frustrated and unsure of option

wkdboi wrote: »

This will be a quick summary post


Father died, funeral done, burial is done and dusted.


My brother has said the will is to be read Sunday evening at his house, which seems a little late and given the bad relationship we have, I would rather this was done somewhere else less bias.


From what my brother has said to me the entire house has been left soley to him (unsure if I can challenge this)


I am unsure what/if anything has been left to me can I not just ask for a written copy of will?

Will reading comes straight out of an Agatha Christie novel! There really is no need for it. Until you see the will anything else is speculation.

Tom99 wrote: »

Or just say sorry can't do Sunday please send/email me a copy of the will.

I would just go for that - no need to be in a difficult situation / location

A key factor is who the Executors are, and are they named on this will. Also, are you certain that any will being brandished is the most recent one, revoking any others that pre-date it. If the said brother is not the Executor, then whoever is needs to have possession of it to forward events. Common sense says in a reasonable situation it would be courteous for all significantly interested parties to have access to a copy of the original.


It might be worth going over your memory and writing down any times and dates you remember discussing inheritance with your father, the brother in question and any other relatives or interested parties, just in case things become awkward later.

wkdboi wrote: »

Thanks Eddy, As far as I know, when I was younger and changed my name via deed poll, my father updated the will to reflect that, however in the last 2 years prior to his death he gave my brother Power of Attorney over his affairs as he was ill and unable to do alot himself.. I highly believe a new will was written in the period which favoured my brother having a better share, I suspect some kind of foul play was done.

Even more reason to ask for a copy of the will and not attend this 'reading'. Whatever the will says, or does not say, is not going to change just because you are not there.

One of the things that someone with Power of Attorney cannot do is amend the donor's will, so your farther would have had to have changed his will while he was fit to do so.

If you can get a copy of the will and are still concerned, see if you can trace the witnesses. They may be able to relate the circumstances under which the will was signed. Be aware that a will signed in a solicitors office will probably have had members of staff called in to be the witnesses and even if you can find these people, they shouldn't discuss it with you due to their duty of confidentially to their client (your dad). They will also have probably witnesses many wills being signed and will not be able to recall the specific circumstances under which your father's will was signed.