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How to Ensure Your Will is Valid

Posted on by Jonny

There are a number of reasons to write a will, and also ensure that will is valid. This legally binding document will help you to determine what happens to your estate should you pass away. In turn, you can effectively pass on your property, money, and personal possessions to your loved ones or a charity.

Moreover, a valid will ensures you do not pay far more inheritance tax monies than necessary.

However, to legally execute a will, you must adhere to a number of strict rules stated in Section 9 of the Wills Act 1837. Read our legal advice below on how to ensure your will is valid.

How to Write a Valid Will

A failure to write a valid document could potentially provide people with grounds for challenging a will. To avoid inheritance disputes and ensure a will is legally valid, the testator must:

  • Firstly, be 18 years of age or over.
  • Second, the testator has to be of sound mind.
    • There are many different terms for this, including the testator’s “testamentary capacity” at the time, or;
    • Alternatively, the testator “has sufficient mental capacity.”
  • Third, have voluntarily wrote the will.
  • Fourth, do so in the presence of two witnesses over 18 years old.
  • Finally, two witnesses must co-sign the will in their presence.

A Will is Valid When It Is In Writing

To deem a will legally valid, it must be handwritten in either pencil or ink. Additionally, it can be typewritten into electronic format, so long as it adheres to the above rules.

If you choose to handwrite a will, write it with ink to ensure it avoids amending or contesting. Otherwise, a challenger might state a testator wasn’t certain about a section of a will, so wrote it in pencil.

Consequently, ensure the family won’t struggle with inheritance disputes following your death by writing the document in ink.

The Signing of a Will

It is imperative that two witnesses watch a testator sign a will. If one or both witnesses do not watch the signing, the will isn’t legally valid, and it could provide others with grounds for challenging a will. For this reason, the witnesses must know their role is to watch you sign the document to ensure its validity.

Also, it’s clear that they do not need to know your wishes within the document. Yet, as they witness you doing it, they must be aware that they are watching the signing of your will. Furthermore, they need to declare their presence by both signing their signature.

Additionally, a testator must be witness to that action.

Who Can Be a Witness?

When it comes to signing and witnessing, there are currently no rules regarding who can be a witness for the signing of a will. However, the person you choose must be aged 18 or over and cannot be blind. They also do not need to be a professional or possess any qualifications.

However, to prevent inheritance disputes from arising, avoid choosing a beneficiary, executor or blood relation to be a witness. Good examples of independent witnesses include a neighbour, colleague, or GP.

If, however, you believe you have grounds for challenging a will, contact The Inheritance Experts today.

Witness To A Will Signing: Who Can Do It?

Posted on by Jonny

Planning to write a will in either England or Wales? It will need the signatures and presence of two independent witnesses. If it isn’t, the will is legally invalid, and it could face challenges when you pass away. So having a witness to a will is essential.

There are, however, various rules you will need to adhere to during the signing. To ensure you don’t invalidate a will, read on to learn who can be a witness when executing a will.

Who Should be a Witness During a Signing?

You might be surprised to learn that the laws regarding witnesses are rather relaxed. However, witnesses should be chosen to prove a will has been effectively executed; otherwise, it could make it easier for others to contest a will. For this reason, you should choose witnesses who are:

  • First, the must be over the age of 18.
  • Second, they must be competent, i.e. of sufficient mental capacity.
  • Third, they cannot be beneficiaries or an executor.

For example, you could ask a friend, neighbour or colleague to sign a will. However, only if you do not plan to include them as a beneficiary. It is also possible to ask a GP to be a witness. That’s especially true if you are an elder, are suffering from an illness or are taking medication. By doing so, this could prevent others from stating you were not sound of mind when signing the document and could provide fewer grounds for contesting a will.

Also, it is beneficial to choose a witness who is your age or younger, which will ensure they are alive should you pass away, so they can state they watched the signing of a will.

It is also important to note that a witness doesn’t need to read your will. In essence, they merely need to be a witness to a will signing.

Who Shouldn’t be a witness to a Will Signing?

A witness should be chosen to provide evidence that a will was successfully executed, which can prevent others from turning to will dispute solicitors to challenge its validity after your death.

For this reason, you should avoid asking the following people to be a witness:

  • First, an executor cannot be a witness to a will signing.
  • Secondly, a beneficiary is not a valid witness.
  • Thirdly, a partner by marriage or civil partnership can’t be witnesses.
  • Finally, any blood relatives are also ineligible.

The Will Signing Process

Once your will is complete, you must fill in the following information in the presence of two witnesses in certain appropriate areas.

  • The date of the will’s signatures and declarations.
  • Sign your name using your signature.
  • Ask the witnesses to add their signatures.
  • Print their names, occupations, and addresses.

Once the last will and testament have signatures from both the testator and their two witnesses, you can’t amend the document.

When to Review a Will

While a document shouldn’t be amended once the last will and testament has been signed, it is possible to review and amend it at a later date. For example, consider reviewing your will if your partner passes away, you add to your family, or if you get married or divorced.

If, however, you question the validity of a loved one’s will, it is important to act as soon as possible to prevent the executor from receiving a grant of probate. To do so, contact The Inheritance Experts today to talk to one of our experienced will dispute solicitors.

Explaining Common Trust Disputes

Posted on by Jonny

The law has its complications, especially when it comes to common trust disputes. Which is why when the law (or an individual) is causing you trouble, there’s a better way to handle common trust disputes.

That best way forward is to contact a lawyer and have them work within the bounds of the law for you. In the case of common trust disputes, the process is easier and more likely to succeed.

What is a Common Trust Dispute?

In short, a trust is usually for estates where a person’s assets are considerable. It is, in essence, a better way to:

  • minimise tax and;
  • protect the estate until it’s time for the assets within the trust to go to its trustees.

A testator can create these trusts before death, or as per their request in a last will and testament.

As you can imagine, the goal of a trust is to minimise complications. But even the best plans do have faults and trust disputes do happen.

For example:

  • if the trust is incorrectly put together;
  • when there are disputes between the trustees and beneficiaries, or;
  • if there is evidence of fraud.

When is a Trust Fraudulent?

A trust can be fraudulent for a variety of reasons. If the trustee is negligent or commits fraud, for example. Or if a trustee ignores a breach of trust committed by a fellow trustee. Negligence almost always will open up a case for fraud against the trust and/or its trustees.

Moreover, it’s generally easy to prove. If a trustee in any way neglects their duty as the trust outlines, they are inherently negligent.

Another example is if the person who creates it lacks the mental capacity or faces coercion into making it. This is similar to any fraud for the last will and testament.

If the settlor, or the person who set up the trust, was given negligent legal or tax advice this could also make the trust fraudulent. This same applies if the trust documents themselves don’t line up with the wishes of the deceased in their will.

Trusts can also be used to disguise ownership of estates. This is also a fraudulent activity, one of several common trust disputes scenarios you might encounter.

In short, either fraud can occur to exploit the trust, or fraud can occur because the trust is a result of fraudulent purposes. Amongst common trust disputes, a dispute in trusts occurs when there is either fraud or a suspicion of fraud.

What to Do if You Want to Dispute a Trust?

Instigating family trust disputes can be challenging. There is a lot of documentation and people within a trust. Moreover, if you suspect fraud it can also be difficult to prove. Also, even if you wish to dispute a trust, you don’t want to burn bridges while you are at it.

Bringing family into litigation can hurt feelings, and ruin relationships. That is why when you want to contest a trust you need trust dispute solicitors who can handle the process delicately. You will also want to choose professionals who are well versed in the law and changes that have been made over the years.

How To Fight a Fraudulent Will

Posted on by Jonny

When someone you love dies, it can be difficult to focus on anything other than the grief as you begin to process the loss of someone who meant a lot to you. However, the most important thing that you need to sort out as soon as possible is dealing with the deceased will.

This should normally be a very straight forward process, but it has been known for wills to be fraudulent and, in this case, that means that the real wishes of your loved one are not being carried out.

In this scenario, you need to know the right steps to take should you have reason to believe something is not right with the will, so that justice can be done, and the money and assets left by your loved one can be given to the correct beneficiaries.

