Blog
Kingsley Napley’s Medical Negligence Team ‘walks together’ with the Dame Vera Lynn Children’s Charity
Sharon Burkill
Two-thirds of adults in England and Wales pass away each year without having made a valid Will. Some people simply don't get round to making one; others don't realise that significant events in life, for example marriage, can revoke a previously made Will. Whatever the precise reason for not leaving one, such individuals are said to die 'intestate' and their estates are governed by the ‘intestacy rules’. These determine the distribution of a deceased’s estate after any debts and liabilities, funeral expenses and costs of the administration of the estate have been paid.
The average Briton now delays making a Will until they are 72 years old according to a recent survey by Remember a Charity. Only three in 10 people in the UK actually have a Will and many of us simply don’t write a Will at all in spite of this being an age of increasingly complicated financial affairs, complex family dynamics and people moving between countries. The lack of engagement or willingness to arrange our affairs is somewhat surprising given the difficulties that can arise if matters are not dealt with and how these may affect the passing down of wealth to your children and through generations.
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Sleepless in Seattle, Miracle on 34th Street – all heart-warming tales of single parents who find love again. But all are alarmingly silent about whether the parent in question took steps to protect their wealth for their children’s future.
A Will made by someone who lacks mental capacity is not valid. Just because someone is elderly or suffering from a mental illness does not automatically mean that they lack capacity to make a Will.
Sharon Burkill
Natalie Cohen
Caroline Sheldon
Skip to content Home About Us Insights Services Contact Accessibility