SPECIALIST WILL WRITING

Safeguard your home and estate – A comprehensive guide to protecting your children's inheritance. Paul King explains...

Does this sound
familiar to you?...

“We’ve made our Wills, leaving everything to each other first and then to the children.” Sounds reassuring enough, doesn’t it?

These are known as Mirror Wills. But your children could end up with very little - or even nothing at all. This is because traditional Mirror Wills leave a lot to chance. If you’ve already made Mirror Wills or have been thinking about making a Will, then our jargon-free guide explains all you need to know about our new style April Wills®.

April Wills® offer greater protection and flexibility to your family bloodline than old-style Mirror Wills. For example, April Wills® can include a legal ‘ring-fence’ around your children’s inheritance. The child remains in complete control of their inheritance and can do as they wish with the money, but April Wills® gives them added protection from challenging life events such as divorce, remarriage or creditors. Our clients are often surprised to learn that their standard Mirror Wills made previously with another firm offer little or no guarantees that their children’s inheritance will not pass sideways out of the family bloodline.

bloodline
Safeguarding the family bloodline

Safeguarding the family bloodline

Here, Paul King TEP, Head of Client Services, explains how April Wills® can avoid unwanted surprises.

“If I have a Mirror Will leaving everything to my wife and she remarries or goes into care after my death, then either the new husband or the local authority are likely to inherit most, if not all, of my assets ahead of my children.”

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“Even if my children are named in my Mirror Will, it is by no means certain that they will inherit anything. This is because a remarriage would cancel the Will my wife had previously made with me and make the new husband next-of-kin.”

“This often comes as a big shock to my clients who had perhaps thought that all was in order and that the family bloodline would one day inherit.”

“The same is true for thinking that their children and/or grandchildren will one day benefit under a Mirror Will. If any of your children should die leaving everything to their husband or wife, and that son-in-law or daughter-in-law should then remarry, then your grandchildren would be the ones to lose out under the line of inheritance.”

“Worse still, someone else’s grandchildren would be in line to receive the benefit of all your years of hard work!”

“The word ‘bloodline’ doesn’t appear anywhere in your new April Will®. Your daughter-in-law and/or son-in-law will be none the wiser, on the surface, it looks as though you have been inclusive.”

“While your children remain happily married, your son or daughter will have full access and control to their own bloodline account at their bank. They can even spend their inheritance on their spouse if that’s what they want to do. But should that marriage falter, that is when the bloodline protection comes into effect. In short, your child’s inheritance is for their use only and kept outside of their matrimonial assets. Your grandchildren are stated as the ultimate destination of your estate.”

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At April King, our lawyers will look at your individual family circumstances and explain which options would be most suitable for you.

 

April King Legal offers:

A free information pack about Wills and Lasting Powers of Attorney.

Smart ways to pass what you’ve worked so hard for down your bloodline.

A free one-hour appointment to discuss your Will, without obligation.

Highly competitive fees, and home visits at no extra charge.*

Individual bespoke advice based on your personal circumstances and goals.

Firm run by a STEP-qualified lawyer and regulated lawyer-managed process.

Your free, no-obligation information pack explains:

tick Why, if you have a spouse/partner, a “Mirror Will” could put your assets at risk.
tick How April Wills® can ensure your estate is inherited by family, not ex-partners or predatory third parties.
tick Avoiding care home fees: How to legally ensure nearly all of your hard-earned assets are not used for care fees.
tick How to nominate in advance someone you trust to manage your affairs if you become unable to do so.

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