How financial planners and solicitors can protect client wills – 4 practical steps

Our duty to clients often doesn’t end with their lifetime, as we help ensure their final wishes are respected and carried out as intended after they die.

When an estate plan or will isn’t carefully structured, it can unravel, leading to disputes, contested wills, or outcomes that are different from the client’s original intentions.

Challenged wills not only risk undermining a client’s legacy but can also result in significant emotional strain, legal costs, and conflict among grieving family members.

This is not a rare issue. Indeed, research reported by the Guardian suggests that up to 10,000 people contest wills each year, and the data indicates that this number is on the rise.

Financial planners and solicitors can play an important role in preventing such scenarios. By working together, we can help ensure that estate plans and wills are clear, watertight, and legally sound, providing peace of mind for clients now and protecting their wishes after they’re gone.

Read on to discover four practical steps our professions can take to help in this process.

1. Ensure clients update important documentation

Central to any client’s estate plan are the documents that express their wishes for how their assets should be distributed after they pass away. These typically include:

• Wills
• Letters of wishes
• Beneficiary designations.

It’s important that clients revisit their estate plans and update their supporting documentation after every significant life event, such as a marriage, divorce, or the loss of a loved one.

Both financial planners and solicitors have important roles to play in ensuring these documents are clear and up to date.

Financial planners can help by identifying the financial elements of the estate, ensuring all relevant assets are included in the will, and that beneficiary designations are aligned with the client’s current intentions. They can also use cashflow modelling to help forecast the impact of Inheritance Tax (IHT) and other factors on beneficiaries.

Solicitors can help by drafting and updating wills and supporting documents, ensuring they comply with relevant laws, reflect the client’s wishes clearly, and are less likely to be contested.

2. Help clients establish trusts and choose trustees

Trusts can be effective tools for ensuring that a client’s assets are both tax-efficient and distributed in line with their wishes after death. They offer flexibility to delay the distribution of assets until certain conditions are met, such as a beneficiary reaching a particular age. When set up correctly, trusts can also help protect assets from IHT or disputes.

Financial planners can help clients determine which type of trust would be best for their situation, and how the trust can be used to support their wishes after they’re gone. They can then work with the beneficiary of the trust to help ensure they use the assets as intended.

Solicitors can assist by drafting the trust deed, ensuring it is valid and enforceable. They can also advise on the selection of trustees, prepare letters of wishes, and help beneficiaries navigate access to the trust.

3. Ensure capacity

According to the Guardian report, one of the key factors driving the rise in will disputes is the growing number of dementia cases, which often lead to challenges over the individual’s mental capacity at the time the will was written.

Financial planners can help by recognising early signs of cognitive decline during ongoing client relationships and encouraging key estate planning steps, such as contacting a solicitor to register a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) or updating their will. They can also work with an LPA to ensure they act according to the client’s wishes. By maintaining clear records of correspondence and intentions, financial planners can also provide supporting evidence of a client’s wishes if their will is contested.

Solicitors can help by formally assessing and documenting capacity at the time of drafting the will. They can help clients register an LPA, and may also be able to seek medical evidence to reinforce the will’s validity and protect it against future legal challenges.

4. Identify potential risks and mediate communications

One of the most effective ways to prevent will disputes is to identify potential sources of conflict and address them early in the estate planning process. Risks might include estrangement, second marriages, unequal asset distribution, or dependents from previous relationships.

Financial planners can guide clients in thinking through the implications of their decisions on family dynamics and recommend transparent communication where appropriate. In some cases, they may facilitate family meetings to help explain decisions and reduce the risk of misunderstanding or resentment later on.

Solicitors can also formally mediate discussions to ensure any communication is recorded. They can also prepare supporting documents, such as letters of wishes, and advise clients and their beneficiaries on legal processes that could help reinforce or defend their will.

Get in touch

By collaborating closely, financial planners and solicitors can help clients build resilient estate plans, giving them peace of mind that their legacy will be protected and respected.

To find out more about how our sectors can work together for the benefit of our clients, get in touch.

Email info@fbwealth.co.uk or call us on 0333 1122211.

Please note

This article is for general information only and does not constitute advice. The information is aimed at retail clients only.

All information is correct at the time of writing and is subject to change in the future.

The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate estate planning, cashflow planning, tax planning, trusts, Lasting Powers of Attorney, or will writing.