Mirror wills are a popular way to ensure that you or your partner are financially looked after when one of you passes away. Such wills involve you both leaving everything to each other when the first person dies or to your children (or other mutually agreed beneficiaries) upon the death of the survivor.
Because mirror wills are nigh on identical, they are less complex to draft and more cost-effective than if you both have entirely separate and differing wills. They can provide security if, for example, you and your partner are not married and would not necessarily inherit from each other automatically. While you might choose your partner to be both beneficiary and executor, you also have the option of choosing an additional executor to administer the estate for the benefit of your children (or other beneficiaries) should you and your partner both die.
However, as Dee Benians, a private client lawyer at Hughes Solicitors in Heathfield, explains, ‘Mirror wills are not necessarily right for everyone, and problems may arise if you and your partner have children from previous relationships.’
Such blended families are increasingly common nowadays and although you and your partner may have every intention of ensuring that all your children are taken care of, this is not guaranteed. If you die and your partner remarries, the original will would be revoked and both your estates could potentially pass entirely to your partner’s new family if he or she does not make a new will.
Other possible drawbacks of mirror wills include:
- there is nothing to stop your partner changing their will, either while you are still alive or after you pass away;
- the value of your estate could decrease drastically if your partner has to go into long-term care, meaning there would be less in the pot for your children (or other chosen beneficiaries) to inherit; or
- they do not give you the option of ring-fencing any assets you brought into the marriage which you would like to earmark just for your own children (or your own chosen beneficiaries).
One way round this uncertainty is with the use of a will trust in the mirror wills. This would involve you and your partner leaving each other all of your assets to enjoy during your lifetime. Then, when the survivor passes away the trust property will pass to other chosen beneficiaries.
You can choose what property you want the trust to contain, the people you want to benefit from the trust, and when it will come into effect. You would usually choose at least two people you trust to administer the trust as per the stipulations you lay out in your wills.
How a solicitor can help
Our experienced wills and trusts lawyers can advise you of the best type of will for your circumstances, and the tax implications of each, and make sure it is drawn up in a way that both reflects your wishes and provides for all of your loved ones in the future.
We will ensure that the will is legally valid and thus less open to a legal challenge, help you select suitable executors, trustees, and guardians, and store the will for you.
This article is for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. Please note that the law may have changed since the date this article was published.