Witnessing a will

[Chris S]

UNISON offer their members a free on-line will-making service.
My mother has just got hers back and their is a note on the bottom saying the witnesses can't be relatives.
Is this correct and are distant relatives (e.g. first-cousins) also excluded?

 

[T4tomo]

Tell her to pop next door and get her neighbour to witness it. If it says no relatives ,it means no relatives

 

[Archie_tect]

I thought it just excluded trustees or beneficiaries named in the will? +1 for neighbour or her doctor would sign it but he or she will charge a fee.

 

[Asa Post]

The witnesses can't be people who benefit from the will, or close relatives of such people. If they are beneficiaries, that bit of the will is invalid but the rest of it remains valid.
There is no specific law saying that relatives can't be witnesses, but the danger is that they will fall foul of the 'not a beneficiary' rule.

The reason witnesses are required is so that they can testify that the will was signed in their presence if there is ever a challenge to its authenticity. Having independent people as witnesses prevents arguments about giving false evidence because of a vested interest in the outcome.
You should also try to choose witnesses who will outlive you.

 

[Archie_tect]

That's because architects couldn't recognise a contract if they were staring at one.

 

[Ganymede]

I took mine to the corner shop (small village btw) and got the shopkeeper and a random customer to watch me sign it then sign it themselves.

Please note - they don't have to read the document, just see you sign it! So the secrets of your estate remain yours alone!

But any of her friends can witness it as long as they are not beneficiaries.

 

[palinurus]

Good reminder- I must get ours witnessed- also prepared through the union, it's been sitting in a drawer for two weeks.

 

[Ganymede]

Good reminder- I must get ours witnessed- also prepared through the union, it's been sitting in a drawer for two weeks.

Don't wait. Friend of mine recently dropped dead with no warning. His partner is left with a right old legal mess. He was due to sign his life insurance two days later.

 

[Chris S]

Tell her to pop next door and get her neighbour to witness it. If it says no relatives ,it means no relatives

Not a good idea - a lot of my mother's neighbours are Pashtuns (the same ethnic group as the Taliban) and she's leaving some money to Armed Forces charities. There have been terrorism related arrests in the area and we wouldn't want this information getting to the wrong people.

 

[Ganymede]

Not a good idea - a lot of my mother's neighbours are Pashtuns (the same ethnic group as the Taliban) and she's leaving some money to Armed Forces charities. There have been terrorism related arrests in the area and we wouldn't want this information getting to the wrong people.

Like I say, they don't need to read the will. They just need to see the signature, though I can see how it could be awkward, depending on the layout of the pages.

 

[Archie_tect]

.... we wouldn't want this information getting to the wrong people.

You shouldn't've said that....

 

[Berties]

I just got the secretary at the solicitors to whiteness mine,then it's gets held at the bank with my deeds etc till that calling of the grim reaper comes

 

[Archie_tect]

Our joint wills were drawn up by a small firm of solicitors who arranged the conveyance of our first house 29 years ago and then they updated them when we moved 22 years ago. That firm has grown over the years and is now the biggest in the NE.... must check what their % will be to administer the will- may end up being nothing left for Master and Miss A_T... Mind you, that's Mrs A_T's intention!

 

[Stu Plows]

Our joint wills were drawn up by a small firm of solicitors who arranged the conveyance of our first house 29 years ago and then they updated them when we moved 22 years ago. That firm has grown over the years and is now the biggest in the NE.... must check what their % will be to administer the will- may end up being nothing left for Master and Miss A_T... Mind you, that's Mrs A_T's intention!

Administer? Do you mean you appointed them as your executors?

I help run an Estate Planning business which includes Wills, trusts and Powers of Attorneys. In response to the OP, the Witness must be totally independent. Even a long-term partner of a beneficiary (a girlfriend or boyfriend of your child say) could be contestable, so neighbours that you trust are often the best choice or friends of the family.

 

[Archie_tect]

Due to the complexities of shutting the practice down if anything premature happened to me it seemed a good idea to have one of them included with Mrs A_T when the children were small.

Now they are grown up it isn't so critical but Mrs A_T would still need some help to wind everything up with the mid-term projects, numerous collateral warranties and such like, or ideally, sell it as a going concern! If anything were to happen to both of us before I retire, it would be essential to guide the children through the minefield!

Note to self: need to do some checking before I forget.... thanks Stu!