Wills Solicitors in Manchester

More than 70% of people in the UK do not have an up-to-date Will. If you are one of them, you are leaving a lot of potential uncertainty over whether your estate will be divided in the way you would wish once you pass away. You also risk leaving your loved ones with a long, drawn out probate process which can be highly stressful and may result in unwanted tension between your beneficiaries.

Writing a Will can be relatively straightforward or more complicated, depending on the size and complexity of your estate, your personal circumstances and how you want your estate to be divided. Using a specialist Wills solicitor in Manchester will ensure that your Will is legally valid (something many people get wrong with DIY wills) as well as making the process faster, simpler and less stressful.

6 reasons not to put off writing your will

If you haven’t got around to writing your Will yet, here are 6 key reasons not to put it off any longer:

• Make sure your estate goes where you want it to
• Ensure your dependants and other loved ones are taken care of
• Keep the probate process as fast and stress-free as possible
• Prevent arguments amongst your loved ones
• Help reduce your inheritance tax bill
• Give yourself peace of mind

Creating a legally valid Will

For your Will to be legally valid, it must:

• Specify how your estate should be shared once you pass away
• Be made when you were competent to make your own decisions
• Not be made under pressure from anyone about who to leave your estate to
• Be signed and dated by you in the presence of two adult witnesses who are not beneficiaries of the Will (including spouses or civil partners of direct beneficiaries)
• Be signed by the two witnesses in your presence

What to include in your Will

Your Will needs to cover what you want to happen to your entire estate. This can be done by making specific gifts of individual assets to specific people, or by simply stating the proportions in which you wish your estate to be divided between various people, e.g. 50% to your spouse, 25% each to your two children.

Your estate will typically include assets such as:

• Your home and any other property you own
• Your savings
• Life insurance and endowments
• Pension funds
• Investments
• Cars and other vehicles
• Jewellery, antiques and other high value possessions
• Furniture and other household objects

It is a good idea to have your estate valued when making a Will to ensure you know the full value of any gifts you are making so you can be confident your assets are being divided fairly.

Why choose Fieldings Porter’s Wills solicitors in Manchester?

Fieldings Porter has a highly experienced team of Wills solicitors based in central Manchester. We understand that creating a Will can be stressful and highly emotive for many people and our solicitors will help guide you through the process sensitively and efficiently to make things as easy as possible. We know all the common issues that can cause problems with probate and can help to ensure that things go smoothly for your loved ones after you are gone.

We also have plenty of experience handling probate and estate administration, so if you are an executor or beneficiary of an estate, or have any concerns about how a loved one’s Will is being administered, we can help.

Our Wills service includes:

• Preparation of Wills, trusts and deeds
• Reviewing and amending Wills
• Dealing with issues in Wills such as Guardianship
• Preparation of a Lasting Power of Attorney
• Tax Planning Advice and Will drafting

We recommend reviewing your Will at least once every 5 years. If you need a new Will, or to update your existing one, please get in touch with one of our expert Wills solicitors in Manchester today.

Resources for Wills in Manchester

Manchester Council

The Manchester council website gives you access to a wide range of information and resources available in Manchester. This can be a useful starting point for anyone looking to deal with many common issues.

Courts in Manchester

The government’s website provides a full list of all courts, tribunals and law centres available to you in Manchester along with contact details. This could be useful information if you find yourself needing to challenge a Will or defend yourself from such a challenge.

Citizens Advice in Manchester

The Citizens Advice Bureau can be a great starting point for information and advice on dealing with a whole range of legal issues. You can make an appointment to speak to an adviser in person or check out the free resources on their website.