Once you have finished writing your will, and it has been signed and witnessed by two people, it’s important that you store your will in a safe and secure location. This will help to ensure that it isn’t lost or damaged and can be located by your executor when you pass away. We usually recommend keeping two signed and witnessed copies of your will, one in a secure location at home and one away from home.

In England and Wales, you can leave a business in your will and the business will form part of your estate when you pass away. If you’re a sole trader, the business can be left to your next of kin or whoever stands to inherit your estate. If the business is owned by a company or partnership, you will need to leave the shares or partnership interest in your will.

Wills are generally simple to write in England and Wales due to our common law system. There are no strict rules about how a will must be written, as long as it is clear and unambiguous, and signed and witnessed correctly. In common law systems, testamentary freedom is the right of a person to dispose of their property by will, as they see fit, subject to a few limitations. This means that a person can choose to leave their property to anyone they want, regardless of their relationship to them.

If you’re a foreign national living in England and Wales, you need two wills, one that is valid in England and Wales and another that is valid in your home country. This is because the laws of inheritance vary from country to country, and you want to make sure that your wishes are carried out in accordance with the law. Any assets that you own which are physically located in the UK, such as savings in a UK bank account, property, vehicles, furniture and household items, will be subject to the laws of intestacy if you do not have a will.

If you are a British expat, you likely need two wills, one valid in both England and Wales and the other valid in the country where you are living. This is because the laws of inheritance vary from country to country, and you will need to make sure that your wishes are carried out in accordance with the law in the jurisdiction where your assets are located. It is important to have your second will drafted by a lawyer or solicitor who is familiar with the laws of country where you are living.

Whenever you write a will, it reflects your wishes at the time of writing. Therefore, it’s normal to think about your beneficiaries and your estate as it stands today, rather than at the time of your passing. You may expect to have additional children or grandchildren before you pass away, and would like to account for them. This can be a very common reason to either postpone writing your will, or face the need to update your will again in the near future.

If you pass away with multiple wills in England and Wales, the most recent will that is valid will be used to distribute your estate. A will is considered to be valid if it is made by a mentally competent person, signed by two witnesses, and dated. If a more recent valid will is found at a later date, it will revoke the previous will, regardless of whether the previous will has already been distributed.

If a will is written under force, fear, or undue influence in England and Wales, it is considered to be invalid and unenforceable. This is because the law presumes that a person who makes a will under these circumstances was not acting of their own free will and that the will does not reflect their true wishes.

It is important to make sure that you have fully read and understood your will in England and Wales because it is a legal document that sets out your wishes for the distribution of your property after you pass away. If you do not understand your will, there is a risk that your estate may not be distributed in the way that you intended.

Testamentary capacity is the legal term used to describe the mental state required to make a valid will. If a person does not have testamentary capacity, their otherwise legal will may be challenged and declared invalid. This means that the property will be distributed according to the laws of intestacy, which may not be in accordance with their wishes.

A codicil is a legal document that amends or adds to a will. It is a separate document from the will, but it must be signed and witnessed in the same way as the will. The most common reasons for using a codicil include changing the name of a beneficiary, revoking a gift that you have made in your will, adding a new gift to your will, and changing the executor of your will.

As part of the probate process, the executor(s) must provide the court with a copy of the will and evidence that it is valid. The court will then review the will to make sure that it meets the requirements of the Wills Act 1837 and that it has not been challenged by any of the deceased's relatives.

When you write a will, it reflects your circumstances and wishes at the time of writing. There are some things that you can anticipate will change over time, for example, if you know that your children are planning to have children themselves. However, there are also a lot of known unknowns, such as whether one of your beneficiaries might pass away before you or possibly at the same time, in case of a tragedy impacting multiple family members.

Pets are important members of the family, so many people choose to consider them in your will. Pets can provide companionship and love to their owners, especially if they are elderly or single. However they can also be expensive, and could be inherited by someone who is not willing or able to care for them. This could lead to the pets being abandoned or neglected.

A non-traditional family is a very broad term encompassing any family that does not fit the traditional nuclear family model. This can include single-parent families, same-sex parent families, blended families, adoptive families, families with children from previous relationships, and families with children who are not biologically related to either or both of their parents.

The rules for what happens to properties outside of the UK when you pass away in England and Wales will depend on the laws of the country where the property is located. In Europe, all countries (except for UK, Ireland and Denmark) opted in to the EU Succession Regulation.

Contrary to popular belief, if you get divorced, remarried or enter a new civil partnership in England and Wales, your existing will is not automatically revoked. This means that your ex-spouse may remain a beneficiary and your new spouse doesn’t automatically become a new beneficiary if you have an existing will that reflects you wishes from your previous relationship.

As you plan your will, it’s natural to start thinking about what might happen to your pension when you pass away, and what the tax implications of passing on your pension to a loved one. How your workplace pension or a pension that you’ve set up yourself may be paid to your beneficiaries when you pass way depends on what type of pension you have.

Whether or not you should buy life insurance is a personal decision that depends on your individual circumstances. If you pass away, life insurance can provide financial security for your loved ones by paying out a lump sum of money. This money can be used to pay off debts, cover funeral expenses, or provide for your loved ones' future needs.

Ensuring that your loved ones are safe and secure in their own home is one of the most important considerations when writing a will, especially if they are dependent on you to keep a roof over their heads. What happens to your family home when you pass away in England and Wales depends on whether you have a will and how your home is owned.