How is a Will constructed?
Usually a Will is made up of a number of specified sections. Most laws
governing Wills are specific about matters such as witnessing which is
canvassed below, however most other matters are not specifically
mandated. What has happened over the years is that a body of practice
has developed and Wills have become formalised in a way that makes them
easy for a court to deal with if necessary.
The sections of a Will
A Will usually has the following general sections.
Opening clause:
This section names the person making the will, hi or her address and
occupation and states that the document is his or her Will.
Revocation clause:
This clause states that all other Wills and testamentary dispositions
which may include oral promises and the like are revoked by the Will
A clause concerning any upcoming marriage of the person
writing the Will:
Marriage after a Will has been written usually revokes a Will and so a
special clause must be included if you intend a Will to survive the
celebration of a marriage.
Some jurisdictions are stricter than others about this rule but all will
uphold a Will properly drafted and executed prior to a marriage if there
is a specific wording.
Appointment Clauses:
These clauses make appointments of Executors, Trustees, Guardians and
other who will be concerned with the execution of your wishes.
Gifting Clauses:
These are many and varied. You can gift all or some of your property to
one or many and the permutations are nearly limitless. Nearly anything
you can do with your property
when alive you can instruct to occur by way of a Will. You can also
confer broad or limited powers on those you entrust with the care of
dependents or property.
Attestation Clause - Signing a Will:
This is very important and the requirements are usually set out in
statute law. In short a Will must be witnessed by two or sometimes three
parties who are not beneficiaries. They should not have close
connections with beneficiaries either. The Will must be signed by the
person making the Will and their witnesses all together and in view of
each other. The witnesses must if necessary be able to testify to this
if called to give evidence for probate.
So what distinguishes Mirror Wills?
Like any other single Will, Mirror Wills are and can be infinitely
variable. So long as the formal requirements of Wills are fulfilled a
couple creating Mirror Wills may do as they please subject to the law.
Essentially Mirror Wills are two separate and distinct Wills that share
certain characteristics. They are usually written by a couple, married
or not is generally unimportant, who have some shared commitments be
they children, real estate or anything else a couple might share.
Some Examples:
A couple may need to co-operate with the appointment of Guardians for
their children. They may also wish to make gifts to each other such as
their respective shares in real estate or other property that is NOT
JOINTLY OWNED. For example Person A might gift a collection of stamps to
Person B who has also named Person A a beneficiary of their Will Giving
Person B their car.
What happens if both parties die together?
This happens more often than one might think. In most jurisdictions
there are statutes dealing with what are termed "Simultaneous Deaths".
Docprofiles kits also include a clause making provision for this in the
absence of legislation. The general thrust is to establish a "legal
order" in which the parties died. This necessary so that a dead person
doesn't inherit property increasing potential death duties. Thus there also needs to be a nomination of a
second "back up " beneficiary. This is called a "gift over". If the
first nominated beneficiary dies at the same time as the person who is
gifting property to them by Will then the second nominated person takes
the gift.
Wills are extremely important documents. Everybody over the age of 18
should have a Will or at least be thinking very seriously about it.
Nearly 60% of people die without making a Will and this leads to
all sorts of expense and complications for those left behind.
Each Mirror Wills Kit contains a comprehensive booklet outlining how to
complete
each of the sets of Templates that comes with the Kit.
There is a Template for each party.
Some couples quite reasonably may not want to have almost
complimentary
Wills and our Mirror Wills Kits are designed to accommodate these needs.
Where children are involved we do emphasise that the appointment of
Guardians is
agreed upon so that both parties appoint the same person or people to
act.
The Kits consist of a series of sections some of which must be completed
and some
of which are optional depending upon circumstances.
A person buying a Mirror Wills Kit will find that they are, at the very least, able
to:
