FAQs
Why should I bother to make a Will?
If you die without a Will, the question of who has your money and property is decided by the Law. Most people, when they think about it, prefer to decide this question themselves. The only way to do this is by making a Will.
Do I have to employ a solicitor to draw up my Will?
No, you don’t have to. However, the laws and regulations relating to Wills are extremely complex and the process is fraught with pitfalls. You only need to make one apparently small mistake in either the wording or the form of the Will and the whole thing can be invalidated. Remember, you won’t be around to sort it out! It’s far better to have the Will professionally drawn up.
Whom can I appoint as my Executors?
You can have up to four Executors (though in most cases one or two is sufficient) and they can be anyone you like provided they are over 18. An Executor can also be (and very often is) a beneficiary under the Will. Obvious choices are close relatives or trusted friends (preferably younger than you) but you can also, if you wish, appoint a firm of solicitors or a Bank.
What do my Executors have to do after my death?
Your Executors are responsible for making sure your Will is put into effect. This includes ascertaining what your estate consists of and what it’s worth, obtaining a Grant of Probate, paying any Inheritance Tax, converting your estate into cash (where appropriate), settling your Income Tax affairs, paying the legacies and bequests specified in your Will, and preparing an Estate Account. If your Executors are family or friends, they may have neither the time nor the knowledge to do all this so they will probably instruct a firm of solicitors to take care of the legal work on their behalf. The solicitors’ fees will be paid out of your estate.
Can I leave my money to whomever I choose?
The short answer is “yes”. It’s your estate and you can dispose of it as you wish. The only qualification to that is if there is anyone who is in some way financially dependent on you, such as your spouse or child. You are then expected to make reasonable provision for them in your Will. If you don’t, then after your death they can apply to the Court to consider whether they should receive something.
I’m still young so I don’t know how much my estate will be worth when I die. How do I know how much to leave to people?
In the case of most Wills, the pecuniary legacies (gifts of specific sums of money) comprise only a small proportion of the estate. Indeed, many Wills leave no pecuniary legacies at all. The most important beneficiaries are those who receive the whole or a proportion of the Residuary Estate. So, if you leave your Residuary Estate equally between two people then they each receive half of whatever your estate consists of when you die, less administration costs.
Can I change my Will after I have made it?
Certainly. In fact, it’s important that you should review your Will from time to time and make any changes that may have become necessary due to altered circumstances. Any changes have to be made by incorporating them into a document called a Codicil and it is important that this is drawn up by a solicitor. If the changes you want to make are quite fundamental, then it’s best to make a completely new Will. This will automatically revoke your earlier Will.
What happens to my Will if I subsequently marry or divorce?
Unless your Will was made prior to and in anticipation of your marriage to a particular person, marriage will revoke an existing Will and you will need to make a new one.
On divorce, an existing Will remains valid. However, any gifts made to your former spouse will be invalidated unless you have instructed otherwise in your Will, as will their appointment as an Executor.
What happens to my Will after it has been signed?
That is up to you. The Will is your property and you can do what you like with it. However, the important thing is that your Executor should know where it is kept. It is a bad idea to keep it in a drawer at home where it could be mislaid, accidentally destroyed or just forgotten. Probably the best course is to leave the Will with your solicitor or your Bank and give a photocopy to your Executor.
If I were to die while my children were still young, how can I make sure they are looked after?
You can include a clause in your Will appointing someone to be your children’s guardian while they are under 18. You can also leave some or all of your estate in trust to be used for your children’s benefit until they reach a certain age (18 or over). They can then receive the capital when they reach that age.
What happens if my spouse and I each leave everything to the other but we die at the same time?
From a legal point of view, a husband and wife never die simultaneously. If it can't be medically determined in which order they died, then the older is deemed to have died first.
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