Online Wills from Mid Kent Wills.

WHY SHOULD I HAVE A WILL?

A Will permits you to do many things that would not be possible if you were to die intestate (without a Will) This includes specifying the person(s) who will administer your Estate, giving direction to your executors as to what is to happen to specific assets, achieving desired tax and estate planning objectives, protecting your assets from being used to pay for long term care fees and indicating who should be custodians of your young children. 

WHAT HAPPENS IF I DIE WITHOUT A WILL?

Dying without a Will (intestate) will have various consequences. Firstly, the cost of administering your Estate will be much higher and the person who is given authority to administer your assets will not necessarily be someone you would have chosen.

The distribution of your Estate is fixed by statute, irrespective of your intentions or the beneficiaries' needs with all amounts paid to heirs as soon as they turn 18. In the meantime, trustees are limited in the scope of the investments they can choose to make on behalf of minors, with the 'Childrens lawyer' -  a Government appointee - administering the share for a child. If you have children, your spouse may not inherit everything.

CAN I MAKE MY OWN WILL?

In England and Wales you can write your own Will. But there are many traps the unsuspecting person can fall into which could result in Estate assets passing to persons not intended to receive them, either because key Will provisions are invalid, or because the writer's choice of words runs foul of a legal rule or principle of which the writer was unaware.

The best advice is to rely on a professional Will writing service to use your instructions to translate them into legally effective provisions in your Will.

I'M NOT MARRIED BUT LIVE WITH A PARTNER - WHAT HAPPENS TO MY ESTATE?

If you are living with a partner and are not  married to them - he or she will not be able to keep anything that belongs to you.

All of your assets will be distributed according to the law.

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DOESN'T MY SPOUSE GET EVERYTHING WHEN I DIE ANYWAY?

If you were to die without a Will, the law determines who gets your assets and how much. These rules say your spouse gets only the first £125,000, including the value of your house. If your house is worth more than £125,000 it may well have to be sold. If you have no children, your spouse will get the first £200,000 of your Estate. If you have children, your Estate will be sold off and shared between your family. But the rules are complicated as to who gets what and will involve lawyers to sort out, who will have to be paid out of your Estate.

I WAS RECENTLY DIVORCED, HOW DO I ENSURE MY EX-SPOUSE DOESN'T RECEIVE ANYTHING UNDER MY WILL?

Divorce automatically revokes gifts to a former spouse and removes that person as an Executor if they were so appointed, unless the Will provided otherwise.

However, if the scheme of distribution of your Will contemplates gifts to your ex-spouse, chances are that other changes will be appropriate as a consequence and you shouldn't rely on the revocation rule.

Furthermore, unless you make a new Will, your Executor will be obliged to notify your ex-spouse that an application for probate has been submitted to the court, and your former spouse may participate in the proceedings if he or she wishes. They may argue that your Will indicates an intention that they should receive bequests under the will, notwithstanding the divorce.

MY WIFE AND I HAVE SEPERATED - DO I NEED TO CHANGE MY WILL?

Seperation doesn't affect your Will, even if you have a Seperation Agreement which provides your spouse will have no claim against you under your Will.

Making a Will is a matter that should be attended to immediately on seperation. However, your spouse may still have a claim against you under the relevant marital property laws.