Digital assets in wills: navigating the intersection of technology and succession law

The shift from analogue to digital has been nothing short of revolutionary. As of 2024, over 5.4 billion individuals—approximately two-thirds of the global population—are internet users (Zalucki, Post‑Mortal Status of Digital Assets and Human Rights (2024) at 20). This dramatic transformation has given birth to myriad digital assets—cryptocurrency holdings, email and social media accounts, cloud storage, domain names, NFTs (non-fungible tokens) and even virtual real estate within digital worlds. Their prevalence in personal portfolios raises pressing questions for estate planning and succession law: should these assets be treated like tangible property and how should wills accommodate them?