Deed of Family Arrangements

Wills

Sometimes the beneficiaries named in a Will agree between themselves to change the terms of the Will. For example, if the deceased left the estate in unequal shares to their children, the children in turn might agree to divide the estate equally between them rather than to leave it in the unequal shares that the deceased otherwise provided.

Deed of Family Arrangements

If a person is aggrieved by the terms of a Will, they may be entitled to contest the Will. Rather than go to Court, the remaining beneficiaries might agree to come to a settlement. The terms of such settlement are recorded in a document known as a Deed of Family Arrangement. Another example of when beneficiaries agree to enter into a Deed of Family Arrangement is when all parties acknowledge that the terms of the Will made by the deceased are no longer applicable to circumstances as they currently stand. It may be that when the Will was made, the provisions were adequate but with changing times and financial circumstances (etc.), those provisions are no longer considered to be fair.

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