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Site updated:

12 February 2012

Wills

This information applies to Scotland

Why it is important to make a will

It is important for you to make a will whether or not you think you have many possessions or much money. It is important because:-

if you die without a will, (this is known as dying intestate) there are certain rules which dictate how the money, property or possessions will be allocated. This may not be the way that you would have wished your money and possessions to be distributed
couples who are not married or who have not registered a civil partnership do not automatically inherit from each other unless there is a will. The death of one partner may create serious financial problems for the remaining partner although the surviving partner can go to court to try and get some of the deceased partner’s estate
if you have children, you should make a will to protect the children in case either one or both parents or other carers die. You can name a guardian in the will and leave instructions for how they should provide care for the children
it may be possible to reduce the amount of tax payable on the inheritance if advice is taken in advance and a will is made
if your circumstances have changed, it is important that you make a will to ensure that your money and possessions are distributed according to your wishes. For example, if you have separated and your ex-partner now lives with someone else, you may want to change your will. If, after you have made a will, you get married or enter into a registered civil partnership, you will need to change it to include your new partner and exclude your ex-partner. If you don’t change it, your ex-partner can still inherit if s/he is named in the old will. If you are in any doubt as to whether or not you should make a will, you should consult a solicitor or a Citizens Advice Bureau which can give you lists of solicitors. To search for details of your nearest CAB, including those that can give advice by email, click on nearest CAB

Is it necessary to use a solicitor

It is generally advisable to use a solicitor or to have a solicitor check a will you have drawn up, to make sure it will have the effect you want. This is because it is easy to make mistakes and, if there are errors in the will, this can cause complex problems after your death. Sorting out misunderstandings and disputes may result in considerable legal costs, which will reduce the amount of money in the estate.

Some common mistakes in making a will are:-

not being aware of the formal requirements needed to make a will legally valid
failing to take account of all the money and property available resulting in some property having to be dealt with under the rules of intestacy
failing to take account of the possibility that a beneficiary may die either before the person making the will or before the estate is settled. A will can be drafted to take account of what happens to the beneficiary’s share if this happens
changing the will. If these alterations are not signed and witnessed, they are invalid
being unaware that marriage, civil partnership, divorce or dissolution of a civil partnership do not invalidate a previously made will
being unaware of the rules which exist to enable dependants to claim from the estate if they believe they are not adequately provided for. These are called legal rights. These rules mean that the provisions in the will could be overturned if dependents exert these rights.

When it is particularly advisable to use a solicitor

There are some circumstances when it is particularly advisable to use a solicitor. These are where:-

you share a property with someone who is not your husband, wife or civil partner
you wish to make provision for a dependant who is unable to care for themselves
there are several family members who may make a claim on the will, for example, a second wife or children from a first marriage
your permanent home is not in the United Kingdom
you are not a British citizen
you are resident here but you own or part-own overseas property
you are involved in a business.
you want your possessions to be distributed according to another legal system, for example, Islamic law.

Other help with writing a will

If you are a member of a trade union, you may find that the union offers a free will-writing service. A union will often use its own solicitors to undertake this work.

Will-writing services are available in books and on the internet. However, self help will-writing books and will-writing firms are not regulated by the Law Society of Scotland so there are few safeguards if things go wrong.

How much does a solicitor cost

The charges for drawing up a will vary between solicitors and also depend on the complexity of the will. Before making a decision on who to use, it is always advisable to check with a few local solicitors to find out how much they charge. You may have access to legal advice through an addition to an insurance policy which might cover the costs of a solicitor preparing or checking a will. If you and your partner are both making wills a solicitor may be prepared to offer a discount if the terms of each will are similar. These are sometimes called ‘mirror wills’.

Check if a solicitor in your area is providing a free will-writing service when you make a donation to a charity of their choice. Visit www.willaid.org.uk and www.willreliefscotland.co.uk for lists of solicitors taking part in the schemes.

What should be included in a will

To save time and reduce costs when going to a solicitor, you should give some thought to the major points which you want included in your will. You should consider such things as:-

how much money and what property and possessions you have, for example, property, savings, occupational and personal pensions, insurance policies, bank and building society accounts, shares
who you want to benefit from your will. You should make a list of all the people to whom you wish to leave money or possessions. These people are known as beneficiaries. You also need to consider whether you wish to leave any money to charity
who should look after any children under 16 and what provisions need to be made for them and any older children
who is going to sort out the estate and carry out your wishes as set out in the will. These people are known as the executors (see below)
if you want to leave property to a transsexual you must seek advice as you may have to refer to the person in their acquired gender, not their birth gender.

Who are executors

Executors are the people who will be responsible for carrying out your wishes and for sorting out the estate. They will have to collect together all the assets of the estate, deal with all the paperwork and pay all the debts, taxes, funeral and administration costs out of money in the estate. They will need to pay out the gifts and transfer any property to beneficiaries.

