Legacy letters case study

Introduction

Mr A was 68 and didn’t have long to live when he contacted LR Connections to enquire about estate planning. A widower for the last seven years, he had one daughter who had a young son. Mr A’s daughter had been seeing her boyfriend for the last four years. When she had to move away from the local area for work, her boyfriend asked her to marry him and then move to the new area with her and her young son. Mr A said that he would wait for them to get settled in their new location then move there himself, as there would be nothing to anchor him in their home town after they had gone.

What happened next

Soon after she started her new job, her son had settled into his new school and the wedding plans were under way, Mr A received the terrible news that he had a terminal cancer and did not have long to live.

As well as LR Estate Planning adviser dealing with matters concerning his estate, Mr A wanted to pay for the wedding to make sure the couple had a perfect day. Through LR Connections, Mr A was put in contact with an independent financial adviser from LR Financial Advice.

Mr A specified that did not want to be kept alive on life support – he did not want his daughter to have to give up work and become his fulltime carer. They had become even closer since the death of Mrs A seven years previously. In fact, Mr A did not even want his daughter to know he was unwell, in case she threw away a career opportunity by leaving her job. He was also concerned that he would not live to see the wedding.

How the LR Connections advisers helped

One of our independent financial advisers discussed with Mr A the best ways for him to pay for the wedding and how to ensure his finances were in order. One of our estate planners then set out various options, enabling Mr A to make an informed decision. Mr A asked us to draft his will, so he could leave some money to a cancer charity.

We arranged a trust fund to make sure that Mr A could pass money to his daughter and son-in-law in the most tax-efficient way. Mr A specified that the money should be used to enable his grandson to attend university when he reaches the age.

The LR Estate Planning adviser then put in place Mr A’s Powers of Attorney and drafted his Living Will (Advance Declaration) to make sure that his wish to not be kept alive on a life support machine would be honoured.

Mr A then wanted advice on how to draft his legacy letter, and on the best way to make sure that his daughter would get the letter. The adviser gave Mr A ideas about how to word the letter then suggested that a close family friend could deliver the letter to Mr A’s daughter on her wedding day.

We were able to get all the above documents drafted and signed for Mr A in a timely manner and the documents were stored in a safe place.   

What happened next

Sadly, Mr A passed away and was cremated two months before his daughter’s but, via the legacy letter, she was able to read his final words before being walked down the aisle by Mr A’s closest friend. She was able to feel a connection to her father on a very emotional day.

We are happy to say that Mr A’s daughter got back in contact with us to tell us that the day had gone well and to thank us for what we had done.