Glossary of terms for making a Will

Will writing glossary, in alphabetical order

Declaration against mutual Wills – mutual Wills are an outdated format of Wills that are no longer recommended in practice. To avoid any uncertainty, all our mirror Wills include this clause to make it clear they are not to be read as mutual Wills. If you wish to retain some control over your assets following your death, we recommend you consider preparing a trust Will. Please speak to your Estate Planning Consultant or Will Writer for more information.

Estate – everything you own at the time of your death. This could include (but isn't limited to) property, savings, pensions, shares, life insurance, foreign assets, vehicles, pets, jewellery and any other personal possessions.

Executor – the person (or people) who will deal with your estate after your death and put the terms of your Will into effect. Once your estate has been administered, their job is complete.

General power of appointment - a general power of appointment is where someone has given you something with the power for you to then give it to your choice of beneficiary. This would be counted as part of your estate. In practice they are rarely seen now, but still need to be referred to in your Will. An example would be someone leaving you their record collection for you to distribute as you see fit.

Guardians – people you can name in your Will to care for your children if they are under 18 when you die.

Issue – a person’s issue means their lineal descendants. This includes any legally adopted descendants but does not include stepchildren.

Mirror Wills – two Wills for a couple, which mirror one another.

Money bequest – a gift of money from your estate to a chosen person (or people).

Per stirpes – stirpes are simply levels on a family tree. It means that an inheritance will pass down to a beneficiary’s descendants at each level of their family tree. It won't pass to someone on a lower level if their parent is alive and capable of taking their inheritance.

For example, if a beneficiary in your Will died before you leaving children and grandchildren of their own, their inheritance would pass to their children. If the beneficiary’s child had also died before you, then the beneficiary’s inheritance would pass down to the next level (stirpes) and go to their grandchildren.

See illustrated examples:

Example 1: If the beneficiary is alive at the date of your death, the beneficiary will inherit.

Example 2: If the beneficiary is not alive at the date of your death, the beneficiary’s inheritance will be shared equally between child 1 and child 2. It will not also be shared with the grandchildren as the grandchildren’s parents (child 1 and child 2), are alive and capable of taking the deceased beneficiary’s share.

Example 3: If the beneficiary and child 1 are not alive at the date of your death, the beneficiary’s inheritance passes down again. Child 2 will still get 50%, but the 50% that would have passed to child 1 will now be shared equally between grandchild 1 and grandchild 2.

Residuary beneficiary – the person (or people) who will receive your residuary estate.

Residuary estate – the remainder of your estate after all debts, liabilities, funeral costs, money bequests, specific gifts and testamentary expenses have been paid.

Revocation – when you make a Will it has to be clear that it is the most up to date version. To avoid any doubt, a well drafted Will should always begin with a revocation clause to expressly revoke any earlier Wills. Even if this is your first Will, having this clause provides clarity to your executors (see below for definition), that they do not need to look for an earlier Will.

Single Will – a Will for one person.

Specific gifts – specific items you can leave separately to the bulk of your estate.

Standard provisions - these are the provisions of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. These provisions are considered to be helpful to executors and trustees while not being unfair to beneficiaries. At all times the executors and trustees must act in the best interests of the beneficiaries and none of these provisions remove that duty.

Trustee – the person (or people) who will administer any ongoing trusts your Will creates. A common type of trust could hold an asset or money for a minor until they reach 18 (or a later date, as set out in your Will). Trustees are often the same people you name as your executor but they can be different people if you wish. The role of trustee is complete when the trust ends, which could be many years after the job of executor is complete.

Testator/testatrix – This is the terminology used to refer to the person who is making the Will. In this case, for your Will, this means you. Testator is the male term, testatrix is the female term.

Vested interest – obtaining a vested interest is the point when something becomes the property of a beneficiary. Failing to obtain a vested interest means that the beneficiary is not able to receive whatever they are being given in the Will. Failing to obtain a vested interest could stem from a beneficiary dying before you or choosing not to receive their inheritance and disclaiming it. If the gift to the intended beneficiary fails, then any substitute provisions in the Will come into effect.