written Will

[hardy49]

Last week my father was told he has a tumour on his lung.We knew he had not been well for some time but this still came as a shock.
The first thing my father wanted to do was to put his affairs in order.The Will he made in 2003 was very much out of date as three of the beneficiaries have passed away,and some people he wishes to leave something to were not mentioned.
He said he did not feel well enough to go to the solicitor and said that he would rather fill in one of those Will forms as it is very straightforward.So we purchased the form and filled it in as he wished,and got it witnessed.
All he did was make a dozen or so bequests and the residue is left to my husband and myself,and we are the Executors.
Could somebody put my mind at rest by saying this should all go through ok ? This a very upsetting time as it is,but the last thing we would want when ,and if,anything happens,is to have complications with his Will.

[fredpuli47]

Expect so!

Check:

The Will must be signed by the person whose Will it is
("the testator") in the presence of two witnesses

The witnesses must sign that he signed in their presence AND that they sign in the presence of each other

A witness must not be a person who will receive something under the Will ( " a beneficiary") NOR who is married to a beneficiary

The Will is dated at the time.

Make sure that the Will is kept somewhere safe and you know where that safe place is (It's surprising how often there's a mad hunt for the original when it's needed!) It's useful to have a photocopy too, kept separately,for reference.Only the original Will is accepted for probate when the testator dies.

The only problem with some will forms that I'm aware of is that they sometimes use an old format which doesn't have a statement that the witnesses sign in the presence of each other.(Years ago it was common to have them sign only that they witnessed the testator signing, without saying that they themselves signed in the presence of each other)

[glenis]

why not get a solicitor to come out to your father ,i think they charge a little extra for this service ,but then you can be 100% sure that everything is ok

[fredpuli47]

I expect they did, but witnesses should also put their addresses under or against their signatures.

It is customary to give the witness' occupation, too

[hardy49]

Yes,I had thought of that - but Dad decided that was what he wanted and I did not really want to argue with him.
As fpr the other pints,the Will form we have does say that the Witnesses are "present at the same time "

[MustafaTickl]

I dealt with this a little while ago in answer to a similar question on Answerbank, and for ease of reference I copy my reply here:

"To ensure that your Will is valid it must be properly witnessed. You need two witnesses who should be over 18 and preferably neither very old nor hard to trace in case of a later question concerning the validity of your Will. A beneficiary cannot witness your Will and neither can a blind person. Also, you shouldn't use someone as a witness if he or she is married to a beneficiary because they will lose the benefit of their gift although your Will will remain valid. An executor or his or her spouse can be a witness unless he or she is also a beneficiary as can a professional adviser who may charge for his or her services. You must sign your Will in the presence of the two witnesses and they must then both sign in your presence and in the presence of each other as witnesses to your signature. Neither you nor any witness should leave the room until your Will is both signed and witnessed and you should all see each other sign. Your signature must be your usual signature in ink and dated. Ensure that the witnesses complete their names, addresses and occupations in the space provided. Another important matter is that if your Will is stapled it must never be unstapled."

If what you have done complies exactly with this then the Will is OK.

[hardy49]

Thank you all very much for your help

[dzug]

An additional point - either all copies of the earlier will should be destroyed or (preferably) the new one should have a clause cancelling the old.

Otherwise BOTH could be valid with endless scope for dispute where they conflict.

[hardy49]

Thank you .