Wills

[Livvyliv18]

Hi
my partner has recently lost his grandma and has been told he’s been left something in their will.
He’s now found out that his aunties and uncles are contesting the will as they don’t want the grandchildren to have anything.
Can he request a copy of the will? I’m not even sure they’ll tell him which solicitor they’ve used
Any advice ?

The aunties and uncles will have very limited options to challenge the will. If granny was of sound mind and they were not dependent on her, they can whistle. I'm assuming DG lived alone and was of sound mind?

I'm not sure if you can get a copy of the Will, but you can put in a standing search for probate, as the estate can't be distributed until probate is granted. I'd talk to a solicitor though as well.

I believe only executors have the right to see the will prior to probate being granted.

Your partner can request a copy but the executors can refuse.

The best way is to be patient and apply to the probate office for a standing search. www.gov.uk/search-will-probate It costs £3 and lasts 6 months, so your partner may have to renew.

Tell your partner not to sign anything without reading it, understanding it and possibly getting legal advice. The Aunts and Uncles may try to do a deed of variation and pass it of as just a boring form to sign.

Just one question, has your partner sadly lost his parent I.e. sibling to Aunts and Uncles? If not, are they not able to provide details of the will & solicitors?

Does he know who the executor is?

As far as I know you can only get access to a Will once probate has been granted.

Is this in England?

I can’t see how the uncles and aunties will win this if the Will was properly drawn up, signed and witnessed when she had capacity.

Is his own parent still alive?

His mum is the executor and she was the one that told him he had been left something in the will and asked for his address
They don’t have a close relationship and she has ignored any of his messages he sent her since the funeral
The Will was written over 10 years but I’m not sure what grounds the family think they can get the will changed

The simplest thing to do would be to ask his Mum for a copy of the Will, if she's an executor. It's up to her whether she gives it to him or not.

Don't do the standing search suggested by a PP. This is not the correct process and will delay probate completely unnecessarily. He's not contesting the validity of the Will so he should not do this.

TBH there is no much the aunts and uncles to do, if they simply don't like what's in the Will. That's not how the law operates. It sounds like they are driven my money (or if I'm being generous, grief). If grandma was of sound mind when she made the Will they won't get anywhere with contesting the Will. As for an Inheritance Act claim they'd be wasting their money on that too.

@Measureformeasure I’m curious why a standing search interferes with probate. My understanding is it just means you get a copy of the will and probate once it is finalised. It also saves you having to check regularly to see when probate is issued so you can apply for a copy.

So is his Mum also wanting the Will contested?

It’s in England.
Yes his mum and her 3 siblings.They’ve all had houses bought for them already.They all work so not dependent on the money.
None of them have been in contact with him so he has no idea what’s going on.
I just can’t see on what grounds they can change it.

Once probate is granted, you will be able to get a copy of the will from the Probate Registry.

Your last message suggests that his mother wants to contest the will. If she does, she will have to step aside as executor.

As the aunts and uncles were not financially dependent on their mother, an Inheritance Act claim against the estate will fail. They could attempt to contest the will on the grounds that:

• their mother did not have the necessary mental capacity
• she did not understand and approve of the contents of the will
• someone exercised undue influence over her
• forgery
• fraud
• the will has not been properly executed
• the will is unclear or does not carry out her intentions

If their only ground is that they don't think the grandchildren should inherit, they won't get anywhere.

@Measureformeasure A standing search won't delay probate, it's simply a notification that it has been granted. Only if the OPs partner puts a block on probate (can't remember what it's called) will probate be delayed.

@Livvyliv18 why do the aunts and uncles and his mother want the grandchildren to get nothing? It's very normal for grandparents to gift to grandchildren in their wills ?