If you do not have a Will, your unmarried partner may not benefit from any of your property or possessions and your estate could end up being distributed to people you did not wish to benefit, as State Laws determine who shall inherit. Assets jointly owned pass to the surviving partner upon death.

No. The only way you can guarantee that your children are raised by Guardians of your choice (upon the death of both parents of your children), is by nominating them in your Will.

No. Marriage revokes (cancels) your Will. You must make new Wills as soon after your marriage as you can. You can have a new Will written prior to your marriage with a special clause which shall prevent your marriage from revoking your Wills.

Your new spouse will inherit before your children, this is referred to as “Sideways disinheritance”. Children from a previous marriage may not receive anything at all, especially when their parent has remarried. A Will ensures you gift your estate (or a share of your estate) to your children.

Your business may dissolve altogether, leaving no income for the people you wish to benefit. The law states business partners must have a valid Partnership agreement in place, except for where partners are ‘husband and wife partnerships’ (or Articles of Association). This document should include provisions for your share of the business in the event of your death. You can nominate separate business executors in your Will and this gives your business executors the power to continue running your business, either alone or where you sit in a business partnership.

If your marriage / civil partnership has ended, but no decree absolute of annulment or divorce has been issued at the time of your death, then your surviving spouse / civil partner may inherit the whole (or a share of) your estate, under the laws of intestacy.

Step children are not legally entitled to benefit, as Intestacy Laws only provide for natural (including illegitimate) / adoptive children. Due to a change in the Law in October 2014, step children may have a right to claim upon a deceased’s estate where the deceased raised the stepchildren as his/her own natural children.

Possibly, although it is recommended that you review your Will every three to five years. Changes to your personal circumstances or changes in the Law may invalidate all or part of your Will. If you made a Will a long time ago it may need updating to include additional grandchildren, or you may still have named beneficiaries you feel are no longer relevant.

We provide a free Will review service and we do not pressurise you into purchasing services that are of no benefit to you.