Copy of Will

Stanford

Can any body advise if it is possible to get a copy of a Will made by a third party?

Agent Smith

I should hope not!

Stanford

Thats not particularly helpful

BlueLass

If the person is deceased then yes, it is possible to view their will. Obviously if the person is still alive then, unless they want to show you, then the answer is not.

Edit to add that once probate has been granted then a will is a matter of public record and you can apply to the probate office for a copy of the probated will.

Agent Smith

Stanford wrote: »

Thats not particularly helpful

Can i see your will?

I am a third party.

Unless your named in the will. I really dont think you should be entitled to see it.

Stanford

The person is deceased

Stanford

My question is a legal one and not a matter of opinion, is there a legally valid way of obtaining a copy of a Will given that Probate has been taken out and hence must be on record somewhere

Mr. Incognito

If they are dead and probate is extracted the will is available for a fee

Stanford

Thank you, can you please advise how I might go about obtaining a copy?

ct5amr2ig1nfhp

It is possible if the testator is dead and grant of probate has been granted. If the testator is alive , then it's up to them!

Stanford

The testators are still alive, I had heard somewhere that there is a central repository for wills for which probate has been extracted, somebody else mentioned the National Archives to me.

How do newspapers get details of the wills of private individuals and are able to name estate values and those who inherit under the will?

Mr. Incognito

Stanford wrote: »

Thank you, can you please advise how I might go about obtaining a copy?

http://www.courts.ie/Courts.ie/Library3.nsf/PageCurrent/D6536B4B00396842802575AF003E0ECC?opendocument&l=en

ct5amr2ig1nfhp

If they are dead, then yes the newspapers can pay a fee to view the will - as a previous poster mentioned.

If the testators are alive, you cannot view their Will unless they allow you to do so.

Is there a particular reason why you wish the Will? With more details, posters may be able to offer further advice.

Edit:

The person is deceased

The testators are still alive

Which is it? dead or alive?

Stanford

Many thanks for that useful link

Stanford

My wife and I were legally separated in 2007 and I am paying her considerable maintenance every month in respect of my adult children who are no longer dependant on her as they are both in University but under 23 so I must continue maintenance payments until,they reach the age of 23.

Her father passed away recently and I believe he left her a substantial inheritance leaving her financially independant, I am curious to see a copy of the Will to confirm if this is actually the case.

ct5amr2ig1nfhp

Yes, if grant of probate has been granted, the Will should be on public record. The link provided above should contain all the contact information you require.

In you circumstance I'd recommend you seek proper legal advice from a solicitor before stopping any maintenance payments.

Best of luck OP.

Stanford

Thank you, there is no question of stopping payments, any variation to payments under the Separation agreement would need to go back to the District Court for a ruling.

Peregrinus

Stanford wrote: »

My wife and I were legally separated in 2007 and I am paying her considerable maintenance every month in respect of my adult children who are no longer dependant on her as they are both in University but under 23 so I must continue maintenance payments until,they reach the age of 23.

Her father passed away recently and I believe he left her a substantial inheritance leaving her financially independant, I am curious to see a copy of the Will to confirm if this is actually the case.

If her father passed away "recently", no grant of probate may have been taken out yet. It can take months.

Once a grant of probate has been taken out, for a fee you can get a copy of the grant of probate from the probate office. Assuming he made a will, there'll be a copy of the will attached to the grant.

Note that that will tell you what he said in the will, but it won't tell you how much she got, or can expect. The typical will will say something like so much to my goddaughter, so much to the Vincent de Paul, my painting of "The Infant Samuel at Prayer" to my cousin Jasper, and the rest of the estate to be divided equally between my three children. Simply reading the will will give you no clue as to how much a one-third share in "the rest of the estate" is actually worth.

You can apply to court for a variation of the maintenance order. In those proceedings it's possible to have your wife give an account of her financial situation. This should disclose any inheritance she has received. Note, though, that if your father-in-law died "recently", she may as yet have received nothing at all.

nuac

Stanford wrote: »

My wife and I were legally separated in 2007 and I am paying her considerable maintenance every month in respect of my adult children who are no longer dependant on her as they are both in University but under 23 so I must continue maintenance payments until,they reach the age of 23.

Her father passed away recently and I believe he left her a substantial inheritance leaving her financially independant, I am curious to see a copy of the Will to confirm if this is actually the case.

She may be reading this forum and may give you a copy!

It is a small country; be careful what you post.

Your solicitor will advise you