Advice ahead of marrying

Newly_retired

You may want to consider discussing the situation with your children too.

Fireflyaway

I would definitely get legal advice. I know of someone who died and hadn't changed his will. He was quite young in an accident. His wife and kids were left with nothing and his ex wife got the lot! I have no idea on the legalities, if she was specifically named or what, but I know its not what he would have wanted! Better check than make a mistake.

margaretclare

As others have said, marriage invalidates any existing will. That means you both need a new will.

Malthusian

Fireflyaway wrote: »

I would definitely get legal advice. I know of someone who died and hadn't changed his will. He was quite young in an accident. His wife and kids were left with nothing and his ex wife got the lot! I have no idea on the legalities, if she was specifically named or what, but I know its not what he would have wanted! Better check than make a mistake.

That doesn't add up. When he married his second wife, any Will he made during his previous marriage would have been revoked. If he didn't bother to make a new Will, intestacy laws would have applied and his estate would have gone to either his second wife or his second wife + kids depending on the size of his estate.

I can only think of two scenarios which would result in everything going to his ex wife; 1) for some reason he made a Will after marrying Wife-2 that left everything to his ex wife (pretty far-fetched, and probably open to challenge under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act) 2) his ex-wife had some kind of charge (a debt) against his assets which had to be repaid before the estate was distributed, and swallowed up the estate (also seems unlikely).

It's more likely that we are not talking about a wife but an unmarried partner.

comeandgo

In Scotland a divorce and marriage does not render a will revoked.