What Is the Golden Rule of Wills?
The Golden Rule of wills is a best-practice guideline for protecting a will against future challenges. It states that when the person making the will is elderly or has suffered a serious illness, a medical practitioner should assess and confirm their testamentary capacity before the will is signed. The rule comes from Mr Justice Templeman's judgment in Kenward v Adams and has been followed in later cases including Re Simpson.
This is not a strict legal requirement, but following it provides strong evidence if someone disputes the will after death. The doctor must confirm that the will-maker understands four things: what a will is and what it does, the full extent of their property and assets, who their beneficiaries are, and that no mental condition is distorting those judgments. This four-part test originates from the 1870 case Banks v Goodfellow and remains the standard courts in England and Wales use today.
The medical practitioner should record their findings in writing and, where possible, also witness the signing. If a dispute arises, this written record gives executors clear evidence that the will-maker had full capacity at the time.
If you are arranging a will for an elderly relative or someone with a health condition, a capacity assessment is one of the simplest steps you can take. The biggest mistake in a will is often not the contents but the failure to prove the maker understood what they were signing. Given that certain provisions can already attract scrutiny, adding a medical assessment removes one more ground for dispute.
This is not a strict legal requirement, but following it provides strong evidence if someone disputes the will after death. The doctor must confirm that the will-maker understands four things: what a will is and what it does, the full extent of their property and assets, who their beneficiaries are, and that no mental condition is distorting those judgments. This four-part test originates from the 1870 case Banks v Goodfellow and remains the standard courts in England and Wales use today.
The medical practitioner should record their findings in writing and, where possible, also witness the signing. If a dispute arises, this written record gives executors clear evidence that the will-maker had full capacity at the time.
If you are arranging a will for an elderly relative or someone with a health condition, a capacity assessment is one of the simplest steps you can take. The biggest mistake in a will is often not the contents but the failure to prove the maker understood what they were signing. Given that certain provisions can already attract scrutiny, adding a medical assessment removes one more ground for dispute.