Dealing with Missing Wills - Tricky Problems & Practical Solutions

Introduction

In an ideal world, wills will be stored in a safe place ready for production on the testator's death or registered with the National Wills Register so there cannot be any dispute over whether the deceased had a will.

Unfortunately, we do not live in an ideal world and following the COVID pandemic and the boom in will writers and other non-regulated parties offering will drafting services, probate practitioners are increasingly coming across situations where potential beneficiaries/executors are claiming that the deceased made a will but the same cannot be found.

This uncertainty can often lead to contentious litigation and a significant increase in the costs of administering the estate.

However, there are clear steps that practitioners can take to overcome the obstacle of a missing will and to obtain probate, allowing the administration of the estate to move forward as quickly and smoothly as possible.

This new virtual classroom seminar will look at what steps practitioners should be taking to try and locate the will, what options there are if a will cannot be found, and how to prove a copy will, with precedent claims, witness statements and client questionnaires.

What You Will Learn

This live and interactive session will cover the following:

• Practical steps to take to obtain a will
• Relevant legal presumptions and how they affect an application for a grant
• Questions for executors to help decide if a valid will was made
• Procedure for applying for a grant in respect of nuncupative and copy wills
• Procedure for dealing with damaged wills
• What to include in a particular of claim to prove a copy will
• What to include in an affidavit in support of such a claim
• What to include in an affidavit supporting due execution
• Common errors to avoid
• Recent case law

Recording of live sessions: Soon after the Learn Live session has taken place you will be able to go back and access the recording - should you wish to revisit the material discussed.