Who to choose as executors

It is not necessary to appoint more than one executor although it is advisable to do so, for example, in case one of them dies. It is common to appoint two, but up to four executors can take on responsibility for administering the will after a death. You may want to consider appointing an odd number of executors so that any disagreements do not result in deadlock. The people most commonly appointed as executors are:-

relatives or friends
solicitors or accountants
banks.

It is important to choose executors with considerable care since their job involves a great deal of work and responsibility. You should always approach anyone you are thinking of appointing as an executor to see if they will agree to take on the responsibility. If someone is appointed who is not willing to be an executor, they have a right to refuse.

If you do not appoint an executor the court has to do this after your death.

If an executor dies, any other surviving executor(s) can deal with the estate. If there are no surviving executors, the court can appoint one.

Requirements for a valid will

In order for a will to be valid, it must be:-

made by a person who is 12 years old or over; and
made voluntarily and without pressure from any other person; and
made by a person who is of sound mind. This means the person must be fully aware of the nature of the document being written or signed and aware of the property and the identity of the people who may inherit; and
in writing; and
signed by the person making the will on every page; and
signed by the person in front of a witness.

As soon as the will is signed and witnessed, it is valid.

Where to keep a will

Once a will has been made, it should be kept in a safe place and other documents should not be attached to it as this can make it more difficult to find. There are a number of places where you can keep a will:-

with a solicitor. Make sure that someone knows which solicitor’s office holds the original will
at a bank although it may charge an annual fee
at home. If you keep a copy at home it is a good idea to put it in an envelope that is clearly labelled. It is generally not a good idea to keep an original will at home as it can get damaged.

Changes of circumstance

When a will has been made, it is important to keep it up to date to take account of changes in circumstances. It is advisable for you to reconsider the contents of a will regularly to make sure that it still reflects your wishes and what you own. The most common changes of circumstances which affect who you want to leave your property to are:-

getting married, remarried or registering a civil partnership
getting divorced, dissolving a civil partnership or separating
the birth or adoption of children, if you wish to add these as beneficiaries in a will
death of a beneficiary
new assets.

If you do not change your will after a marriage, registration or dissolution of a civil partnership or divorce the existing will is still valid.

How to change a will

You may want to change your will because there has been a change of circumstances. You must not do this by amending the original will yourself after it has been signed and witnessed. Any obvious alterations to the will are assumed to have been made at a later date, do not form part of the original legally valid will and can give rise to expensive legal proceedings to establish which is the valid will.

The only way you can change a will is by making:-

a codicil to the will; or
a new will.

Codicils

A codicil is a supplement to a will which makes some alterations but leaves the rest of it intact. This might be done, for example, to increase a cash legacy, change an executor or guardian named in a will, or to add beneficiaries.

A codicil must be signed by the person who made the will and be witnessed in the same way. However, the witnesses do not have to be the same as for the original will.

There is no limit to how many codicils can be added to a will, but they are only suitable for very straightforward changes. If a complicated change is involved, for example, because a main beneficiary has died, it is usually advisable to make a new will.

Making a new will

If you wish to make major changes to a will, it is advisable to make a new one. The new will should begin with a clause stating that it revokes all previous wills and codicils. The old will should be destroyed. Revoking a will means that the will is no longer legally valid.

Destroying a will

If you want to destroy a will, you must burn it, tear it up or otherwise destroy it with the clear intention that it is revoked. There is a risk that if a copy subsequently reappears (or bits of the will are reassembled), it might be thought that the destruction was accidental. You must destroy the will yourself or it must be destroyed in your presence.

If a will is destroyed accidentally, it is not revoked and can still be declared valid if there is a copy available. Its validity would have to be proven in court.

Although a will can be revoked by destruction, it is always advisable that a new will should contain a clause revoking all previous wills and codicils. Revoking a will means that the will is no longer legally valid.

Challenging a will

A person may want to challenge a will because:-

they believe that the will is invalid; or
they believe that they have not been adequately provided for in the will. Only a spouse, civil partner, children or their descendants can challenge the distribution of assets in a will and claim their legal rights instead. A beneficiary who is not a relative with legal rights cannot challenge the will. There are time limits for challenging a will and if you want to challenge a will, you should seek legal advice as soon as possible. Your local CAB can give you a list of solicitors. To search for details of your nearest CAB, including those that can give advice by email, click on nearest CAB.

If a person who made a will commits suicide

If a person who made a will commits suicide, the will is still valid.

Changing distribution of property under a will

It is possible for beneficiaries of a will to change the division of the deceased’s estate as it is laid out in the will. This is done by a formal process called either a Deed of Family Arrangement or a Deed of Variation.

All the beneficiaries must agree to this. You must seek legal advice about doing this.

Power of attorney

You may wish to consider granting power of attorney at the same time as writing a will. Many people make the mistake of assuming that executors will automatically be granted a power of attorney should an accident or illness lead to a serious and permanent mental or physical impairment. A power of attorney must be drawn up separately and it is usually advisable for a solicitor to do this for you.