Estate Planning

Oh Ministry of Defence! - You Gotta Lotta 'splainin' to Do!

By Hull & Hull LLP

The British Ministry of Defence is in some hot water after apparently losing some of the last will and testaments of soldiers that were killed while deployed in Afghanistan.

Despite a 'frantic investigation' by the ministry, the wills of at least four marines are still missing.  It is suspected that when other branches of the military are included, the number is in fact a lot higher.

In the UK, before a tour of duty in a war zone, the soldier is asked to provide the ministry with the names of the soldier's next of kin, a last will of testament, the soldier's funeral wishes, and a photo to be released in the event of the soldier's death, all of which is lodged with a ministry handling centre.

Unsurprisingly, the lost wills have had devastating consequences for family members involved. After the envelope of one deceased soldier was lost, his fiancée was told that she couldn't walk with his coffin at his military funeral because she could not prove he had listed her as his next of kin. The picture the soldier had selected to be shown in the case of his death, was also lost, resulting in a different photo being displayed.  Eventually, the envelope of information turned up in a government drawer somewhere.

The fiancée of another fallen soldier alleges that shortly before his deployment, he wrote a will leaving her his share in a house they both owned as well as the proceeds of an insurance policy so she could cover the mortgage.  After his death, it was revealed that the only will the Ministry of Defence had was a previous will in which the soldier left everything to his sister.  Currently the fiancée and the soldier's family involved in a "bitter row" over who is the rightful beneficiary of the estate.

If you're interested in learning more about how to overcome the difficulties of lost will, then check out the recent podcast by Ian Hull and Jordan Atin on the topic.

Have a great day!

Megan F. Connolly 

Full post as published by Toronto Estate Law Blog on August 26, 2009 (boomark / email).