Frequently asked questions

Making a will is crucial for several reasons:

• Choose who will administer your estate and pass your assets to your beneficiaries. This can be family members, friends, professionals, or a combination, known as your Executors.
• Appoint trustees for any ongoing trusts created in your will.
• Name guardians for any minor children.
• Confirm who inherits your assets, and on what terms.
• Specify particular assets, including business assets, farming assets, and specific items or collections (jewellery, cars, art).
• Express your preferences for your funeral wishes.
• Maximise tax efficiency.
• Address assets located outside the UK, such as holiday homes and foreign bank accounts.
• Have peace of mind knowing your wishes and objectives are recorded in a legally binding way.

Without a valid will, your estate is subject to intestacy rules, which means there’s no guarantee your wishes will be met. This could result in unintended beneficiaries receiving your assets. Special care should be taken if you are a co-habiting couple, own assets jointly with someone other than your spouse or civil partner, or have assets located outside the UK.

No matter how you choose to write your will, we adhere to the following timeframes:

• Draft wills will be sent within 10 working days of receiving your 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 draft approval.

If your situation is urgent, please let us know immediately so we can adjust these timescales accordingly.

Copy wills will be sent within two working days of receiving the executed final will.

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 think that living together for years makes them ‘common law spouses’ with the same rights as married couples or civil partners. However, this isn’t the case. Co-habiting couples don’t have the same inheritance rights. In fact, a co-habiting partner has no automatic entitlement to their partner’s estate. That’s why it’s crucial to put arrangements in place to protect the surviving partner, especially when minor children are involved. It’s all about ensuring peace of mind and security for the future.

Unless your will is made with a specific marriage in mind, it will be automatically revoked when you say “I do”. This means you’ll be treated as if you don’t have a will, and your estate will be distributed according to intestacy rules. On the other hand, divorce doesn’t revoke your will, but it does have a significant impact. Essentially, your former spouse or civil partner is considered to have passed away before you on the date your marriage or civil partnership was dissolved. Since financial arrangements during a divorce can be complex, it’s a good idea to update your will either as a temporary measure or for the long term once your financial settlement is finalised. It’s all about keeping things clear and ensuring your wishes are honoured.

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.

If you choose to use our post or phone-based services you can still pay online, or over the phone if you prefer.

If an individual loses capacity without a previously appointed attorney, it may be necessary to make an application to the Court of Protection for a deputy to be appointed. Read more about our Court of Protection team or consult one of our power of attorney solicitors to check if you can still avoid court.

An LPA only takes effect once it has been registered with the OPG.

It can be registered whenever you choose, but if it is registered immediately after it has been completed, it is simply stored safely and only put into use once it is needed.

Registration itself does not mean that the individual in question has lost capacity. They can carry on making decisions in the usual way until capacity is lost. The important thing to remember is that an LPA cannot be used at all until it is registered.

Some of our clients anticipate the need to register an LPA once they’ve been diagnosed with an illness or started living in care. Our team of experienced Lasting Power of Attorney solicitors ensure the process is initiated without disturbing your comfort or peace of mind as you prepare for the future.

An LPA can be cancelled by the donor at any point while they retain capacity to do so. This must be done by way of formal revocation and not by simply altering the original LPA.

If an individual’s attorney is their spouse or civil partner, their appointment will be ended by a divorce, dissolution or annulment of the marriage or civil partnership, unless it has been expressly stated otherwise in the LPA.

An attorney’s precise powers will depend upon the type of LPA that has been set up and whether any restrictions on their powers have been included in the document. In general, an attorney must:

• Make decisions that are in the donor’s best interests
• Only make decisions they are enabled to by the terms of the LPA
• Not delegate authority they have been given to others unless authorised to do so
• Maintain the donor’s confidentiality
• There are some things the attorney cannot do, such as:
• Sign a will on behalf of the donor
• Act in circumstances in which their power is expressly limited or forbidden by the donor
• Make gifts on the donor’s behalf, except in limited circumstances
• Make decisions that are not in the donor’s best interests
• Make decisions using a Health and Welfare LPA unless the donor has lost mental capacity
• Consent to the donor’s marriage or divorce

Our team of power of attorney solicitors can provide a more detailed understanding of these terms and responsibilities upon consultation.

A completed form needs to be sent to the OPG, along with the requisite court fee. The fee is currently £82 per document, although some people may qualify for an exemption.

In our experience, it can take 10-12 weeks for the registration process to be completed by the OPG. Taking professional advice and filling out the forms with the help of a power of attorney lawyer could prevent problems later.

Yes, it is possible to object to the registration of an LPA for a loved one. To do this you will need to lodge an application with the OPG and we would suggest you obtain legal advice before doing so.

Enduring Power of Attorneys (EPAs) were prevalent before October 2007, after which they were replaced by LPAs.

EPAs, like a Property and Financial Affairs LPA, enabled individuals to make decisions on behalf of individuals in respect of property and financial affairs.

Although new EPAs cannot be created, those that were executed prior to October 2007 can still be used. An EPA only needs to be registered if the donor has lost (or is losing) mental capacity and can still be used before that time, assuming there is no restriction within to the contrary.