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Getting married or entering into a civil partnership invalidates an existing Will. The exception is where your Will expressly states that:
- it’s made in contemplation of marriage/civil partnership to a specified person; and
- the marriage/civil partnership should not render the Will invalid.
Does divorce revoke a Will?
However, unlike marriage, divorce or dissolution of a civil partnership does not revoke a Will. As soon as the Final Order of divorce (formerly known as the Decree Absolute) has been made, your ex-spouse/civil partner is treated as if they had died for inheritance purposes. So, if your Will appoints them as an executor or trustee, that appointment will fail. Any gift to them in the Will also fails. Instead, their inheritance will either pass in accordance with alternative provisions in your Will or, failing that, by the rules of intestacy.
It’s crucial to remember though that if you die before the Final Order is made by the Court and you have not made a new Will, your spouse/civil partner will still be entitled to:
- inherit under your existing Will; and
- accept an appointment as executor or trustee.
This is probably not what you would choose.
See also: Inheritance and Divorce |
Will in contemplation of divorce
For this reason, your solicitor will always advise you to consider making a new Will as soon as you decide to separate, ie you should not wait for the divorce to be finalised.
Of course, even though you intend to divorce, you may still wish to leave part of your estate to your spouse/civil partner, or appoint them as an executor or trustee, perhaps because you have children together. But the nature of any gift or appointment will likely be different from that in your earlier Will.