Draft will 5 March at 6:29PM in Deaths, funerals & probate 17 replies 835 views

Disco88

Is there any way a draft will can be used in contesting a will if unsigned as testator suddenly died. 

Keep_pedalling

Highly unlikely.

user1977

More information needed...but I wouldn't say there's any principle that a draft Will ought to be given effect to - testators are entitled to chew over things and decide not to sign - or the draft may have been inaccurate in the first place.

Disco88

Looked after a friend became really close friends. He had 2 children who has been estranged from for for over 20 years. An old will was leaving his estate ti them. 2016 he had a Solictor contact them that if they didn’t want contact he was changing his will. They never replied. Over the last month he had become unwell, been placed in a home and then told to leave over a dispute about funding. My friend has said for the last few years he didn’t want the children to have the house & he was going to change the will leaving me some beneficiary. He went to a solicitor ti change his will who said he had concerns about his mental capacity although that very same day they concluded my friend had full mental capacity to sort his health and house out. 

Unfortunately things became very stressful for my friend and his health deteriorated rapidly which ended up in hospital admission. He kept telling me to contact the Solictor as he was adamant they wasn’t going to get anything as they didn’t want ti know him. 

The Solictor was contacted several times to say his health was deteriorating & he wanted his affairs in order. 

Unfortunately he passed away. 

I have the keys and old deeds to his house & land. 

I’ve contacted his children to inform them of his death and they say even though his wishes was different to an older will everything is there’s. 

Disco88

Even up to his passing he kept telling me to make sure they didn’t get anything. I feel like I’ve let him down 

msb1234

did did he actually have the solicitor draw up a new will? If so, who are the beneficiaries?

bobster2

So there is a will - which leaves everything to his children. But you would like to contest this somehow - based on what you report he said to you about his wishes? Or do you have a printed draft saying this (which was never signed)?

Disco88

I presume the solicitor had a drafted copy of his new will? Every time I phoned to say his health was deteriorating & was in hospital he just said he needed to confirm his mental capacity 
he said ti get a dr to email him which the dr’s said they didn’t have time to do this and he should be contacting them. 

In his conversation with the Solictor for his new will he named me as executor & beneficiary. He gave me the keys to his house a few weeks previously saying it’ll be yours soon I will never set foot in their again 

one of the children now wants me to pass over the keys. I know I have no legal right to keep I just feel I’m going against his wishes 

Disco88

The new drafted will wasn’t signed, the Solictor said it would be mailed out once he had clarified his mental capacity. Unfortunately this took too long as he passed 8 days later. 

Keep_pedalling

You have zero chance of successfully challenging his will, just forget it

Disco88

Keep peddling.. thank you. Is this a professional opinion?