An Agreement of Wills usually comes into play when someone dies. It is often the case that family members run into issues regarding how the assets will be distributed. Whether it is someone saying that they don’t want anything from the deceased; or the family wanting to go against the wishes of the deceased and distribute the assets how they want to do it. Therefore causing arguments at a difficult time.
If the deceased’s wishes need – or are requested – to be modified after the will has been executed, then the heirs all have to enter into an Agreement of Heirs; or sometimes refereed to as an agreement of wills. This is a written document that must be signed by everyone involved. It acknowledges that they have a right to inherit, and sets out how the new agree inheritance will be carried out, which will be different to that written within the will.
Because this is such an important document, the best advice is that it should be drawn up by a lawyer.
Writing up the agreement of wills
An Agreement of Heirs can even be created if there is no will. If the beneficiaries of the estate don’t agree with how the rules of intestacy would divide their inheritance up, they can go to a lawyer to draw up an Agreement of Heirs to show that they have discussed the estate and agree to a different course of action.
An Agreement of Heirs makes the distribution process easier, but it does not mean that probate can be skipped. Probate will still need to be carried out if the deceased owned assets that require it. No matter how differently they are distributed from what was written in the will.
For professional advice regarding all things Probate or Will related, get in touch. Call us on 0203 985 9554.
