Today is a big day for Private Client Lawyers, the Law Commission published overnight their eagerly awaited report on modernising Wills (with draft Wills Bill).
An area of law that has remained largely unchanged since the Victorian times, with the main legislation being the Wills Act 1837 - nearly 200 years ago.
The report is a staggering 494 pages long and makes a number of recommendations for change including:-
- The introduction of electronic Wills subject to additional formality requirements;
- Lowering the minimum age when a person can make a Will from 18 to 16, bringing capacity rules in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005, a theme running throughout the report;
- Powers given to Court to allow a Will that has not met the formality requirements (an incorrectly signed Will that would currently be invalid);Removing the existing rule that a Will is automatically revoked by marriage (unless it meets certain conditions), “predatory marriages” have been an area of concern for some time and this proposed change has been requested by many who work with vulnerable people;
- Increased protections from undue influence by allowing a court to look for evidence that provides reasonable grounds to suspect undue influence;
- Clarification on the law around testamentary capacity, with two tests currently utilised the report moves away from Banks v Goodfellow and aligns with the Mental Capacity Act 2005. A proposed Code of Practice for Testamentary Capacity would bring in further safeguards.
The report has been ongoing, with a few breaks for other focus areas, since 2016, so understandably it is detailed and aims to balance modernisation with safeguards for vulnerable people. The draft Wills Bill sets out the proposed new legislation.
The Government have already said they will need to carefully consider the proposals. The Report is still just the beginning of the process of reform and those involved in Private Client law wait with bated breath to see if any of the proposed changes are accepted by the Government.
Keep an eye out for further Blogs on the changing landscape on Wills as we take another step towards modernising Wills.