Wills

 

INTRODUCTION


Approximately 70% of the people in Great Britain do not have a valid Will, which is surprising because it is such a simple process to make one.  It relieves the mental stress for the bereaved at the time of emotional upset as well as keeping your affairs in order.  By not having a Will, your assets may be distributed by law in a way you do not envisage.

This Web page is designed to help you understand why you need the Will, and what to consider before making it.

WHY MAKE A WILL?
Making a Will enables you to:

(a) Ensure that your property and possessions (your “estate”) are inherited by beneficiaries of your choice
(b) Appoint your own Executor to deal with your affairs after your death
(c) Appoint Guardians for your infant children and create trusts for them
(d) Reduce the tax liability upon death
(e) Donate specific sums of money to friends, relatives and charities

INTESTACY
This is a technical term used by lawyers for the death of a person who has not made a Will.

If you are a single person without children your estate passes to your parents.  If you live with someone, there is no automatic entitlement of that person to your estate although they may claim against your estate.  This could involve lengthy and therefore costly litigation.

If you are single with children, your children will inherit your estate, but you will have no say as to the Trustees who look after your estate until your children are eighteen as they will be appointed under rules laid down by Parliament.

If you are married but without children, in most cases the surviving spouse only receives £200,000.00 plus the Deceased’s personal effects.  The rest of the estate is divided, half to the surviving spouse on a Trust for his/her lifetime to produce income and the rest to your parents, brothers or sisters.  This is unsatisfactory as it may not give enough money to the surviving spouse to live on.

If you are married with children, the surviving spouse receives £125,000.00 plus personal effects.  Again the estate is divided into two; half on trust to create income during the surviving spouse’s lifetime and half upon trust for the children when they attain eighteen years of age.  Once again the surviving spouse may be left with insufficient money to live on.

WHAT SHOULD I CONSIDER?

  1. You are probably worth more than you think.  Click here to view Checklist for you to value your worth.  Take time to do this, as some tax planning possibilities may present themselves.
  2. You will need someone to be your Executor.  This person, usually with the solicitor’s help, gathers in your assets, pays off your debts and distributes the balance in accordance with your Will.  You may appoint Norton Peskett as your Executors if you wish.
  3. You will need someone to be the Guardians of your infant children.
  4. Do you wish to give a specific item or sum of money to someone (ie. a friend or relative) or to a charity?
  5. What do you want to happen to your business assets or the shares in your Company?
  6. Do you want to give a child or other relative a right to remain living in your house?
  7. What do you want to happen with the rest of your estate?  Is this to go to your surviving spouse or your partner?  If not, how do you wish to have the rest of your estate divided?
  8. Please note that if you fall into one of the categories mentioned below it is especially important to make a Will:
    • Co-habiting non-married couples
    • Those in second marriages particularly if either spouse had children from an earlier marriage
    • Those in business - particularly if that business is a partnership
    • Single people with no close relatives (ie. parents, brothers or sisters)
    • Anyone wishing to make gifts to a charity or to friends

WHAT WILL WE CONSIDER?

We will advise you on the tax liabilities upon death, and the ways in which the tax burden can be reduced.  For example, husband and wife can consider equalising their estate so as to use up individual tax allowances.  Alternatively, specific gifts of money (“legacies”) can be given to children, other people or Trusts to avoid a very large Inheritance Tax bill on the death of a surviving spouse.

If you have an existing Will, we shall consider whether it needs reviewing in the light of changes in your personal circumstances or Inheritance Tax Legislation   In appropriate cases we can prepare Wills that can reduce a potential Inheritance Tax liability by over £114,000.00..

WE ARE HERE TO HELP

Making a Will is cheaper than you think as the cost of making a simple Will is £70.00 plus VAT or £100.00 plus VAT for simple complementary double Wills. Obviously, our charges are higher for more complex Wills (ie. mitigating Inheritance Tax liabilities or creating Trusts) but we will provide you with a written estimate of our charges in these cases. We will discuss with you all the details of your Will and give further explanation as appropriate. 

SINCE IT HAS BEEN NECESSARY TO SIMPLIFY GREATLY MANY OF THE POINTS ON THIS WEB PAGE, THIS SHOULD NOT BE REGARDED AS A COMPLETE STATEMENT OF THE LAW.  A MEMBER OF OUR WILLS AND PROBATE DEPARTMENT WOULD BE PLEASED TO CLARIFY ANY OF THE POINTS REFERRED TO IN THE WEB PAGE AND GIVE YOU ANY ADVICE THAT YOU WOULD REQUIRE.

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Lowestoft   Great Yarmouth   Beccles    Gorleston    Southwold