# Executors may try to destroy will as they are against one of the beneficiaries



## delgirl (23 Mar 2006)

A friend of mine's partner passed away just over a month ago.  Although they were together for 15 years, he still maintained his own house.  He made his sister and brother executors and told them where his will was kept in his house.

My friend was completely cut out of all funeral arrangements - the family has completely taken over and will not even allow her supervised access to his house to remove her personal items.

She knows that she and her children are beneficiaries of his will and is worried that his siblings will destroy the will as it is in his house.

He did, however, make another will 5 or 6 years ago and this one was drawn up and held in a solicitor's office.  If the siblings were to destroy the latest will, would she be entitled to go to the solicitor to ask for either the original or a copy of his previous will?

Thanks.


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## Vanilla (23 Mar 2006)

A beneficiary is not entitled to a copy of a will, the executor is. A beneficiary is entitled to be informed of any benefit to them in a will only. If your friend is really worried that this will may be destroyed, or that as executors this mans siblings will try to defraud her or her children of their legacies, then she should now get her own solicitor- not the one who made the will as she will answer to the executors- and perhaps enter a caveat to his estate thereby preventing any dealings with the estate without notice being given to her.


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## delgirl (23 Mar 2006)

Thank you so much for that Vanilla.  

I will pass on the information and she can proceed as you have suggested.


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## dam099 (23 Mar 2006)

Like Vanilla said I don't think she will be able to see the will at the solicitors but if the newer will was destroyed and it could not be proven it existed then presumably the old will would apply, as it is with a solicitor there should be some comfort it will not be destroyed especially if that solcitor is put on notice by her own solicitor. Of course maybe the old will is not as favourable to your friend and her children.

In the unlikely event that both wills were destroyed and there is no other will he might be considered to have died intestate, are the children of your friend also children of her partner? If they were they would be the heirs not the siblings in the event of intestacy so any will that leaves anything to the siblings might be preferable to them anyway so it might not be in their interest to destroy anything.


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## delgirl (23 Mar 2006)

The 'older will' left everything to his partner (my friend) and her children from a previous marriage (who he brought up as a 'step-father' for 15 years). She hasn't actually seen the new one, but assumes that it's basically the same, although he had acquired a few additional assets and this was the reason he made a new will about 2 years ago.

His siblings are his next of kin and are using the fact that the relationship was never legalised through marriage to cut his partner out completely. 

If any of you out there are living with someone and are not married to them, you might like to think about the consequences should your partner die. I know someone else in this position whose family do not like his live-in partner of many years and have advised him to make his wishes clear just in case ...


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## Billo (23 Mar 2006)

Vanilla,
"A beneficiary is not entitled to a copy of a will, the executor is. A beneficiary is entitled to be informed of any benefit to them in a will only."

Sorry to butt in here, but how would a person know if they were a beneficary or not if they could not see the will or e.g. if they did not know if there was a will or not.  If a relative of yours died down the country, how would you even know whether there was a will or not ?Should you go to the local probate office ?

Rgds
Billo


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## Vanilla (24 Mar 2006)

Good question. The simple answer is that unless the deceased told them about it before their death, they won't know. When the will is being probated by the executor, sometime within the first year the executor will contact all beneficiaries and inform them of the bequest and look for certain information for tax purposes. A will does not become a public document until it has been probated which will take a year or so ( more in complicated cases, less in straight forward matters) after death, and only after this can you obtain a copy in the probate office. It is possible that someone could die, having made a will, and it would never be dealt with. However in practical terms, if someone dies and leaves assets behind, their relatives will generally make enquiries as to the division of same.


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