In an uncertain world, proving interdependence is essential for Lesbian and Gay couples. Our relationships are still not recognised in law and therefore many Life Assurers and Pension Trustees ignore them. For example, ask many Pension trustees where a gay partner stands on their scheme and you'll receive a very grey answer. Normally involving proving that our relationship is real.

There are many things male and female couples can do to prove their existence. Opening a joint bank account for expenses, buying a property with relevant co-habitation agreements, and making a Will are all effective ways.

pinkfinance has invited experienced Will writer, Patrick Cracroft-Brennan to explain why making a Will is so important to Lesbian and Gay couples…

Wills are strange things… Everyone knows they should at least think about having one, but so few people actually grasp the nettle and go ahead and have one made.

Why is this? Is it a primitive fear that death is a taboo subject and just thinking, never mind talking about it, could cause something dreadful to happen? Is it a feeling that the matter will be excessively complicated and so best left to another day? Whatever the reasons, let me make it clear that making a Will should be seen as part and parcel of managing personal finances and that drawing up the Will need not be as complicated as you might think.

First of all, let us look at what could happen if you die without a Will (the legal term for this is being "intestate"). Essentially the Law divides people into two groups: Those who are married and those who are not (and by "married" I mean properly married and not just living together - the Law has not recognised the so-called "common law wife" for over 200 years!). If you are married and die intestate then: -

• If you have no children or grandchildren and your estate (i.e. the value of all you assets less any debts) is worth less than £125,000 then your spouse gets everything. If your estate is worth more than £125,000 and you have no other surviving close relatives (i.e. children, grandchildren, parents, brothers and sisters, grandparents or uncles and aunts) then your spouse will still get everything.
• If you have children or grandchildren and your estate is worth less than £125,000 then your spouse still gets everything. If your estate is worth more than £125,000 then your spouse would get £125,000 and a life interest (i.e. the right to the income when the remainder is invested, but not the capital itself) in half of everything over this amount. Your children would get half the amount over £125,000 immediately and would be entitled to the other half on the death of your spouse. If any of your children die before you, then their children would be entitled to take their parent's share.
• If you have no children or grandchildren but you do have some other close relatives and your estate is worth less than £125,000 then again your spouse would get everything. If your estate were worth more than £125,000 then your spouse would get the first £200,000 plus half the balance. The remaining half would go to your close relatives is the following order: Parents, Brothers and Sisters, Half Brothers and Sisters, Grandparents, Aunts and Uncles, and finally, spouses of Aunts and Uncles.

So far so good. But can you see some of the problems that could arise here? In the second case what would happen if the only asset were the marital home, worth say £350,000 (a fairly average price these days!). The surviving spouse would be entitled to £125,000 plus a life interest in half the remainder of £225,000. But how could the children be paid their entitlement of £112,500 without selling the house, which could leave the surviving spouse without a home? Or take the third case, would you really want £75,000 to go to your brother who you haven't talked to for 30 years or to a distant aunt who you have never met?

So what happens if you are unmarried and die intestate?

• If you have children or grandchildren then your estate would be shared between them. Your partner would get nothing.
• If you have no children or grandchildren but have close relatives, then your estate would be shared equally amongst them. Your partner would get nothing.
• If you have no children, grandchildren or close relatives, then your estate would go to the Crown. Your partner would get nothing.

As you can see, this could be pretty disastrous for your surviving partner!

As the Law stands at the moment all these problems could be avoided by drawing up a Will. There are three major reasons why you should do this:

• You can decide who can benefit after your death
• You can use your Will to reduce or avoid any Inheritance Tax liability (Inheritance Tax may be payable on estates over £242,000)
• If you have children you can appoint guardians to bring up your children and avoid them having to be taken into care by a local authority

Is making a Will complicated? The simple answer to this is "no". You Will need to get your thoughts in order and know who is to inherit what, but with the aid of computers actually drawing up a Will is very straightforward and in most cases Will take less than an hour.

Is it expensive? Again the answer is "no", although, as in all things, it must be said that you only get what you pay for. You can have a simple "no frills" Will drawn up for as little as £50, or the "full fat, high calorie" personal service approach for about £250 - or any price in between! You can always write your own Will but even a simple error could invalidate the Will - which is the last thing you want.

At the present time a Bill has been proposed in Parliament to create civil partnerships, which in many ways will have the same status as a marriage. It is proposed that a civil partnership can be registered by two people, opposite or same sex, but only after six years of living together. Given the amount of Government legislation it is unlikely that this Bill will become law in the foreseeable future.

Patrick Cracroft - Brennan is a qualified Will writer and a partner in the London Will Writing Company. He may be contacted via email at will@heraldicmedia.com

©2001-2002

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