Getting Married and your Will

Getting Married and your Will

Did you know that getting married may automatically revoke your Will?

Generally, a Will is revoked by the marriage of the Will-maker, meaning that if you marry, you may need to sign a new Will.  An exception to this is if you sign a Will in contemplation of a marriage taking place, in this instance your Will refers to the contemplated marriage and it will not automatically be revoked after that marriage.

If you get married and you do not update your Will, or your Will is not made in contemplation of that marriage, you will have been deemed to die “intestate” and your estate will be distributed in accordance with the Administration Act 1969 as if you never made a Will.

See our article here on what happens if you die intestate, without a Will: https://www.toddandwalker.com/news/am-i-too-young-to-have-a-will/

Separating from a spouse and your Will

If you separate from your spouse however, this will not change your Will unless you obtain a separation order or an order dissolving your marriage from the Court, however you can only dissolve a marriage after you have been separated for two years.  Once your marriage has been dissolved, your Will is not revoked, instead your Will is interpretated as if your former spouse died before you, so your spouse will not be able to act as executor or receive anything under your Will, but your Will otherwise remains in force. It is therefore important that if you do not want your spouse to benefit under your Will, that upon a separation you update your Will.

September is Wills month, as a supporter of the Wakatipu Community Foundation’s Wills Month (more information here - https://www.wakatipucommunityfoundation.co.nz/willsmonth) and to promote this, we are offering a 15% discount on our legal fees on all Wills that we prepare this month.  To find out more or to start your Will making process, please contact one of our experienced Estate Planning team members on [email protected] or 03 441 2743.

T&C's

We confirm you qualify for a 15% discount of our legal time spent on your matter as part of our Wills month promotion. This discount only applies to the services provided for the preparation of your Will(s) and Enduring Power of Attorneys [edit if only one] and does not extend to any additional work that may occur outside of this instruction. The 15% discount will not be applied to our standard office charges or to any disbursements we incur on your behalf.