Mountain Rescue England and Wales

We recommend that anyone making or updating a Will seek professional independent advice from a solicitor. Things may not be as straightforward as they seem and, if all the legal formalities are not correctly followed, your Will could be declared invalid.

To leave a legacy you must include a bequest in your Will. Click here for information about creating a Will. If you already have a Will, it can easily be updated to make an additional bequest. To make things easier, we have produced some examples you might use.

There are several ways  you can leave a gift in your Will

Residuary bequest
A gift consisting of the residue of an estate after all other conditions of the Will have been met, or part of such residue (meaning that once family and friends have been provided for) the remainder or a proportion of your estate is pledged to charity. This type of gift means that, however much your financial circumstances change, the proportion of your estate each person receives will stay the same. It is usually shown as a percentage of what is left of your estate, once all the expenses, debts and specific gifts have been taken out.

Pecuniary bequest
A gift of a fixed sum of money. The value of pecuniary legacies will decrease over time, as the cost of living increases.

Specific gifts/bequest
A particular named item left as a gift, for example gifts of jewellery, furnishings and other possessions, including land and buildings.

Contingent bequest
A gift that depends upon the occurrence of an event which may or may not happen. An example is a bequest to a charity which applies only if other beneficiaries names in the Will die before the testator (person who made the Will).