can a will be changed after one person dies

[samuelnoel12]

can a joint will be changed after one person dies

[dzug]

There's no such thing as a joint will - mirror wills, yes - but that's one each. In this case the survivor is free to change his/her will - indeed in many cases it would be stupid not to.

And if all the beneficiaries who are adversely affected agree, any will can be changed after the person who made it dies.

[Morty Vicar]

There is the doctrine of mutual wills though - this is where there is a contract between two parties not to alter or change the wills. These are often confused with mirror image wills but are quite different animals.

However, there has to be good evidence of a contract - the mirroring of the wills is not enough. Even then it can still be changed, although whether the court will sanction those changes is a different matter. If such a contract to make wills is found, the survivor will hold their estate on constructive trust for the beneficiaries under the mutual wills. However, this is an extremely technical and rare area of the law and if in doubt you should take advice. The likely scenario though is that it is a H&W and they made mirror image wills.

[goldmeister1]

I think you can (rarely) get joint wills. This is where two testators set out joint instructions for the disposal of their estate in one document. As I understand it, they are completely unfashionable now because of the problems they cause. I would suggest that a joint will can be revoked by the survivor by expressly syaing this in the new will.