About Shire Wills

Based here in Oxfordshire, I founded Shire Wills to provide individuals and families with honest, approachable, and transparent estate planning guidance. Many people fail to understand that a Will isn't merely a signed piece of paper with wishes on it. In order to create a comprehensive and bulletproof Will, it's essential to start from the ground up, ensuring that the foundations are laid down first. During my time working for a Private Client law firm, I've always been astonished by the number of people who told me that they had just written their own Will themselves, had a bunch of friends put their signature to it at the bottom and then proceeded to put it away in a drawer. It's true that anyone can write a Will. It's also true that anyone can challenge it. Sadly, a testator has no earthly control over their wishes and estate once they have passed on. How is a court supposed to be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that no coercion was at play, that both signatures are from independent witnesses in each others' simultaneous presence, that the health and capacity of the testator had been considered before drafting began and that the testator had been privy to a high standard of legal guidance and strategic estate planning before putting their wishes on paper so that they could make an informed judgement as to the distribution of their assets and who this might effect? How easy can it be for an individual or group of people to syphon funds from an estate once the deceased is unable to speak for themselves? After graduating from the University of London with an LLB in Law and Commercial Law, I had the opportunity to work in the Wills department of a Private Client law firm as a legal advisor and Wills drafter. Despite all of the skills and experience that this gave me, it also left me with significant doubts. Unfortunately, my experience of the Private Client legal sector seemed at times to be more reminiscent of a back-street sales company with a daily leaderboard of products and numerous add-ons sold to elderly and high risk clients who were convinced that they would be best served by complex documents and trusts which weren't suitable for their personal situation and assets, having been sold to them on a large scale commission earned basis by poorly trained legal advisors who at times lacked empathy and insight. This didn't seem like a suitable manner in which to conduct what is arguably one of the most sensitive and vocational aspects of the British legal system, since it directly involves the integrity of the client and their loved ones both in life and death as regards their legacy, wishes and assets. That's why I was inspired to start up on my own and take the plunge to use my hard earned skills in this field to serve those contemplating their families and loved ones' interests after death. A bulletproof Will requires correctly laid groundwork. At Shire Wills we take the initiative onto our shoulders to proactively prepare every piece of the final document both before the point of drafting and after, so that it satisfies the legal threshold of undisputed validity and serves your interests and needs as a client so that your legacy can live on for the next generation. 

-Alexander Whitaker LLB (Hons) Law and Commercial Law