A Letter of Wishes can be useful when a person wants to give executors extra guidance about matters that may not fit naturally into the formal wording of their Will. It might cover personal preferences, practical instructions or other wishes that the testator wants the executors to consider after death. The important point is to keep those wishes separate from provisions that need formal testamentary effect.

Under the Wills Act 1837, the Will itself must meet the required signing and witnessing formalities, so a Letter of Wishes should not be treated as a substitute for changing the Will. A separate letter can be particularly useful where the testator wants to explain the reasons behind certain choices or leave further guidance without repeatedly altering the Will. The Letter of Wishes template gives a clear format for recording those instructions alongside the main testamentary document.

Letter of Wishes Template (PDF, Word & Printable Formats)

Get PDF | WORD

What Executors and Trustees Should Be Able to Take From the Letter

A useful Letter of Wishes gives the people dealing with the estate or trust a clear picture of the writer’s preferences. It may explain personal wishes, reasons behind particular estate-planning choices, guidance for discretionary trustees, or preferences concerning particular assets and family circumstances.

The document should still remain consistent with the Will or Trust Deed. A Letter of Wishes cannot safely be used as a second version of either document. If it contains a different gift, attempts to revoke a Will provision, or imposes a restriction on trustee powers, the letter can create confusion rather than useful guidance.

This distinction is especially important where discretionary trustees are involved. The letter can explain what the settlor hopes the trustees will consider, but it should not remove the trustees’ own discretion.

Keep the Wording as a Wish, Not a Command

Precatory wording that keeps the letter non-binding

The safest drafting approach under the supplied facts is to use clearly precatory language. Examples include “I request,” “I express the wish,” and “It is my hope that.” The letter should also state that it is non-binding and intended only to guide the trustees or executors when exercising their fiduciary discretions.

Command wording creates a different risk. Phrases such as “My trustees MUST distribute” or “I direct that” may make the document look less like guidance and more like an attempt to create a binding obligation.

That matters because a Letter of Wishes is deliberately kept outside the formal testamentary execution process. If its wording instead attempts to amend the Will, the document can face the formal requirements associated with a testamentary instrument.

When guidance starts looking like a testamentary amendment

A Letter of Wishes should not say that a Will clause is revoked or that a new gift is created. The supplied facts give the example of a writer stating: “I revoke Clause 4 of my Will and give £10,000 to X.” Combined with formal witnessing, that wording can make the document look like an attempted codicil.

The problem is not simply the choice of words. It is what the document is trying to achieve. A person who wants to make a formal change should deal with that change through the appropriate testamentary document rather than trying to achieve the same result through a private letter.

Do Not Accidentally Tie the Trustees’ Hands

Guidance versus fettering a fiduciary discretion

Discretionary trustees need to make their own decisions. A Letter of Wishes can influence that decision-making process, but it must not turn the trustee’s discretion into a fixed instruction.

The supplied facts give a useful example. Suppose a settlor tells discretionary trustees that they must not distribute capital to a beneficiary until that beneficiary reaches 35, even though the Trust Deed gives the trustees absolute discretion. If the trustees simply follow the letter, they may face a breach-of-trust issue because they have failed to exercise their own discretion.

This is why the wording needs care. The purpose is to communicate the settlor’s preference without replacing the powers given to the trustees under the Trust Deed.

How to give trustees useful guidance without making it mandatory

A useful distinction is between “I would prefer” and “you must.” The first communicates a preference. The second attempts to control the decision.

The letter should therefore help trustees understand the writer’s thinking while leaving them able to consider the circumstances existing when they make the decision. The supplied facts identify unlawful fettering of fiduciary discretion as the specific risk where trustees follow mandatory instructions instead of exercising independent judgment.

The Confidential Letter May Not Stay Entirely Private

Why trustees may treat the letter as confidential

A Letter of Wishes can form part of the confidential decision-making material considered by trustees. The supplied facts identify Schmidt v Rosewood Trust Ltd [2003] and Breakspear v Ackland [2008] in relation to confidentiality and disclosure.

That does not mean every beneficiary automatically receives a copy. Trustees are generally not required to disclose a confidential letter simply because a beneficiary asks to see it.

When the High Court may order disclosure

Confidentiality is not absolute. The High Court retains supervisory jurisdiction over trusts and can consider whether disclosure should take place.

The supplied facts identify the High Court of Justice, Chancery Division / Business and Property Courts as the forum for disputes involving trustee disclosure, trustee decisions and trust administration.

This becomes particularly relevant where a beneficiary believes the letter contains information needed to understand a trustee decision. A refusal to disclose does not necessarily end the matter.

Keep the Letter Out of the Probate File

Where the Letter of Wishes should be kept

Under the supplied facts, the Letter of Wishes is a private, non-testamentary document. It is not filed, recorded or registered with the Probate Registry, Companies House, HM Land Registry or another government body.

The practical custody arrangement described in the source is to keep it in a separate envelope alongside the Will or Trust Deed. It should not be physically stapled or pinned to the original Will.

The important point is to keep the private guidance clearly separate from the formal testamentary document.

Why sending it with the probate application creates a problem

The supplied facts state that the Letter of Wishes should not be submitted to the Probate Registry with the Will when applying for a Grant of Probate. The concern is that submitting it could risk the letter becoming part of the probate record and losing the privacy intended for a side letter.

That makes document custody an operational issue, not just a drafting issue. Executors should know which papers form the formal probate documents and which papers are private guidance.

A Letter of Wishes Must Not Create a Secret Trust by Accident

Avoid turning private wishes into a hidden trust arrangement

A Letter of Wishes should not become an undisclosed binding arrangement with a legatee who is expected to hold property for another person.

