What happens to your child when you die and don’t have a Will?

By the age of 16, as many as 1 in 20 children will have experienced the death of one or both of their parents. Unless you state specifically in your Will, you don’t get a say over who will look after your children.

Most people think that custody of their children is passed straight over to a partner or close family. Unfortunately, this just isn’t how it works. In fact a friend or family member who wanted Guardianship would have to go through the lengthy fostering and/or adoption process in order to become the Legal Guardians.

To guarantee your child’s Guardian you need to have a legally binding Will.

How does Guardianship work?

Guardianship is a legal appointment that assumes Parental Responsibility in the event of both parents’ death where a child is under 18. Mothers will always have parental responsibility. The natural father has parental responsibility if they have married the mother of the child or have been named on the child’s birth certificate. If your partner does have parental responsibility for your child, they will automatically take care of them. However, if you were both to die unexpectedly the state would step in.

It is essential and easy to avoid this unnecessary and distressing process by simply nominating Guardians within your Will.

Protect your family with a legally binding, updatable Will, expertly written from the comfort of your own home with these 3 simple steps.

1. Take 30 seconds to fill in our contact form.
2. Our advisor will call you
3. Meet with one of our expert Will Writers to discuss your specific needs.

About our Will Writing Service

LCS employs around 20 staff, with the Legal Department being managed by Susan Gould who is a Chartered Legal Executive specialising in the administration of deceased estates. The Operations Department is headed by Rosemary Clegg – our Operations Director. The company is a Corporate Member of the Institute of Paralegals and we carry £5 million Professional Indemnity Insurance. Most of our Continued Professional Development is provided by Central Law Training to ensure our staff are always up to date with changes and updates to the services we provide.