What are mirror wills?

When you and your husband, wife or civil partner take advantage of a professional will writing service, you’re often asked whether you want mirror wills. What does that mean and how will it affect the way your will works?

Usually created by spouses or partners, mirror wills name each of the two testators as the main beneficiary of each other’s wills, with similar default beneficiaries in the event that one of you has predeceased the other, or both of you die together or within a short period of each other.

Having a mirror will is a very common will writing option for husbands, wives or civil partners who want to leave everything to each other, with their entire estate going to children on second death.

Can you change or replace one of the mirror wills without affecting the other?
Yes. All you’re doing when you make mirror wills is having an individual will written that’s similar in content to that of your husband, wife or civil partner.

The wills are stand-alone (ie they’re not dependent upon each other) so they can be individually amended, updated or replaced at any time. Despite the fact that you’ve made a mirror will, there’s no legal obligation to keep your will unchanged.

Why make mirror wills?
Mirror wills make life simple in will writing terms and are particularly useful for couples who have joint assets, relatively straightforward financial affairs and no children from previous relationships.

Because there’s a time saving in the will writing process, it's usual for a professional will writer to offer a discount on his or her fees for two mirror wills, providing a saving on the cost of have two individual wills written that are bespoke to each testator and include different beneficiaries etc.

When are mirror wills not appropriate?
Mirror wills don’t really make sense if one or both of you have children from a previous relationship. In this case, it’s usual to create a life interest trust in your estate for your spouse or partner, with your children ultimately inheriting your estate when your spouse or partner dies.

For professional, affordable will writing services, including mirror wills and individual wills, call 01473 659024 or email hello@cswills.co.uk

For more information on how to make a will visit www.cswills.co.uk

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What happens if you die without making a will? Do you need to make a will? The simple answer is 'yes', and here’s why. Many people either put off making a will or think it’s not something they need to think about. However, if you don’t make a will you can’t be sure that your money, possessions and assets will go to the people you want them to after you death. In fact, they could end up going to the State. No will. No control. If you’re resident in England and Wales and you haven’t written a will or commissioned a professional will writer to write a will for you, you will be classed as ‘intestate’ when you die. That means your money and property will be shared out according to the rules of intestacy. It doesn’t matter if you had loved ones to whom you were particularly close. Your estate will be treated by default in exactly the same way as the estate of anyone else who dies without making a will. The only people who can benefit from your estate if you die intestate are
Read more
Why should you make a will? 10 reasons to have your will professionally written - a guide for people living in Ipswich, Suffolk Never got around to making a will? There are 10 good reasons why you should rectify that situation and seek reliable professional help with will writing now... 1. Make sure your hard-earned cash goes to your loved ones Making a properly drafted and executed will means you'll avoid intestacy and have control over what happens to your money, possessions and property (your 'estate') after you die. For example, you may wish certain family members to receive specified amounts of money, property or possessions. A professional will writer can draft the will to make sure your wishes are carried out to the letter. 2. Choose the right people to care for your children It's only via your will that you can appoint guardians for your dependent children and ensure they're looked after by people you choose. If you don't appoint guardians, the decisio
Read more
What is a survivorship clause? When you make a will, it's common to include a survivorship clause. But what does that actually mean? If you've ever had a will written, or you've read somebody's else's will, you may have noticed that it included a 'survivorship clause'. That's a statement saying that anybody who dies within a specified time of the testator's death (up to six months) will be deemed to have predeceased them. Why do wills include a survivorship clause? The main reason for including a survivorship clause is to avoid two sets of probate for mirror wills which name husbands, wives or civil partners as sole main beneficiaries, in the event that both partners die at the same time or within a short time frame of each other. What happens if a husband and wife (or civil partners) die simultaneously? If you and your husband, wife or civil partner die at the same time (for example, in a car crash), and it's not possible to determine which of y
Read more