Welcome
The purpose of this site is to provide information, written in layman’s terms, about wills and the legal process which takes place when someone dies.
Which topics are covered?
On this site you will find articles, which are intended to provide an overview, on the following topics:
Importance of Making a Will
In this section you will find information about the advantages of making a will and what happens if someone dies without making a will.
Creating your Will
This section covers the sort of things you should take into account when preparing a will as well as the legal formalities which are required for a valid will and the various options for storing a will.
Leaving Property in a Will
This section explains about leaving jointly owned properties and property situated abroad.
Planning for Inheritance Tax
By preparing a will you may be able to mitigate your estate’s liability for Inheritance Tax. In this section you will find information about setting up trusts.
Legality of a Will
There are a number of matters which determine whether a will is valid and information about such matters can be found in this section as well as information about contesting wills.
Changing your Will
It is important to ensure that your will is kept up to date. In this section we explain the reasons for this and provide guidance on updating and destroying wills.
Living Wills / Power of Attorney
In this section you will find information about appointing someone to manage your financial affairs and ensuring that you are looked after. You will also find information in this section explaining how you can make your wishes known relating to future medical treatment in the event that you are unable to communicate such wishes at a later point in your life.
Probate
In this section you will find information about the legal process which takes place when someone dies. The process differs depending upon whether a person left a valid will or not.
Scottish Wills
This section explains the main differences between the laws of Scotland and England and Wales in relation to wills and intestacy.
To read the articles please click on the links at the left hand side of this page.
Using this site
We hope that you find the articles on this site both interesting and informative. The law relating to wills, probate and administration is complex and whilst every effort is made to ensure that the information contained on this site is accurate and up to date the information contained on this site should not be used as a substitute for taking legal advice.
Unless otherwise stated the information contained on this site relates to the laws of England and Wales. The laws of other countries are often very different.