Wills by Hugh James

Making a will is important for a number of reasons, including the following,

• Choosing who will administer your estate after your death and pass your assets on to your beneficiaries – this can be family members, friends or professionals, or a combination, known as your Executors
• Choosing who will act as trustee for any ongoing trust created in your will.
• Appointing guardians for any minor children.
• confirming who inherits your assets,  and on what terms.
• Carving out specific assets including business assets, farming assets and specific items or collections (jewellery, cars, art).
• Expressing a preference for your funeral wishes.
• Maximising tax efficiency.
• Where you have assets located outside the UK (holiday home and foreign bank accounts for example).
• Having peace of mind that  your wishes and objectives are recorded in a legally binding way.

In  absence of a valid will, your estate is subject to the intestacy rules. As a result, there is no guarantee that your wishes will be met and could result in unintended beneficiaries receiving your assets. Particular care should be taken where you are a co-habiting couple, own assets jointly with another person (not your spouse or civil partner) and where assets are located outside the UK.

Whichever way you decide to write your will, we will work to the timeframes below:

• Draft wills will be sent within 10 working days of receipt of final instructions and payment.
• Amended draft wills will be sent within five working days of a request for amendment.
• Final wills will be sent within five working days of approval of a draft.
• Where matters are more urgent, please tell us immediately so we can adjust these timescales accordingly depending on your circumstances.
• Copy wills will be sent within two working days of receipt of the executed final will.

Hugh James is committed to sustainability, so these services are all provided online. If you need to access our services via printed materials and post, contact us for more information. Please note our costs will change to reflect this method.

A codicil is a supplemental document to a will which makes minor alterations but leaves the rest of the will intact.

There is no limit on how many codicils can be added to a will, however this is  only suitable for very straightforward amendments.. If a complicated change is involved, we normally advise that it is better to make a new will. Whilst this may seem a cost effective way to make a change, we would often suggest the will is republished including the new changes to avoid any issues in the future (e.g. codicil is lost or misplaced).

Many people believe that if they have been living with a partner for a number of years they have become “common law spouses” and as a result have the same rights as married couples or those in a civil partnership.

Contrary to this commonly held belief, co-habiting couples do not have equal inheritance rights to married couples or civil partners (see our guide to the intestacy provisions). In fact, a co-habiting partner has no automatic entitlement from their partner’s estate at all. As a result, it is crucial to ensure arrangements are put in place to protect the surviving co-habittee and especially where minor children are involved.

Unless your will is made specifically in contemplation of a marriage to a particular person, it will be automatically revoked upon  marriage. This will have the effect of treating you as  intestate and your estate distributed under the intestacy rules.

Whilst divorce does not revoke your will, it does have an important effect. Essentially your former spouse or civil partner is treated as dying before you (on the date your marriage or civil partnership was dissolved). Often financial arrangements on divorce are complex, so updating your will can be done on either a short term basis (stop gap), or for the longer term if your financial settlement and arrangements have been finalised.

What if I hold assets outside of the UK?

It is very important to consider your assets including the nature and location of the asset, whether it is owned personally or in a corporate vehicle or a trust. Seeking advice as to the succession and administration of these types of assets is key. It is also sensible to co-ordinate this effort when reviewing your will to ensure arrangements made in another jurisdiction do not revoke or conflict with your will in the UK. Sometimes you may need multiple wills, but we can help you with this assessment and liaise with legal professionals in other jurisdictions.

Once you have selected the option that best suits you, and provided your instructions, we will take your payment online, and at the same time verify your identity. Once that is complete, your will instructions will be processed based on the service you have selected.