making a will

[bubbly1973]

i have just made an appt with solicitors to make a will, its quite expensive, so i was wondering if anyone has made those self made wills which you buy over counter from whsmith

and are they just as good as the ones made with solicitor

i have children and i dont care about the money being left as much as i care that my wishes are carried out as to who looks after them if both me and dh die

hopefully someone can help

I'd always use a solicitor (but then, I do work in the legal profession)

AFAIK (i do divorce, not wills) you can only state a WISH in a will re care of your children, if there is an argument after yo uhave gone between family members, then a court will make final decision.

DIY wills are a nightmare when they go wrong (which they often do); you are far better off using a Solicitor as planned.

gosh, i didnt know that, the whole point of me wanting a will is so there isnt a fight..

didnt realise the court would go behind someones wish and decide even though i will clearly say in my will who is to have my children

DH is a solicitor speacilising in this area of law. Have said it before on MN but here goes - he makes more money from sorting out a DIY will and will-writer wills, which do go wrong and more often than people may think - than he does from drafting a will designed specifically for you and your circumstances.

Guardianship is not legally binding regardless of who makes the will. Although courts will take your wishes into a ccount should they be contested.

thank you for all your responses, after reading them, if i decide to make a will i will do it through a solicitor, but in saying that there seems little point in keeping my appt as the whole point was to make sure the kids were looked after by who i wanted them to be looked after by

i am assuming that any money would be shared equally between the kids anyway

actually as i type this i think perhaps i might as well just go and do it for peace of mind that i done my bit whilst alive

(going on holiday with dh without the kids you see! so want to get things sorted incase some t*&t puts a bomb on my plane )

bubbly - you'd be suprised at how many people go and see DH for a quick last minute will before they fly out p;aces.