Questions about making a Will

Laphroaig52

A few questions about how to make a valid will.

My will will be short and sweet:
My wife gets the lot whether she wants it or not - The money,my share of the house, the car, the computers and the box of rusty bits and pieces in the shed that 'might come in handy some day'. No exceptions.

If she pre-deceases me, the rotten, ungrateful brats will get it divided equally between them. No exceptions. Nothing for the mistress, the cat's home etc.

1. Assuming I have drafted and signed a will with all the minimum requirements, and witnesses, do I need to 'register' or file it anywhere. Or can I throw it in the back of a drawer until needed without expecting any legal challenges or complications later?

2. If I used professional legal services, typically how much would it cost? What would they do for me other than proofreading the content and format? Would they 'hold' the will for me until needed? Is there an ongoing fee for that?

3. Can an executor also be a beneficiary? Ideally my wife would be the executor.

4. Can a beneficiary or potential beneficiary act as a witness?

Any other considerations or experiences to share?

Thanks.

annieoburns

Sounds ok.... put in drawer so. But let others know of its location especially executor. No need to register it/post it anywhere tho there is talk of advantages of this proposal,

Solicitors sometimes have charity fundraiser when they will make up a will for set fee to go to charity.

Dont know about storage costs.... probably depends on whether you are a good customer and other business from you.

Yes the executor can be a beneficiary but may not witness the will. The witness is only certifying that he/she has seen you place your signature so they must be present at the time that you do so. No one needs to see the contents.

You could add in a back up person as a executor or even to act jointly with your wife.

You could put in where/how you wish to be buried. You can add in a 'letter of wishes' for minor stuff and this can be altered without affecting the will

Hippo

A witness must not be a beneficiary.

valleyoftheunos

A solicitor should be able to a Will quickly and professionally for somewhere in the region of €150 to €200. I've heard of some who will do it for much much less although I don't really know how a Will could be done properly for the rates I've heard. Many will keep the will for you.

Even in simple cases such as yours there can be additional possibilities and eventualities which you may not have thought of and which can present drafting pitfalls.

I would always advise someone to use a Solicitor for drafting a will but should you decide not to, do make sure you are fully informed before writing it.

Kosseegan

Hippo wrote: »

A witness must not be a beneficiary.

A beneficiary can be a witness but they cannot inherit. Similarly with the spouse of a beneficiary. The will is valid but the witness or spouse cannot benefit.

Another point is that solicitors are insured. If something goes wrong there may be the possibility of suing for professional negligence. IF you DIY and f - up your beneficiaries may have no recourse other than p**s on your grave.

Laphroaig52

Thanks all for the insights.

I am not sure I understand the last point - if a beneficiary/witness cannot inherit, how can they be a beneficiary?

I am still not convinced that there is a benefit to consulting and paying a solicitor for a simple will such as I have described.

If I died intestate I think that my wife would get the lot any way - unless the children decided to cause some trouble.

Not that they would do a thing like that......very good children.

Tipprobb

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/death/the_deceaseds_estate/what_happens_the_deceaseds_estate.html

Intestacy
If a person dies without having made a will or if the will is invalid for whatever reason, that person is said to have died "intestate". If there is a valid will, but part of it is invalid then that part is dealt with as if there was an intestacy. The rules for division of property on intestacy are as follows:

If the deceased is survived by

spouse/civil partner but no children - spouse/civil partner gets entire estate
spouse/civil partner and children - spouse/civil partner gets two-thirds, one-third is divided equally between children (if a child has already died his/her children take a share)
parents, no spouse/civil partner or children - divided equally or entirely to one parent if only one survives.
children, no spouse/civil partner - divided equally between children (as above)
brothers and sisters only - shared equally, the children of a deceased brother or sister take the share
nieces and nephews only - divided equally between those surviving
other relatives - divided equally between nearest equal relationship
no relatives - the state

valleyoftheunos

Flyer28 wrote: »

Thanks all for the insights.

I am not sure I understand the last point - if a beneficiary/witness cannot inherit, how can they be a beneficiary?

I am still not convinced that there is a benefit to consulting and paying a solicitor for a simple will such as I have described.

If I died intestate I think that my wife would get the lot any way - unless the children decided to cause some trouble.

Not that they would do a thing like that......very good children.

This is my point, you're incorrect. If you died intestate your spouse would get 2/3rds and your children a 1/3rd between them. It might not seem like a very big deal but these are all things that Solicitor knows and is thinking of when they draft a will. If you shop around a little bit, you should be able to find a solicitor to draft a will for you quite cheaply, if nothing else you're availing of their professional insurance. Just because you are able to draft a will for yourself doesn't mean that you have to or that its a wise idea.

:Edit: I should also point out that there can be significant Tax issues with Wills, an hour with a solicitor could save your inheritors thousands

Brownhead

I think you are just too mean to pay a solicitor. The mother of a friend of mine made a will. My friend was to get a share. My friend got her husband to witness the will. She ended up losing her inberitance because of her husband witnessing it. If a solicitor had allowed something like that to happen she could hsve sued. iIntestacy is a mess.
My aunt died intestate and it was major hassle and expensive. My cousins had to get the High Court to appoint an administrator. They could have had a hundred wills made for what they spent on fees.

coylemj

Flyer28 wrote: »

Thanks all for the insights.

I am not sure I understand the last point - if a beneficiary/witness cannot inherit, how can they be a beneficiary?

What he meant was that a person named as a beneficiary can be a witness in the sense that being named as a beneficiary does not disqualify them from being a witness (the important point is that the will is still valid) but the bequest to that person is void i.e. they cannot inherit.

As the law says that a witness cannot inherit, the practical effect of that is either that the entire will is invalid or the bequest is void but the will is otherwise valid. The law says that the latter applies. It is the bequest and not the person which is tainted by him/her being named as a beneficiary.

So I suppose you could say that they are a putative beneficiary but when the estate is being distributed they will get nothing.

Laphroaig52

Brownhead wrote: »

I think you are just too mean to pay a solicitor.....

You're probably right.