Will Drafting
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A properly prepared Will protects your loved ones and family and minimises the financial worry during what can be an upsetting and stressful time. At OneLaw Chambers, our Wills, Trusts and Probate Solicitors and Barristers are here to help you plan for your family’s future.
Our Wills, Trusts and Probate Solicitors and Barristers can provide you with immediate advice upon a full range of wills, trusts and probate matters. OneLaw Chamber’s Will Drafting services operate at the highest standard.
How are wills drafted?
A will can be made on any sheet of paper and follow any format, provided it is signed by you and witnessed as required by the law. But an invalid will, or one with conflicting instructions, could be challenged in court. This can cause family conflict, and inflict the stress and expense of a lawsuit on your loved ones. If you’re planning to write a will, you can choose whether to do it yourself or seek help from a professional. The right option for you will depend on how complex your affairs are, and how much assistance you’re likely to need.
Wills are traditionally drafted without punctuation and follow a standard pattern with numbered clauses. For the avoidance of doubt the words which explain the purpose of the clause are capitalised at the beginning of a clause. For example, I GIVE my diamond brooch to my sister ANN SMITH of [address] free of tax and costs of transfer
In order for a will to be valid, it must be:
- made by a person who is 18 years old or over and
- made voluntarily and without pressure from any other person and
- made by a person who is of sound mind. This means the person must be fully aware of the nature of the document being written or signed and aware of the property and the identify of the people who may inherit and in writing and
- signed by the person making the will in the presence of two witnesses and
- signed by the two witnesses, in the presence of the person making the will, after it has been signed.
Making changes to an existing will
You may want to change your will in light of new circumstances. You must not amend the original will after it has been signed and witnessed, the only valid way to amend a will is either by a codicil or by revoking the original will and making a new one.
A codicil is a formal testamentary instrument which acts as an add-on to an existing will; the original will plus all codicils to it are read together and the estate is distributed in accordance with their combined effect. To be valid and admitted to probate alongside the will, a codicil must comply with the same requirements as the will itself (see above).
A codicil supplements the terms of an existing will and can be used to add a provision e.g. additional legacy, amend a provision e.g. change the value of a pecuniary legacy, or revoke a provision in a will e.g. remove a particular beneficiary’s entitlement.
Why Instruct OneLaw Chambers for your Wills, Trusts and Probate Case?
At OneLaw Chambers, our Wills, Trusts and Probate Solicitors and Barristers regularly assist with many contentious and non-contentious wills, trusts and probate cases. We have assisted and represented many clients from all over the world achieving successful outcomes for them.
Our expert Wills, Trusts and Probate team of Solicitors and Barristers is one of the strongest multi-disciplinary and diverse teams in the country, covering the breadth of wills, probate, tax and trust work. We have considerable experience with high value estates and international wealth and understand the unique challenges this can present.
Our Advocacy and Court Representation Solicitors and Barristers fiercely and tenaciously represent you in putting forward the strongest possible case, ensuring that you are always satisfied with the manner in which we represent you and that a successful outcome is achieved in your case without significant cost and expense to you.
Our Wills, Trusts and Probate Solicitors and Barristers can help you protect your assets against future life changes such as divorce, manage your wealth and succession planning across multiple countries, and make sure your estate is structured as tax-efficiently as possible.
With our strong partnerships and affiliations with chartered tax advisors and financial planners, we have the capacity to deal with everything in-house and provide you with a complete solution.
We are committed to ensuring that our Wills, Trusts and Probate Solicitors and Barristers prepare every wills, trusts and probate case with utmost quality and skill so that successful outcome is achieved every time. Our Wills, Trusts and Probate Solicitors and Barristers operate in a friendly and cooperative manner to provide our clients with the best client care and service during the entire wills, trusts and probate case process.
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