Forging A Will & The Consequences

A recent case involving a daughter forging her late mother’s will is an unfortunate reminder of lengths some people are willing to go to in order to avoid sharing an estate with other beneficiaries.

Susan Johnson forged her late mother’s signature on documentation (and those of two apparent witnesses) after her mother’s death in 2016 to inherit the entire estate thereby disinheriting her two siblings. Under the existing 2014 will all the siblings inherited equally.

The disinherited siblings challenged the validity of the purported will through instructing a handwriting expert to examine the signature. The handwriting expert concluded that the signatures of the deceased and the two witnesses were forged and Susan Johnson decided to withdraw the forged document and revert back to her late mother’s 2014 will which divided the estate equally.

Fraud Charges

Matters did not end there as Nottinghamshire Police charged Susan Johnson and she was ultimately convicted of a charge of fraud by false representation and making/supplying an article for use in fraud. Susan Johnson appeared in Nottingham Crown Court and was given a two year suspended sentence.

Obviously, it can be very difficult to prevent someone from forging a will after the person concerned has died like in the case of Susan Johnson. However, there are also numerous other examples where wills are drawn up by family members that are signed by the testator during their lifetime though the circumstances arouse suspicion for various reasons.

Even if forgery of an entire will is quite rare there are often circumstances regarding the signing of the will that can also potentially affect the validity of the will. For a will to be valid it must be executed in accordance with s9 Wills Act 1837, which requires:

i) A will must be in writing
ii) A will must be signed by the testator (the person making the will) or signed on behalf of the testator in his presence and by his direction
iii) The testator’s signature (or acknowledgement) must be made in the presence of two witnesses, present at the same time

A professionally drafted will contains a specific clause that explicitly demonstrates that the will has been executed in accordance with s9 of the Wills Act 1837 (the attestation clause).

How Can Timms Help

When Timms solicitors prepare a will for clients the will is usually signed at the offices with the solicitor that prepared the will and another colleague acting as the two witnesses. This ‘belt & braces’ approach helps ensure that wills withstand challenges based on the validity of the signing of the will. Our offices are set up to accommodate clients in a safe and socially distanced setting with all the expected precautions being taken to ensure the safety of clients signing a will.

Where a visit to the office is not desired or possible then in certain circumstances a home visit, can be arranged if it is possible for the will to be witnessed in a socially distanced manner by the two witnesses. The final solution involves the approved will being sent out to sign with clear instructions on how to demonstrate compliance with s9 Wills Act 1837. In addition to clear instructions being provided to the client signing the will Timms Solicitors also prepare additional certification to be signed by the witnesses to ensure the valid execution of the will is fully documented. Upon a signed will being returned to the office for safe storage the will and certificates are reviewed to ensure compliance.

To ensure your will stands the best possible chance of withstanding any challenge to its validity please contact Matthew Kelly on 01283 214231 or m.kelly@timms-law.com

Matthew Kelly
September 2020