More and more families are ending up in court over a will. In 2025, 1,217 disputed probate cases were filed at the High Court in England and Wales, a 13% year-on-year rise and up from 1,080 the year before, according to court data reported by Today's Wills and Probate. Behind the headlines about will disputes sit ordinary families: siblings no longer speaking, stepchildren left with nothing, promises that never made it onto paper.

Most successful challenges trace back to problems a well-made will is designed to avoid. Here is how wills are challenged, and how to make yours as solid as possible.

Why are will disputes rising?

Researchers behind the court figures point to rising estate values, more blended families, an ageing population bringing more disputes over mental capacity, and the popularity of cheap DIY wills. At the 2021 Census there were 781,000 step-families in England and Wales.

The number of caveats tells the same story. A caveat is a formal block lodged with the probate registry that stops a grant of probate being issued while questions are asked. Court service figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act show 11,589 caveats were entered in 2025, up 12% in a year.

The main grounds for challenging a will

A will cannot be overturned just because someone is unhappy with it. A challenge must fit one of a few legal grounds:

• It was not signed and witnessed properly. Under the Wills Act 1837, you must sign your will (or acknowledge your signature) in front of two witnesses who are both present at the same time, and each witness must then sign in front of you. Video witnessing was a temporary pandemic-era measure and ended for wills made after 31 January 2024. Everyone needs to be physically in the room.
• Lack of testamentary capacity. The test comes from Banks v Goodfellow, an 1870 case still applied today. You must understand what a will does, have a broad grasp of what you own, and appreciate who might reasonably expect to benefit, with no disorder of the mind distorting those judgements.
• Want of knowledge and approval. You must know what is in your will and agree with it. Where circumstances look suspicious, for example the person who arranged the will takes a large gift under it, a court will want convincing evidence that it was understood and approved.
• Undue influence. Persuasion is allowed; coercion is not. If pressure from someone else overpowered the will-maker's own wishes, the will can fail, though the person challenging it must prove this.
• Forgery or fraud. A forged signature, or a will brought about by deliberate deceit, is invalid. In a 2025 High Court case, a will said to have been made by a solicitor, cutting out his only daughter, was ruled a forgery.

There is also a separate route that leaves the will itself intact. Under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, spouses and civil partners, former spouses who have not remarried, partners who lived with the deceased for at least two years, children, people treated as a child of the family, and anyone the deceased was financially supporting can ask a court for reasonable financial provision, even where the will is valid. Claims normally have to be started within six months of the grant of probate.

How to make your will hard to challenge

Use a professional, and let them keep notes

A professionally prepared will comes with a paper trail: written instructions, attendance notes and recorded checks. If a dispute surfaces years later, that file is often the strongest evidence of what you wanted and why.

Follow the golden rule if age or illness is in play

When someone elderly or seriously ill makes a will, longstanding guidance known as the golden rule suggests a doctor should assess their capacity and record the finding. It is good practice rather than a legal requirement, but a medical note made at the time makes a capacity challenge far harder to run.

Explain difficult decisions in writing

If you are leaving out someone who might expect to inherit, a short letter of wishes stored with your will, setting out your reasons in your own words, helps show the decision was yours and was made with a clear head.

Pick the right witnesses

Never let a beneficiary, or a beneficiary's spouse or civil partner, witness your will. The will itself stays valid, but the law cancels the gift to that person.

Keep it up to date

Marriage or a civil partnership automatically revokes your will, unless it was made in contemplation of that marriage or partnership. Divorce, births and deaths change the picture too. The Law Commission recommended reforms in May 2025, including ending revocation by marriage, but none of those changes has become law, so today's rules apply. We looked at the proposals in our guide to the proposed changes to wills law.

Tell your executors where it is

A will nobody can find causes almost as much trouble as no will at all, so make sure your executors know where the original is kept.

Worried about a loved one's will?

If you believe a will does not reflect someone's true wishes, or you have been unfairly left out, time matters. A caveat costs £3 and stops a grant of probate being issued for six months, renewable for six more. GOV.UK advises trying to reach agreement with the person applying for probate before taking formal steps. For a quick sense of where you stand, our free contentious probate claim checker takes a couple of minutes.

If you would like your will reviewed, or you are ready to put one in place that stands up to scrutiny, you can book a free consultation with us. No pressure, just a friendly chat.

This article is general information for England and Wales, not legal or financial advice, and the rules can change. Scotland and Northern Ireland have different rules. Please seek personal advice about your own circumstances.