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Know Your Pink Law 4: Making A Will
A leading law firm tells Pride Life why itââ¬â¢s so important to make a will.
I am in the process of sorting out my finances and I was wondering if I really need to make a will?
In short, yes. It is highly advisable to have a will. If you do not have a will your estate will be subject to a legal process known as “intestacy”. Intestacy just dictates how and to whom your estate will be distributed.
If you are not in a Civil Partnership your partner will not benefit at all under the intestacy laws. If you are in a Civil Partnership your partner will only benefit to a certain extent, after which whatever else you have will be distributed according to the intestacy laws. A will is an essential document to provide your partner with some security.
One major financial advantage of a Civil Partnership is that anything you transfer to your Civil Partner on death, or during your life, is exempt from inheritance tax.
What if my partner has passed away without leaving a will? What can I do?
Under these circumstances, if you were in a Civil Partnership then you will get something from the estate. If not, then technically you would normally get nothing.
However, in each of these circumstances, you can take action to increase the amount, or ensure that you get something from the estate.
There are three main ways in which this can happen:
Firstly, if there is no will it is possible to agree with those who will benefit under intestacy to a different distribution of the estate. Unfortunately, it is rare for families to agree such things and you are more likely to have to take legal action.
Secondly, you can make a claim against your partner’s estate under the Inheritance Act in cases where you have not been properly provided for. For this to work you would need to have been financially dependent on your partner for a certain period of time.
Another way of claiming against the estate would be if you have contributed to the ongoing costs of running the property. This is particularly true if you have contributed to mortgage payments. This would enable you to make a claim against the estate on the basis that you have an equitable interest. Of course, to substantiate this you would need some kind of evidence.
Is there anything else I should be aware of when looking into making a will?
There is of course the possibility that even if there is a will a member of the family who would otherwise benefit may try to claim that the will is void for some reason.
Therefore, it is best to make wills when you and your partner are both of sound mind and perfectly capable so it may not be argued later that they are invalid.
Russell Jones & Walker is a leading national firm of solicitors that has been upholding the legal rights of individuals for more than eighty years.
As partners of Stonewall, and through their work with the Terrence Higgins Trust, they are acutely aware of the specific legal issues faced by the gay community.
For advice about planning for the future please visit Russell Jones & Walker's dedicated pages where you can get more information and contact details
You can visit the Russell Jones & Walker website here
If you have any legal questions you would like answering then email Editor@pridelife.co.uk
