Can an beneficiary sign an amendment to will?

Question

i was recently removed as a executor from my mothers will at my own request, my mother has now passed away an i find that the amendment to her will was witnessed and sighed by a beneficiary to her will. can anyone tell me of this legal, and if not am i still a legal executor. thank you

Answer 1

No, a beneficiary cannot witness either the will or codicil.  You should see a solicitor as soon as possible to confirm your status and rights.

Answer 2

Generally any beneficiary who is a witness to a Last Will forfeits his or her right to receive any bequest or, in the alternative, the Will (or amendment to the Will) may be disallowed.  Other facts and circumstances are relevant, including questions of undue influence or competence of the testator. You need to consult with a lawyer about this one.  There could be other issues in play that you may not have thought of right now.

Answer 3

Probably depends on jurisdiction.  I can speak for Ontario, and I suspect many other jurisdictions will be parallel:

When one of the witnesses to the will is a beneficiary, this generates a presumption of "undue influence", meaning that the gifts to the witness are void unless they can show that there was no undue influence.

If the only change to a will from the prior one was the executor, with no other evidence of undue influence, the presumption would likely be easily rebutted, so the gifts would stand.  But I guess that's not really what you're asking about anyways.

Regardless of the validity of gifts to the witness, the fact that the witness is a beneficiary does not render the rest of the will void in any way.

(Of course, this assumes that all the rest of the formalities have been observed.)

Answer 4

Sorry to hear about your mother.

In English law, there need to be two adults (of sound mind) to be witnesses to a Will or codicil. No-one who is an executor or a beneficiary in the Will or any codicil (or anyone married to, or in a civil partnership with, a beneficiary or executor) should be a witness.

You do need proper legal advice from a solicitor as to what to do now.

Answer 5

It is possible in England for a beneficiary to issue a Deed of Variation to a will in order to transfer his or her legacy to another person. He or she has two years to do this.