News

In the last few weeks, ITV’s The Martin Lewis Money Show Live (3 March), focused heavily on the importance of Wills, Lasting Power of Attorney and Estate Planning. Martin highlighted them as essential tasks for protecting family assets and of course outlined how they can make things so much easier for your loved ones after you’ve died.

Learn how to challenge a Will if a relative was pressured into making changes. Get expert legal advice on proving undue influence.

Read latest blog from Senior Associate, Corrine Seabourne on the importance of writing a Will and why using a reputable Solicitor is so important.

Everyone has the right to decide what should happen to their assets and possessions when they die. They should be able to make these decisions freely as part of their Will – and without unwarranted or biased influences from family, friends or others, hoping to secure an inheritance.

If you die in England and Wales without having a valid Will, this is known as ‘dying intestate’ and your estate will be distributed in accordance with the Intestacy Rules, not in accordance with your wishes.

It tends to be only in Hollywood movies that a Will is read aloud, usually for dramatic effect where the contents of the Will are unexpected and lead to the sort of tensions which create a good plot. For example, in the 2019 film ‘Knives Out’ the patriarch cuts his entire family out of his Will in favour of his caregiver.
While such dramatic events are unusual in real life, it is becoming increasingly common for disputes over Wills to arise, particularly where someone who expected to inherit has been excluded or where the provision made for them is less than they had hoped to receive.