How do I change my Will?

Over time, circumstances can, and usually do, change. When that happens and you’ve already made your Will, it makes sense to review it to make sure it still reflects your wishes. For instance, you may have divorced or gotten married. You might have a new child or grandchild. Your health or financial circumstances might have altered dramatically leading you to review your wishes. There are many more instances when you might consider making changes to your Will. That apart, it’s always sensible to review it regularly in any case – perhaps once every five years or so just to make sure it does reflect your wishes.

You need to remember that your Will is a legal document so don’t be tempted to just add some hand-written notes at the end. That could cause more problems than you might think it will solve! If you used a solicitor to prepare your Will, it will have been properly constructed and your signature would have been witnessed. This formal process ensures your Will is valid and having a solicitor involved helps make sure you didn’t sign it under any form of duress.

If you do wish to make changes to your Will, it’s very important that you make sure nothing you do invalidates the things you wish to keep in place.

There are two main ways to change your Will. You can have a Codicil drawn up or you can create an entirely new Will.

A Codicil is a document that is read in conjunction with your Will. It is normally used for minor changes to your Will. You can create as many Codicils as you want, but we would caution against this because it can become difficult to interpret your intentions. Like your Will, a Codicil has to be witnessed. It’s always a good idea to ask your solicitor to prepare a Codicil for you and he or she will check this against your Will to ensure there is no conflict.

For more major changes, and to avoid any confusion or conflict with your original Will, it’s sometimes more practical to prepare a brand-new Will. When you do this, you can clearly set out your intentions – both new and old – in a single document. This helps ensure there is no confusion or conflict. In addition, a clause will be inserted in your new Will to revoke (cancel) your original Will.

It isn’t difficult or time consuming to change your Will. However, it is important that you get it right.

If you are thinking about changing your Will or if you think it’s time for a review, please contact us.