Original will

The importance of making a will and ensuring that the original is kept safe cannot be overstated. A will is a document in which a person specifies what happens to their money, property and possessions after their death. The will should set out:

• who should benefit from the will
• who will look after any children under 18
• who will deal with the estate after death (executors)
• any specific gifts and/or gifts to charity.

A recent case is interesting because the original will could not be found. If there is no will or no valid will, the intestacy rules come into play. This is a strict list setting out who inherits the estate of someone who has not left a will.

In the case, the deceased left a sizeable estate. He had made a will in 2013 by which he had left the bulk of his estate to his close friend of 17 years. This friend was described as running a mobile catering unit – the Court observed that 'other witnesses described it more colloquially as a burger van'.

Unfortunately, despite an extensive search by the executors, the original will could not be found. The case boiled down to whether the Court was willing to issue a grant of probate based on only a copy of the will or not. If not, then the deceased would have died intestate and a sister, from whom he was estranged, stood to inherit the entire estate. What is interesting is that the copy will made it quite clear that the deceased did not want his sister to inherit anything. It included the words: ''I have made no provision in this will for …my sister…as I disapprove of the way [she has] treated me during my lifetime.'

The Court held that the deceased had not intended to change his will and that his intentions set out in the copy of the 2013 will remained unchanged until his death. On this basis, the Court ordered a grant of probate based on the copy of the will.

The case took some six years to resolve and the cost, stress and expense may have been avoided if the original will had been safely stored. A person can make a 'homemade' will; it is not a requirement to ask a specialist lawyer to assist. However, making a will can be complex and the majority of law firms offer a safe storage facility.

To discuss this or any other wills and probate matter, contact us.