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Credit crunch renders Wills obsolete

23 January 2009

Thousands of Wills have been rendered obsolete by the economic downturn.

And Shoosmiths has echoed concerns expressed by The Law Society that people will lose out if they fail to update them.

The Society’s president Paul Marsh said: “With homes losing value, people may need to look again at their Wills, especially if they have included tax planning provisions which are no longer appropriate.

He said people’s shares and other assets were likely to have fallen in value, too.

“It is essential that anyone with a Will who has not updated it recently goes to their solicitor to review it, and, if needs be, change it to reflect their current financial situation.” 

Shoosmiths partner and private client specialist Carolyn Bagley said: “This is sound advice indeed.

“Many people’s Wills have been made when the economy was booming, yet it won’t have occurred to people that straitened times demand a Will review; one that takes account of altered circumstances.

“For example, some people will have given sizeable cash sums, or a specific gift of a house, safe in the certainty of the value of both their house and the rest of the estate. However, as those values erode, some people may accidentally leave more to legatees than to their ‘main’ beneficiaries.”

For further information please contact:
Name: Alastair Gray
Phone: 08700 864096
Email: Alastair.Gray@shoosmiths.co.uk

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