What are the indicators?

Fighting a fraudulent will is not something you will have to do many times in your life. As a result, spotting the evidence of fraud is inherently difficult. Generally speaking, the grounds for contesting a will or countering a fraudulent will can vary. To give you a helping hand, below are some indications that fraud may have taken place.

  • The original will suffers from destruction or ‘conveniently’ lost.
  • The signature isn’t your loved ones.
  • Two witnesses were not present at the signing.
  • If you suspect the testator signs the will by force or trickery.
  • When the will gives everything to a caregiver immediately.
  • If your loved one wrote the will without the advice and presence of a legal professional.
  • If alterations were suddenly made to the will when the individual was in the hospital.

So if any of these above scenarios occur, seek out legal advice. You’ll discover how to proceed in order to get justice and ensure their true wishes are carried out. Will dispute solicitors can be on hand to seek resolution.

Fight a fraudulent will practically

As mentioned above, the first thing you should do is seek legal advice from inheritance experts to see two things.

  1. If you have a substantial claim to fight a fraudulent will.
  2. How to work out the process from this point forward to ensure you get the best possible outcome if the case goes to court.

The first thing that you will need to do is gather the evidence that adds sufficient weight to actively prove your claim of fraud which, again, a legal investigator can help you to do effectively. After this, you will need to work with the attorney to mount your case and have it presented to a judge.

Of course, before this gets taken to a court, a good idea is to have a mediation meeting with all those concerned present to state their cases and evidence in order to try and get to an agreement before going to court in order to save everyone the emotional distress this could cause in the wake of losing someone you all love.

Regardless, some people (even siblings) do have to fight a fraudulent will. Therefore, being familiar with the processes involved can help you to get what you deserve and, in the instance of a fraudulent will, this knowledge can make the difference between a successful and unsuccessful claim.

What Are The Grounds To Contesting a Will?

Posted on by Jonny

When you lose someone you love, it’s a difficult and trying time to get through. One of the saddest parts of such a loss is that individuals can suddenly become focused on personal gain when it comes to the issue of the will. Especially when the will was either written or amended when the person you have lost was potentially not of sound mind and body. This and other grounds to contesting a will can and do crop up.

In this situation, you need to know what the grounds are for contesting this document so that you can make sure that the wishes of your lost loved one are carried out as they would have wanted and not taken advantage of.

Understanding the reasons for contesting

When you look up how to contest a will, you will most likely be bombarded with legal jargon that can easily confuse you if you yourself are not from a professional legal background. In the face of this, it can feel like giving up is easier than trying to navigate the law around the leaving on wills, but you must press on in order to get justice for your loved one.

To help you out, this article has broken down what some of the grounds for contesting a will are in simple terms, as follows:

Testamentary Capacity

Testamentary capacity refers to when the individual in question made the will and whether or not they are the following.

  1. They understood they were making a will and the effect of that will.
  2. The person knows the value of their estate
  3. He/she understands the consequences of leaving someone out/including someone in their will.

This last point is especially important. For instance, say your loved one is a family member who would have wanted to leave money to support your family. Then, in their last days, they did not. They wouldn’t be of the sound mind to understand that you were relying on that support to get by.

Lack of valid execution

This refers to the legality of a will and its signing. A will requires the signatures/presence of at least two witnesses and the signature of the testator themselves. If you think this isn’t the case, then you have grounds to contest the legality of the will.

Undue influence

This is something that is potentially hard to contest on because it requires hard evidence. However, it is not impossible and does happen.

Undue influence is when the testator deals with coercion in some way, either through kindness or threat. In turn, this coercion leads to amendments to their will which they wouldn’t do without such influence. Chances of contesting a will, in this case, will depend on the evidence you have, and the circumstances of each individual situation.

Fraudulent or Forged wills

Fraudulent wills can occur in a number of circumstances. For example, say that someone writes the will on their behalf and subsequently wrote themselves into it. This would be a fraudulent activity. Alternatively, if someone spoke to the deceased as they wrote the will. In turn, they persuade them to leave someone out or write themselves in. That, too, would be a fraud and make the will invalid upon contestation.

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