Expert Witness Journal Issue 68 August 2026 - Flipbook - Page 89
Wills with international
connections: know your client
by Nick Marshall, Partner & Kevin Winters, Associate at Brodies LLP.
required regarding the deceased’s personal position
to support the analysis. For example, to de昀椀nitively
establish their domicile or habitual residence at the
relevant time.
International connections are now a routine
feature of private client work. A client may live
in the UK but own assets abroad (or vice versa),
may be working in the UK or abroad on a shortterm basis or be part of a family whose wealth and
succession planning span several jurisdictions.
UK wills
UK advisors should be familiar with the provisions of
the 1963 Act, and it should always be at the forefront
of their minds when working with international
clients. We have seen occasions (albeit, rarely,
thankfully) where wills prepared for international
clients under Scots law or the law of England & Wales
have not been validly executed because assumptions
have been made and there was no ‘hook’.
Will validity - the ‘hooks’
The Wills Act 1963 (the “1963 Act”) provides a
framework for recognising the formal validity of
wills i.e., whether they have been properly executed.
These rules are of particular importance where a
client has connections with di昀昀erent countries, but
they can be easily overlooked. In broad terms, a
will is to be treated as properly executed where it is
signed in accordance with: •
the law of the place where the will was signed;
•
the law of the place where the testator was
domiciled or habitually resident (either when
executed or at the testator’s death); or
•
the law of the place of which the testator was a
national.
Imagine, for example, a Scots law will is being
prepared for a client who is living temporarily in
Scotland for work, and they sign it (in accordance
with Scots law) when they are back ‘home’ visiting
family. There would be real concerns as to whether
such a will has been validly executed. Has it
been signed in accordance with law of the place
of domicile, habitual residence, nationality or
execution? Probably not. It is incumbent on advisors
not to make assumptions and to make full enquiries
as to a client’s past movements and future intentions.
Additionally, if a will is seeking to deal with
immovable property (real estate), it will be valid in
respect of that immovable property if it is signed in
accordance with the law of place where the property
is situated.
Why “valid” is not the whole answer
Even if a foreign will is capable of recognition in the
UK under the 1963 Act, that does not necessarily
mean that it covers all the testator’s assets or that it
avoids administrative di昀케culty.
This means a will prepared abroad may be capable
of taking e昀昀ect in the UK, even where its format is
unfamiliar (albeit an opinion from a foreign solicitor
may be required to satisfy our courts). It also means
UK advisors must understand a client’s connections
with other countries.
It may have been prepared for a particular country.
It may have been drafted with local assets in mind
or at a particular point in time (and not necessarily
re昀氀ect any change in circumstances). It may also
seek to sit alongside another will(s). It may use legal
terminology from another jurisdiction which is
di昀케cult to translate across borders. Some (or all)
of these matters may warrant consideration where
The 1963 Act framework (which is mirrored in many
other countries) is helpful for internationally mobile
clients. But it should not lead to quick conclusions:
depending on the limb (or ‘hook’) of the 1963 Act
being relied on, further investigations may be
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