Deliberately destroying a will

Emmia

Spendless said:

Emmia said:

Sea_Shell said:

Do HMCTS actually take a copy of the will themselves and keep it on record, or just store the will in a sealed envelope?

Does that only prove there was a will, not what was in it.

I presume that when the time comes, the will is extracted from the archive and sent to the executors.

I've wondered same thing as Sea Shell as I've talked on here about how our solicitors created the will and then posted it to us for us to get signed and witnessed ourselves (and has no idea if we did this or did it correctly). How does the relatives etc know that the will was stored with HMCTS. Is it a case of you have to tell relatives/beneficiaries in advance or is there an automatic check of this done say as part of probate?

How would your relatives know which solicitors the will was stored at? It's the same issue. 

Spendless

Emmia said:

Spendless said:

Emmia said:

Sea_Shell said:

Do HMCTS actually take a copy of the will themselves and keep it on record, or just store the will in a sealed envelope?

Does that only prove there was a will, not what was in it.

I presume that when the time comes, the will is extracted from the archive and sent to the executors.

I've wondered same thing as Sea Shell as I've talked on here about how our solicitors created the will and then posted it to us for us to get signed and witnessed ourselves (and has no idea if we did this or did it correctly). How does the relatives etc know that the will was stored with HMCTS. Is it a case of you have to tell relatives/beneficiaries in advance or is there an automatic check of this done say as part of probate?

How would your relatives know which solicitors the will was stored at? It's the same issue. 

I suppose in my parents case I know what solicitors they use for everything, so I'd try there first. It just seems that the general consensus is to make a will but then there seems to be loads of holes to fall  even if you do.

My will isn't stored at the solicitors - at best they have an unsigned version and no idea what happened to the posted out copy.

So what happens if someone dies, the relatives can't find a will, is there any sort of check other than HMCTS   to see if there is one?  

user1977

Spendless said:

Emmia said:

Spendless said:

Emmia said:

Sea_Shell said:

Do HMCTS actually take a copy of the will themselves and keep it on record, or just store the will in a sealed envelope?

Does that only prove there was a will, not what was in it.

I presume that when the time comes, the will is extracted from the archive and sent to the executors.

I've wondered same thing as Sea Shell as I've talked on here about how our solicitors created the will and then posted it to us for us to get signed and witnessed ourselves (and has no idea if we did this or did it correctly). How does the relatives etc know that the will was stored with HMCTS. Is it a case of you have to tell relatives/beneficiaries in advance or is there an automatic check of this done say as part of probate?

How would your relatives know which solicitors the will was stored at? It's the same issue. 

So what happens if someone dies, the relatives can't find a will, is there any sort of check other than HMCTS   to see if there is one?  

You can place an ad in the solicitors' trade press and then law firms can check whether they have any records.

pjs493

When my husband and I completed our Wills with a local solicitor, the originals were stored in their safe. The location of the Wills was sent to the National Wills Register (Certainty), although I'm not sure if copies were sent also. Presumably the solicitor firm has a duty to pass any original Wills to a new firm if they close and the details of the location of these Wills is then updated on the Register. 

We were provided with photocopies and details of the registration numbers for the National Wills Register. When my husband died I contacted the solicitor directly who sent me the original Will so I could send it off for Probate. They still have my original Will, but following my husband's death I will need to make a new Will and will inform the solicitor once this is done so that they are aware that the original they hold in no longer my Last Will and Testament. I'm unsure what they will do with the Will they have at that point.

We kept the copies of our Wills and the registration certificate for National Wills Register in our safe, so shortly after my husband died I was able to get his copy out of the safe when I was asked about it.

In your example I would suggest that the mother lodge the original Will with a solicitor. I'm surprised the firm gave the mother the original Will back and didn't store it securely themselves. It would also be worth the mother having a frank conversation with her children to explain the disparate division of assets and the reasons why she has chosen to do this. I know of an instance in my distant family where one child was given a larger proportion of the estate by their parents. This was intentional because the other two siblings had amassed substantial assets themselves over the years whereas the third sibling was in a not as lucrative line of work. The parents ultimately wanted all three children to be well provided for and giving an uneven division of assets was one way of ensuring this. All siblings were happy with the arrangement and knew about it in advance.

Mojisola

Sea_Shell said:

Do HMCTS actually take a copy of the will themselves and keep it on record, or just store the will in a sealed envelope?

Does that only prove there was a will, not what was in it.

You send the signed will to the Probate Service in a sealed envelope.

You list the executors on a piece of paper that is kept with your sealed will.

They send you a code number which you can use to retrieve the will at any time if you want to make changes.

You tell your executors where the will is being stored and give them the code.

In the case as explained in the first post, it wouldn't be wise to have the son as one of the executors as he could delay completion in a variety of ways in the hope of being gifted a larger part of the estate, just the speed things along.