You have been to see your lawyer, they have drafted a Will and asked you to come in and sign it.  You then leave the draft in a drawer and forget about it.  You have your wishes on paper now, surely that’s enough right?  Wrong!  An unsigned (or incorrectly witnessed) Will has absolutely no legal effect.

Far too often people start the process of updating their Wills and do not complete it, passing away without signing their new Wills.  Take the example of Jim, who passed away leaving a Will made 40 years ago.   He had not even met his partner of 30 years at that stage and had left everything to his siblings.  He had met with a lawyer and began drafting a new Will a couple of years before he died, which included his partner, but had never signed it.  That unsigned Will is of no legal significance. His partner therefore had to expend a huge amount of time and money making a claim on his Estate, when she knew his intention was for everything to go to her.

You must ensure that you arrange to sign that draft Will, as your wishes will not be carried out if you don’t.