[0:00 to 0:04. Light ground. A real screen from the GuardKin app, with sample data: a list of documents, including a family term life policy, the family attorney's contact, a password manager, an Apple ID, and a letter for Marcus. Then a card from the same app: "Anything you have not marked. No key is sealed for it, so there is no way to open it." and "Master Password and Secret Key. Nobody gets these, GuardKin included."]
Sarah kept her records in one place.
GuardKin cannot read them.
[0:05 to 0:10. The Handover page of the app, sample data. A list of ten balances and the heading "0 of 10 balances released". Every row says "Not released" and has a switch that is off. A blue outline marks "0 of 10 balances released".]
She chose what her executor may open.
Nothing is released unless she chooses.
[0:10 to 0:20. Dark blue. A white sheet headed "After a death" lists four steps. Then the number 72 with the word "hours", and 72 small marks fill in one by one, the last taller than the rest.]
After a death:
1. A death certificate is on file.
2. GuardKin confirms who it was.
3. The advisor signs off. Then the firm.
4. Final approval.
72 hours. Nothing opens until then.
[0:20 to 0:24. Light ground. A card reads "Write, in your own words, that you accept this role." and a line is written in it: "I accept this role, for Sarah." Marked "Example wording".]
Marcus signs in to his own GuardKin and accepts the role.
[0:24 to 0:27. The executor's view, sample data: a record titled "Last will and testament" with "Where the original is: With David Choi, Esq." and "Where to take this: Take this to the attorney named on the original instrument. The bank may also accept a certified copy."]
He opens only what Sarah released.
Notes for the reader
- Sarah and Marcus are the sample household built into the app's demo mode. They are not real people.
- The film is about a death. Handover for incapacity is not available, and the film does not mention it.
- The film does not say the executor is told when a death is reported. GuardKin does not send the executor a message; the owner has to have told them.
After a death
Four steps before anything opens
A handover is built so that one person’s word cannot open it, and so that it waits before anything opens. Each step below is checked by GuardKin’s servers.
A death certificate is filed
The person reporting
Someone reports the death at guardkin.com/report-a-death. The certificate itself has to be on file. GuardKin staff cannot approve a report without it.
The advisor of record and their firm both sign off
Three different people, then GuardKin staff
A member of GuardKin staff first checks who the report is about. Then the owner’s advisor of record signs. Then an administrator at the advisor’s firm signs. These three are different people, and a sign-off from someone who already took one of the other roles is refused. GuardKin staff then give final approval.
72 hours pass with nothing open
Time, with the owner able to cancel
The time starts at final approval and is the same for every handover. No setting and no sign-off shortens it. When it is up, GuardKin checks the evidence again before anything opens.
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
One mark for each hour. If the report is wrong and the owner is alive, the owner can cancel it in any of them. The tall mark is the earliest anything can open. The executor writes that they accept
The executor, on their own GuardKin
The executor signs in to their own GuardKin and unlocks it with their own Master Password and Secret Key. They then write, in their own words, that they accept the role. Until they do, nothing is released to them.
Then the executor’s key opens the records the owner chose to release.
Report a deathA handover opens for a death only.
If you become unable to act, GuardKin cannot accept a doctor’s letter and open a handover for your executor. The Handover page marks incapacity “Not yet available”.
A power of attorney is the legal arrangement for that situation. GuardKin can record that you have one and where it is kept.
Every limit, and what to do about itThe first day
What your family sees on the first day
After a death has been verified, the person you named signs in to their own GuardKin. These are the screens they meet, in order.
First, they are told what has happened
Nothing is open yet. They are told who named them and why they are there, and that accepting the role is their decision. They accept it in their own words, and that is recorded.
A GuardKin has been released to you
You’ve been named Sarah Chen’s executor.
Sarah Chen trusted you with this. Sarah Chen’s GuardKin has been released to you because a death was verified and the waiting period has passed. Nothing has been opened yet — that is your decision to make next.
What this means
An executor steps in after a death to settle the estate. The records released to you are the ones that were marked for an executor — not necessarily everything.
- Your role
- Executor
- Opened so far
- Nothing
The next step is to formally accept this role. You’ll be asked to write, in your own words, that you accept it. This is a one-time decision and it is recorded — both for Sarah Chen and for anyone who later reviews how the estate was handled.
Then they see what you released, and only that
While you are alive, flip a switch to see what Marcus would see. Nothing is released unless it is chosen.
A record’s title rests on the servers’ rule that only released records are listed; its contents rest on a key your device seals for that record alone. These switches show the choice. In the app, turning one on seals that key and each change goes in the audit log.
Handover
What stays sealed
Balances
Documents and letters
A letter goes to Marcus Chen, whoever it is addressed to.
People
People Marcus Chen may need to contact.
Always sealed
Never on your executor’s page.
- Anything you have not markedNo key is sealed for it, so there is no way to open it
After a loss
Sarah Chen’s GuardKin is open.
Sarah Chen trusted you with this. Take whatever time you need.
You’re here because Sarah Chen named you executor.
At a glance
Nothing has been released to you yet. If you expected records here, the firm that introduced you to GuardKin can confirm what was released.
5 records what Sarah left.
- Legal
- 1
- Financial
- 2
- Personal
- 2
Everything released to you
The records Sarah marked for you, and only those. Open any one for where to take it.
Legal
1 record- Last will and testament
Financial
2 records- Coinbase — self-custody wallet
- Fidelity Roth IRA
- Oakland home — mortgage
- Vanguard — taxable brokerage
- Wells Fargo — checking
Personal
2 records- David Choi
- Letter to Marcus
8 of the example’s 14 records are shown.8 of 14 records shown. Then they open a record
Each record opens on its own page, with a line on where to take it. An account shows where it is held, not what is in it.
Financial · Updated July 24, 2026
Oakland home — mortgage
Owed to: Wells Fargo
Financial · Updated October 20, 2026
Wells Fargo — checking
Held at: Wells Fargo
Sample household. Names and figures come from the app’s own demo vault, not a real client.
Walk the product with us.
A demonstration for your firm: the client’s screens, the advisor’s role and the handover, on the example household.