Will Writing, Estate Planning
and Trusts

• Without a Will your money and possessions will be distributed according to certain rules (intestacy) and may not go to the people you would have chosen.
• Intestacy can be an expensive, stressful  and a long-winded process for those left behind.
• Unmarried partners cannot inherit from each other unless there is a will so the death of one partner could lead to serious financial problems for the remaining partner
• You can state within a Will who you would like to be guardian of your children should something happen to both of you.
• Tax planning can be considered when you write a Will to try and avoid large taxes on your estate once you are gone.

Your Will does not need to be drawn up or witnessed by a solicitor but it is advisable to use a qualified Will writing professional. This is because it is easy to make mistakes and if there are errors in the will, this could lead to gifts failing or the Will being invalid. Sorting out misunderstandings and disputes could be an expensive process, which will reduce the amount of money in the estate and give additional stress to those left behind.

Some common mistakes in making a will are:-

• Not being aware of the specific legal requirements that will make a will valid
• Not taking account of all the money and property available
• Not accounting for all situations, for example, the possibility that a beneficiary or executor may die before the person making the will
• Not describing a gift of a specific item in sufficient detail resulting in the gift failing.
• Not being aware of the effect a marriage, registered civil partnership or divorce has on a Will

The Will Writer at Choice Wills and Trusts is legally trained and the company is a member of the Institute of the Professional Will writers so you can be assured all requirements are covered.

• What property and possessions do you have, for example, savings, property, personal and occupational pensions, insurance policies, shares.
• Who do you want to benefit from your will. You should think about all the people you would wish to leave something to. These people are known as beneficiaries. You also needs to think about whether you wish to leave any money to charity
• Who do you want to sort out your estate and carry out your wishes in your Will - Executors. (These can also be beneficiaries).
• Who do you want to look after your children until they reach 18
• Is there anybody you would not want to benefit from your estate.
• Do you have special wishes for you funeral / body when you die.

You can leave gifts to children under 18 but they cannot receive the gift until they reach at least 18. In the meantime the funds are held in Trust. If you think 18 is too young you can specify a later age when they will inherit. They will, however, be entitled to receive any income from the trust fund as soon as they reach 18. Whilst the funds are in the Trust the Trustees decide what income and/or capital can be used for the benefit of the children e.g. school fees. You need 2 Trustees (usually the Executors).

Executors are the people who you want to sort out your estate and carry out your wishes you have put in your Will. They will have to collect together all the assets of the estate, deal with all the paperwork and pay all the debts, taxes, funeral and administration costs out of money in the estate. They will need to pay out the gifts and transfer any property to beneficiaries.

You can appoint friends or family or professionals, for example your accountant or a bank, although professionals are likely to charge. Whoever you want to act you should ask them first to make sure they agree. If someone is appointed who is not willing to be an executor, they have a right to refuse.

You can have between one and four Executors. If you only decide on one Executor it is good practice to at least appoint a substitute in case something happens to your original choice before you die.

Whilst witnesses and spouses of witnesses cannot be a beneficiary under your Will these rules do not apply to Executors. Executors are permitted to receive gifts under the Will. Many people like to leave a small gift to their Executor as a thank you for the work they Will be carrying out. If you appoint professionals to be your Executors then you should remember that a firm is likely to charge for its services anyway.

Without a Will your money and possessions will be distributed according to certain rules, known as intestacy and may not go to the people you would have chosen. The rules of intestacy can be complex.

• Made by a person who is at least 18 years old; and
• Made by a person who is of sound mind. This means the person must fully understand the nature of the document being written and be aware of which people are going to inherit what property; and
• Made voluntarily and without pressure from any other person; and
• Be in writing; and
• signed and dated 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.

• The government sets what is known as a Nil Rate Band (NRB) each year. The NRB passes free of IHT. If your estate is worth more than that amount (twice this for couples) it will be subject to the rules governing IHT.
• Anything above the NRB will be taxed at 40%.
• Importantly, gifts to married couples are free of IHT as are gifts to a registered charities.
• There are other tax allowances for gifts of agricultural or business interests, but they are beyond the scope of these notes. If you have such interests and would like to find out if you can take advantage of these allowances, you should consult a solicitor or accountant.

You can state within a Will who you would like to be guardian of your children should something happen to both of you but you do not have to. Without this the courts would decide.

Unmarried partners or partners who have not registered a civil Partnership cannot inherit from each other unless there is a will so the death of one partner could lead to serious financial problems for the remaining partner The terms "common law husband" and "common law wife" are legally meaningless.

Getting divorced does not make a will invalid, but any gifts to the divorced spouse will fail.

You can include whether you would like to be buried or cremated in your Will as well as any other wishes you have for your funeral. Unfortunately, a Will is not always read until after the funeral so your wishes might not be followed. However, you can pre-arrange your funeral with a funeral plan company. Choice Wills and Trusts are part of the Co-operative Funeralcare plan service to give you the peace of mind that your funeral will be as you would want. It also takes away the emotional and financial burden from loved ones.

A Will should be kept in a safe place and other documents should not be attached to it. It should be stored somewhere that is fire-proof and water-proof and other people should be aware of where it is in case something happens to you. We offer storage facilities with the National Will Safe. Wills can be stored for a minimal annual charge.

• getting married
• getting remarried or registering a civil partnership
• getting divorced, dissolving a civil partnership or separating
• the birth or adoption of children, if you wish to add these as beneficiaries in a will.

• a codicil to the will; or
• a new will.

• A previous Will must be destroyed by burning it, tearing it up or otherwise destroying it with the clear intention that it is revoked.
• You must destroy the will yourself or it must be destroyed in your presence.
• A simple instruction alone to an executor to destroy a will has no effect.
•  If a Will is destroyed accidentally it is not revoked and can still be declared valid.

In the event you may become too ill to make decisions about how your life should be run you can record your wishes about what should happen to you. No one can request that their life be ended, but you can state whether you would not wish to have treatment that could delay death, or if you wish to have treatment that would reduce your suffering but might bring death sooner.

You have to nominate a person to administer this living will on your behalf.

A living will is not currently a legally binding document, but the wishes expressed in them have sometimes been followed.