question about wills

[Kristal53]

When someone dies is there anyway of finding out if the Will the solicitor as is the most recent? What if the deceased made a new Will with a different Solicitor and not told the Family? Is there some sort of Record -database or something -that all Wills produced by Solicitors go onto?

[Gizmonster]

http://www.certainty.co.uk/

[Old_Geezer]

There is no form of central register, at least not that I am aware of. If a later will is made and arrangements not to scrap the older one not made, then it is possible an older will may be found and assumed to be the last. But if wills are left where the keeper is able to be informed of the death and come forward that would help. Or if the same keeper hold the latest that works too.

[Old_Geezer]

Interesting link, probably worth trying, but it has to depend on the folk involved registering the existence of a will.

[Kristal53]

Thanks for the replies and the link. The newer Will would have certainly been prepared by a solicitor, so it may be worth forking out a few quid to check. The older Will has been known by the beneficiaries for years, but the deceaseds' circumstances changed a few years ago and there is a great possibility that a newer Will was made to reflect this, but the executors of the older Will have no interest in looking for a newer one as they are the only beneficiaries in the older one, but possibly would not be in a newer one.

[ubasses]

A copy Will is always provided to the testator, have you any access to their property where it was probably kept.

[Kristal53]

@ubassess -no -but the beneficiaries do and believe me if they found a new Will I would not put it past them to destroy it