One of the most commonly neglected tasks is that of making a will, the vast majority of people mean to make a will and often do but others just don’t get round to it. Most people have a clear idea who they wish to be their beneficiaries and nobody wants a third party, whom you have not chosen to include in your will, to attempt to claim your hard-earned inheritance. Challenges under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 are rising year on year and costing a considerable amount of time and money for all parties. The lawyers in the Legal Law Limited wills, inheritance and trust team frequently encounter poorly drafted wills without sufficient clarity leaving loopholes for disaffected relatives to try to snatch assets that were not intended for them.

The lawyers in the Legal Law Limited inheritance, wills and trusts team have comprehensive knowledge of succession law in various countries and will be able to advise on all scenarios and outline the potential consequences of the terms of your will; including keeping a existing will up-to-date, for example, if any of your beneficiaries are discovered to have pre-deceased are you happy for their next of kin to receive your bequest?

As families have become more complex than in the past, with stepfamilies, adoptions where contact is maintained with the birth family, surrogacy and other types of assistance in the creation of a family there is a greater need for an individual to ensure that their wishes regarding their estate are clear cut and are carried out as they intend. There are some sectors that are more susceptible to challenge. Many gay people face hostility from inside their families, even today, which can step up a level when a gay partner is introduced and even when there is acceptance this often abruptly changes when the person dies and the family will not accept that their relative’s life partner is the benefactor of the relative’s entire estate and not them. Other situations where the assets themselves seem to be a trigger for challenge are overseas properties and businesses. Entrepreneurs have added considerations and if they want their business to continue such things as commercial premises involved or assets and plant essential to the running of the business that need to be protected against the possibility of being liquidated thereby preventing the business continuing. Family businesses, particularly those that have survived several generations, sometimes encounter problems due to the expectation of the family of automatically inheriting. Also, a business owner may wish to make a bequest to reward a key person in their business who has significantly assisted towards its success, and the beneficiary finds that the deceased’s decision it is not a view shared by his or her family.

Whereas a person with real estate assets abroad should make should take the precaution of making a will in the country in where the property is located on two counts, to shorten the time taken to deal with that part of their estate and to avoid the potential for confusion which may lead to a challenge.

Very few people would like to think that their beneficiaries would have to deal with the burden of a long and often upsetting legal battle that is likely to achieve nothing but the erosion of their estate with legal fees and disturbs the peace of mind of their beneficiaries.