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FAQs
What happens if I don't make a Will?
If you don't make a Will, a set of rules called the "Rules of Intestacy" apply. These rules set out who can deal with your estate and who benefits from it. The rules can be complicated and will rarely achieve what you want.
For example, if you are married, everything does not automatically pass to your husband or wife (even if you do not have any children). It is also important to be aware that if you live with someone, but are not married to them (and are not in a registered "Civil Partnership") that person will not benefit under the Rules of Intestacy.
The Rules of Intestacy attempt to second guess what you would have done if you had made a Will. As family structures get more and more complicated, with increasing number of people having second families, and children out of marriage, these default Rules are less likely to achieve a fair result.
Do I need to use a Solicitor to make a Will?
The short answer is "No". Wills can be home-made, they can be made using a DIY "Will Kit" or with the help of a will writer. However, they are extremely important documents. They are possibly the most important documents that you will ever sign. Whilst it may be tempting to cut corners in the production of a Will that can be a false economy in the long-run. If there are problems with a Will they are unlikely to come to light until many years later.
If the Will was home-made, there is no one to put it right and no one to blame for the errors in the first place. Even if a will writer is used, many are uninsured and unregulated. They may have little or even no training in drafting wills. It is not the case that will writers are all solicitors. If someone is a solicitor (who drafts wills) they will tell you that when you speak to them. If someone calls themselves a will writer it is because they are not a solicitor.
By using a solicitor to draft your Will, you are dealing with a qualified and insured professional who is bound by a strict code of conduct. Our view is that you should always use a solicitor to draft your Will, and we only deal with solicitors on this site to help you to produce your Will.
As an extra quality-mark, look for a solicitor who is also a member of "STEP". This is the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. It shows that they solicitor in question deals with Wills and associated matters on a regular basis.
What do I need to do if I have foreign assets?
Owning foreign assets complicates the process of making a Will. This is because it brings into play different legal systems which can have conflicting provisions. If you own assets in any other country (than England and Wales) it is important to take specialist advice.
In many cases, the best advice is to have separate Wills in each of the legal jurisdictions in which you hold assets, but the position is often not as simple as that. It is also essential to make sure that your Wills "speak" to each other; if you produce an English Will and a Spanish Will, and later it emerges that your Spanish Will has revoked your English Will, that can be a major problem.
The main point here is not to ignore the implications of owning foreign property. Ignoring it inevitably creates more problems and more expense in the long run.
What should I do with my business assets in my Will?
If you own business assets (and this includes interests in partnerships, shares in companies and even sole trader businesses) then you should think about how you deal with them in your Will.
It may be that your business assets are likely to qualify for an inheritance tax relief known as "business property relief". If that is the case, and especially if you are married (or in a registered Civil Partnership) it may make sense to pass those shares into a trust on your death.
In the right scenario this approach can save many thousands of pounds in inheritance tax but it is a complicated area of law.
It is worth taking specialist advice on your situation to see whether this could benefit you.
What is STEP?
STEP is the "Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners". It is a membership organisation that was established as a specialist group for practitioners dealing with Wills, trusts and estates. It offers training and events to make sure that its members are up-to-date in their knowledge of their specialist field.
To become a member of STEP requires that potential members sit a series of exams and demonstrate sufficient practical experience in their field.
When dealing with a solicitor in this area of law, it is a good idea to ask whether they are also members of STEP (but do be aware that not all STEP members are solicitors).
What happens if my Will isn't witnessed (or only has one witness)?
In order to be a valid Will, a document needs to follow the formalities set out in the Wills Act. Amongst many other requirements is a complicated provision about the witnessing of Wills.
In simple terms, if a Will has one signature or no signatures, it is not a valid Will. Mistakes can and do happen with the witnessing of Wills and it is important to make sure that you get this right. By using a qualified specialist solicitor you can ensure that your Will is valid and properly signed.
What happens if someone who benefits under my Will is also one of my witnesses?
A witness to a Will cannot receive any benefit under it. This is one of the many pitfalls involved in making your own Will. There are cases littered through history of people losing their entitlement to benefit under Wills simply because they acted as a witness.
Are all Will Writers solicitors?
No. A person calling themselves a "Will Writer" is extremely unlikely to be a solicitor. Some Will Writers are regulated. Others are not. This means that it is difficult to know whether the person you are dealing with has any qualifications to help you write a Will.
In fact, Will Writing is a very lightly regulated area although this is under review in light of a series of recent and high-profile problems with will writers.
In a recent survey, 67% of people questioned thought that all will writers were solicitors and went on to say that they thought that Wills had to be produced by solicitors. This is not the case.
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