Unusual Items – Can you include them in your Will? This is a very interesting question and, as Laura Richardson explains in her latest article, there is actually very little that cannot be left under the terms of a given Will . . .
A Will is a personally tailored document and as such, it should accurately reflect your specific wishes for the distribution of your possessions, property, and cash after you die. As your Will is bespoke, it is possible for you to include detailed instructions for what should happen to any number of your personal possessions after you are gone. Whilst some of your possessions may be valuable, other possessions may have a different kind of significance to you and your loved ones. Therefore when writing your Will, as well as including possessions of a high cash value, it is important to make sure that you include details of any items of sentimental value that you wish to be passed on after you die. When considering more unusual items to be included within your Will, it is advisable to seek professional advice as there are restrictions on bequeathing certain types of objects.
Throughout history, there have been many strange or unusual items included in Wills. We at Andrew Douglas Wills and Legal Services have selected our top three examples of the most unusual items bequeathed in a Will.
- It is claimed that Napoleon Bonaparte requested that upon his death, that his head should be shaved and his hair divided up and sent to each of his friends.
- Dorothea Edwards donated her pacemaker to an animal. It was not possible at the time to bequeath a pacemaker to a human. Her pacemaker was removed upon her death and enabled a German Shepherd with a congenital heart defect to live a healthy life.
- Solomon Sanborn who passed away in 1871, bequeathed his skin to a local hide tanner with the instructions to make it into a set of drums!
As you can see, a Will can cater to a wide range of possibilities when it comes to unusual gifts. When it comes to writing your Will it is important to ensure that your wishes are legally valid and correctly recorded in order to ensure that your wishes will be carried out after your death. As specialists in this area of law, Andrew Douglas Wills and Legal Services are highly experienced in Will writing and therefore you can be assured that you will receive expert advice when it comes to writing your Will. Therefore, if you would like a free initial consultation to discuss writing your Will, contact Andrew Douglas Wills and Legal Services today. We welcome inquiries from across Essex.
If you would like to keep up with our latest posts and advice about estate planning through the regular advice that we provide to our clients in this regard, then please also feel free to –
Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/ADouglasWills.
Follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/AndrewDouglasWills.