The supplied facts distinguish ordinary non-binding guidance from confidential trust arrangements involving fully secret and half-secret trusts.They refer to communication and acceptance requirements and identify Blackwell v Blackwell [1929].

The risk is significant because an arrangement that was intended to remain a simple private wish may instead raise questions about whether a trust was intended. The supplied facts identify the possibility of the intended trust failing and the asset reverting to the residuary estate under a resulting trust.

Using a Letter of Wishes When Someone Is Excluded From the Estate

Recording reasons without turning the letter into an attack on family members

A Letter of Wishes can record the reasons behind a decision to exclude or limit provision for an eligible family member or dependant in a separation agreement. Those reasons may become relevant in a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.

The supplied facts state that these explanations should be factual, objective and contemporaneous. They also identify section 3(1)(g) and Ilott v The Blue Cross [2017].

A useful letter should therefore explain the writer’s reasons without turning into an emotional account of every family disagreement. The more factual the explanation, the easier it is to understand what the writer actually relied upon.

Avoid unsupported accusations

The supplied facts specifically warn against unprovable, defamatory or scurrilous allegations about excluded family members.

For example, making an unsupported accusation of fraud or criminal conduct may create a separate problem if the Letter later appears in High Court or 1975 Act litigation. The source identifies the Defamation Act 2013 and English common law in this context.

Sensitive reasons should therefore be written carefully. A Letter of Wishes is not the place for allegations that the writer cannot substantiate.

When the Letter Conflicts With the Will or Trust Deed

A Letter of Wishes should never be treated as a back-door amendment.

The supplied facts specifically address side correspondence that conflicts with express provisions in the Will or Trust Deed. The formal document remains the operative document, while contradictory wishes can become legally ineffective and create confusion among executors, trustees and beneficiaries.

Consider a letter that says a particular person should receive an asset while the Will gives that asset to someone else. The letter does not simply replace the Will’s gift. Instead, it creates a conflict that those administering the estate must understand.

The same problem arises with trusts. A Letter of Wishes should not contradict the Trust Deed or attempt to remove a power that the trustees are meant to exercise.

What Happens When Trustees Ignore the Wishes?

A person cannot normally enforce a Letter of Wishes simply because the document contains a particular preference. The supplied facts describe it as having no coercive legal force against trustees or executors.

The source gives the example of a testator asking an executor to give family heirlooms to a particular friend. If the executor refuses and deals with the items under the residuary estate, the disappointed friend does not acquire a contractual or trust cause of action simply from the wording of the letter.

That does not mean trustees have unlimited freedom. Where trustees exercise a discretion improperly or unlawfully fetter their discretion, a different legal issue can arise. The Letter’s non-binding nature should not be confused with permission for trustees to disregard their fiduciary duties.

When a Letter of Wishes Becomes Evidence in a Family Provision Claim

“A Letter of Wishes can become important evidence in an Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 claim, even though the letter itself does not create enforceable estate planning rights.

The supplied facts identify letters explaining why an adult child was excluded as evidence of the deceased’s reasons. They refer to Ilott v The Blue Cross [2017] UKSC 17 and section 3(1)(g).

The quality of the reasons matters. If a claimant shows that the deceased relied on false or mistaken facts, the source states that the High Court judge can give the Letter little or no evidential weight and make an award of financial provision from the estate.

That is why factual accuracy matters more than forceful language when explaining an exclusion.

Who Deals With a Dispute About the Letter?

High Court trust and probate disputes

The supplied facts identify the High Court of Justice, Chancery Division / Business and Property Courts for trust disputes and applications involving disclosure of side letters, trustee decisions and trust administration. CPR Part 64 is also identified for court guidance on trust administration.

A dispute may therefore begin as a request for information but develop into a wider question about how trustees exercised their powers.

Inheritance Act claims

The supplied facts identify the High Court and County Court as forums for financial dependency claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 where the Letter is used as evidence of the deceased’s reasons.

The important distinction is that the Letter becomes evidence in the claim. It does not become the source of the claimant’s legal entitlement.

Practical Legal Requirements Table

Legal Requirements Table

Practical Legal Impact

The table highlights the central drafting problem: the Letter needs to be useful without becoming legally forceful. Wish-based wording keeps the document in its intended role. Mandatory directions can instead raise questions about whether the writer attempted to amend the Will or control a trustee’s discretion.

Confidentiality also depends on keeping the document separate from the formal probate papers. The supplied facts state that it should not be filed with the Probate Registry. If it is treated as part of the probate documentation, the privacy the writer intended may be lost.

For trustees, the biggest practical risk is blindly following a mandatory instruction. That can create a breach-of-trust issue where the Trust Deed gives them discretion. For family provision issues, poor or unsupported reasons can weaken the evidential value of the Letter in later litigation.

Common Letter of Wishes Mistakes That Cause Problems Later

The most serious drafting mistakes tend to come from treating the Letter as though it were a formal Will amendment.

Using “I direct” instead of wish-based wording can make the document appear mandatory. Attempting to revoke a Will clause or create a new gift can create an inadvertent codicil problem.

Trustee instructions can cause a separate problem. Telling trustees that they must not exercise a particular power can unlawfully fetter their discretion. A Letter should express a preference rather than remove the decision that belongs to the trustees.

Other mistakes include submitting the Letter to the Probate Registry, physically attaching it to the Will, creating wording that conflicts with the Trust Deed, and accidentally creating a secret trust arrangement.

Finally, avoid unsupported accusations against excluded relatives. If the Letter later appears in litigation, those statements can create problems for the estate rather than strengthening the explanation for the testator’s decision.

Letter of Wishes FAQs