Wills: Choosing a Guardian for Your Children

A will is where you can directly state how you want your property to be distributed and to whom they will go. But it also has another advantage: You can name who you want your children's guardian to be in your will.

A guardian has to be someone you trust, someone you know will take care of your children and who will raise them until they are of legal age, when the guardianship legally ends. This person has to be someone you can entrust your children's lives to. It is also better to choose an alternate guardian should the original guardian be unable to take responsibility.

Obviously choosing a guardian has to be of your own decision or of you and your spouse's together. Normally, the surviving spouse or parent automatically becomes the guardian (if living in the same household), but it can be someone else if that is what you would prefer, as long as it is specified in your will.

If the parents are divorced, the parent with legal custody of the children has the right to choose a guardian. However, if the person chosen is not the biological parent, the court usually does not abide by the parent's decision.

However, just because you have named them in the will does not mean that he/she will automatically become your children's guardian. The court must approve of your decision first, to see who is fit and able to do the job and who can best take care of your children.

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Wills and Life Estates

So what exactly is a life estate?

A life estate is a piece of property. Basically, if you own a life estate, you own that particular piece of property, usually a house and its contents, for the entire span of your life. However, you do not own it completely; it is not totally titled to you. Seems confusing?

Let's have an example. A widow wishes to remarry, and she and her new husband have decided to move into her house. However, she has children from her first marriage, and she wants to leave the house to them after she dies, not to her second husband and his family. This does not mean that the second husband cannot stay and live in her house. It just means that the house will not be inherited by the husband if she dies before he does.

The second husband will get a life estate in the house. He can live there and stay there for the entire span of his life, even if the widow dies before he does. He has complete liberty to do whatever he wants in and with the house, and while he has the responsibility of maintaining it and keeping it in good condition, he is not entitled to sell it to someone else. However, though he is entitled to the house, it is only for the span of his life. When he dies, the house will be inherited by the widow's children, or by whoever she wishes it to go to.

A life estate can be created in a will, and it can also be created through a property deed, a trust, or pre-nuptial agreement. However, if you wish to make life estate arrangements, it is best to consult a lawyer than to do it on your own. You don't want to regret your decision if something wrong happens or your wishes are not followed, especially because a lot is at stake.

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Last Minute Wills

One of the things which is most uncertain in life is precisely when it will end. It is ironic that for those of us lucky enough to be forewarned of the approximate date of our death, allowing us to prepare our affairs and say goodbye to our family and friends, we often unfortunately are then subjected to a harsh fight with illness - a fight which we have no hope of winning.

For the rest of us, we have no idea how long we have left. Yet despite this, many of us still prefer not to face what is coming, and avoid putting our affairs in order.

Yet all is not lost, even if you find yourself in hospital undergoing treatment for a terminal illness or severe injuries.

Some consultants provide a service whereby they will visit you in hospital and, provided it can be proven that you are of sound mind at the time, will take your instructions and produce a valid UK Will within a matter of hours as well as organising an additional visit for attestation.

It can also often be arranged to have the Will signed and witnessed, at the request of your Executors.

This procedure is always kept strictly confidential, allowing you to settle your affairs, even at the eleventh hour. However, it is of course always advisable to keep stress to a minimum by facing facts whilst you are still healthy and have the energy to focus and organise. Take a few hours out of your busy life and prepare your Will, to ensure that, when the time comes, you can rest safe in the knowledge that your loved ones will be cared for after you've gone.

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