A will is a legal declaration of how you wish to dispose of your property after you die. It names the people you want to receive the property and possessions you own when you die. These people are known as your beneficiaries.
Your property and possessions include everything you own: your home, land, car, money in bank accounts, insurance policies, shares, jewelry, pictures, furniture, and so on. There are some things that cannot be given away in your will, such as property you hold in joint names, and assets held in companies, trusts and superannuation funds. Subject to this, however, most of your property and possessions can be dealt with by a will.
Making a will is the only way you can ensure that what you own will be distributed in the way you want after you die.

For a will to be valid, it must be capable of being accepted by a court and put into effect by a grant of probate.
To be valid your will must be:
• In writing – handwritten, typed or printed;
• Signed – ideally your signature should be at the end of the will;
• Witnessed – Two witnesses must be present when you sign your will, and they, too, must sign it in your presence.
If your will is not made in this manner it may not be enforceable, and your property could be disposed of as if you had not made a will.

Yes, you can. However, it is not in your best interests. There have been very many cases where home-made wills caused problems, such as where they were either unclear or not properly drawn up. Home-made wills have even caused taxation problems, both for the estate of the deceased and for the beneficiaries. Many of these cases end up in court and carry on for years, causing distress and hardship to the family of the deceased. As a will is one of the most important legal documents you will ever make, it is false economy to try to do it without skilled professional advice.

An executor is the person appointed in your will to handle your affairs after you die. If you wish, you can name more than one person to act as executor. You can choose anyone to be your executor, such as your spouse or another relative, a friend or your solicitor – but you should first ask them if they are prepared to take on the task and confirm with them that they have been appointed.
Being an executor is a very responsible position. The executor may have to obtain probate of the will and pay any taxes, debts or expenses before finally distributing the balance to the beneficiaries named in your will.

In this situation, your estate will pass according to the intestacy rules. The intestacy rules provide a formula which sets out who is entitled to the property of a deceased person who has not left a valid will. The formula may not distribute your assets in the way you would have wanted.

Yes, you can. You are free to alter your will at any time. If your circumstances change, you can and should alter your will. However, you cannot simply make an alteration by, for instance, crossing something out on the original will and writing in your new wishes.
If the alterations are minor, you can make a codicil (a separate document in which you change a provision in your will) but it is usually better to make an entirely new will unless the change is very simple. A codicil must be signed in the presence of two witnesses, in the same way as when you make your will.

Generally, if you made a will before you married, that will is automatically revoked when you marry, unless it stated that it was made in contemplation of marriage. So if you marry, you will probably need to make a new will.

If you divorce after making a will, then generally any gift or appointment (e.g. as an executor) in favour of your former spouse is automatically revoked. It is best that you make a new will or codicil if you are divorced or have been separated for a long time.

No, however it is important that you make proper provision in your will for your spouse and children. If you do not, they could take proceedings under the Family Provision Act to obtain an order from the court that they receive part of your estate.

If there is no will, then the court grants Letters of Administration and appoints an administrator to deal with the estate, which is distributed in accordance with the rules of intestacy. The intestacy rules set out an order of priority by listing potential classes of beneficiaries. If no beneficiary falls into the first listed class, then the whole estate will be divided equally between members of the second class, and so on. Once there is a person qualifying in a particular class, the whole estate passes to the member (or members) of that class.