How to Contest a Will in England and Wales

To contest a will in England and Wales you challenge either its validity or the provision it makes, and the usual first step is to enter a caveat with the Probate Registry to pause any grant of probate while matters are looked into.

A will can be challenged on limited legal grounds, such as a problem with how it was signed and witnessed, a lack of mental capacity, undue influence, or fraud. A separate route, under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, does not attack the will itself but asks the court for reasonable financial provision for certain family members and dependants. This guide explains both, who can bring them, and the deadlines that apply. Figures and rules are current as at August 2026 and are subject to change.

Who can contest a will?

Not everyone can challenge a will. The right to do so generally depends on your relationship to the person who died and on the type of claim.

• To challenge validity: people who would inherit under an earlier will, people who would inherit under the intestacy rules if the will were set aside, and beneficiaries named in the current or a previous will.
• To claim under the Inheritance Act 1975: a spouse or civil partner, a former spouse or civil partner who has not remarried, a cohabiting partner of at least two years, a child of the deceased, a person treated as a child of the family, and any person who was being maintained by the deceased (section 1, Inheritance Act 1975, legislation.gov.uk, as at August 2026, subject to change).

Whether you fall into one of these categories, and whether a claim has realistic prospects, depends on the facts. This is general information rather than a view on any particular estate.

Grounds for contesting a will

A will is challenged on validity where there is a recognised legal reason to doubt that it reflects the true, freely given wishes of a person who understood what they were doing. The main grounds are set out below.

Lack of valid execution

A will must meet the formal signing rules. In broad terms it must be in writing, signed by the person making it (or by someone in their presence and at their direction), and that signature must be made or acknowledged in front of two witnesses present at the same time, who then each sign (section 9, Wills Act 1837, legislation.gov.uk, as at August 2026, subject to change). If these steps were not followed, the will may be invalid.

Lack of testamentary capacity

The person making the will must have had the mental capacity to do so. The long-standing test asks whether they understood the nature of making a will and its effects, the extent of their property, and the claims of those who might expect to benefit. Medical records and the notes of whoever prepared the will often matter here.

Lack of knowledge and approval

Even where the formalities and capacity are in order, the person must have known and approved the contents of the will. Suspicion can arise where someone who benefits significantly was closely involved in arranging the will, or where the person was blind, frail or reliant on others to read it to them.

Undue influence

A will can be set aside if the person was coerced into making it, so that the document records someone else's wishes rather than their own. Undue influence is not presumed for wills and must be proved, which tends to make it one of the harder grounds to establish.

Fraud or forgery

A will may be challenged where a signature was forged, or where the person was deceived into making or changing it. Handwriting evidence and the circumstances in which the will appeared are usually central to this kind of claim.

Inheritance Act 1975 claims for provision

If you are not disputing the will but feel it left you without reasonable financial provision, a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 may be an option. The court can order payments from the estate to an eligible person, taking account of matters such as the size of the estate, the claimant's needs and resources, and any obligations the deceased had towards them. For everyone except a spouse or civil partner, the provision the court can order is limited to what is reasonable for maintenance.

The deadline is strict. A claim should generally be brought within six months of the grant of representation, and permission of the court is needed to apply after that (section 4, Inheritance Act 1975, legislation.gov.uk, as at August 2026, subject to change). Because the clock runs from the grant rather than the death, it is worth confirming the grant date early.

Entering a caveat

A caveat is the practical tool for pausing matters while a validity concern is looked into. It stops a grant of probate being issued, which prevents the estate being distributed before the question is resolved. You can apply online or by post if you are aged 18 or over and have an interest in the estate. It costs £3 and lasts for six months, and it can be extended for a further six months (gov.uk, stopping a probate application, as at August 2026, subject to change). A caveat is not the right step for an Inheritance Act claim, which needs the grant to be in place, and entering one can lead to legal costs, so it is usually best paired with early advice and an attempt to reach agreement.

Time limits at a glance

Deadlines differ sharply depending on the type of claim, and some routes have no fixed statutory limit but are still weakened by delay. The table sets out the common positions.

Sources: section 4, Inheritance Act 1975 and section 20, Administration of Justice Act 1982 (rectification), legislation.gov.uk, as at August 2026, subject to change. General guidance only.

Costs and risks to weigh up

Contesting a will can be expensive and stressful, and there is no guaranteed outcome. Court proceedings carry the risk that an unsuccessful party pays some of the other side's costs. Disputes also strain family relationships and can delay the estate for everyone. For these reasons many disputes are resolved through negotiation or mediation, and taking early advice tends to give a clearer picture of prospects and the likely cost before anything is committed to.

Scotland and Northern Ireland

This guide describes the law of England and Wales. Scotland has its own succession law, including legal rights that give a spouse, civil partner and children a fixed entitlement to part of an estate regardless of the will, and it uses confirmation rather than probate. Northern Ireland has a separate but broadly similar framework to England and Wales. If an estate touches more than one jurisdiction, it can be worth taking advice in each.

Frequently asked questions

For the wider picture, see our guides to what probate is and how it works, how to write a will and our overview of estate planning in England and Wales. If you would like to talk something through, you can book a consultation.