Wills
We are a specialist private client law firm recognised as a Band 3 ranked firm for Private Wealth Law in the Chambers High Net Worth Guide 2026 and shortlisted for Boutique Firm of the Year (Legal) at the STEP Private Client Awards 2026. We have extensive experience helping individuals and families prepare bespoke wills and navigate the wider estate planning issues that arise when protecting wealth and providing for future generations.
For some clients, a straightforward will is sufficient. For others, more detailed planning may be required to address issues such as Inheritance Tax, business ownership, vulnerable beneficiaries, international assets or succession planning. We do not believe in a one-size-fits-all approach. Every will we prepare is tailored to your individual circumstances, objectives and family arrangements.
Many of our clients come to us through recommendations from existing clients and professional advisers.
Our approach
We offer a pragmatic, plain speaking approach and deliver our advice in plain English. Our approach is to keep matters as simple as possible while ensuring that your wishes are met and all risks have been taken into account. We will always advise you of any risks that could cause your wishes to not take effect (for example through claims against your estate) or cause the inheritance to be reduced (for example through Inheritance Tax). By using our expertise, we keep it as straightforward for you as possible.
We believe that effective estate planning starts with understanding your personal and family circumstances. You will be allocated your own solicitor who will work with you to guide you through the Will creation process from start to finish and where possible they will also act for you whenever you instruct Spall Clark Solicitors. Our Will writing solicitors are all members of STEP and are specialists in this area of law.
Paul ClarkTEP is a full member of STEP and is a member of the Law Society Private Client and Estates Committee.
Natasha Yelland is an associate member of STEP and is ranked as an Associate to Watch in the Chambers High Net Worth Guide 2026.
Melissa Howman is an affiliate member of STEP and has been shortlisted for awards at the Probate Industry Awards and the Twilight Awards.
We are based in Congleton and act for clients in Cheshire, Manchester and beyond.
We can meet you at your home, our office in Congleton, your office or any other location to suit you. We also offer meetings by online video (such as Zoom, Skype and Teams) or by telephone.
Specialist Will writing services
Cross-Border Wills and International Estate Planning
We have extensive experience advising individuals and families with international connections, including overseas property, foreign assets and family members living abroad.
We mainly act for UK domiciled individuals with families living abroad, holiday homes abroad or off-shore assets but can also offer advice to non-domiciled individuals with assets in England. As a specialist private client practice, all of our solicitors are able to deal with preparing cross border Wills.
We are specialists in advising on English law and we have extensive experience of working with foreign lawyers in relation to cross border estate planning. We offer advice on specific English law issues such as Will drafting and Inheritance tax planning, and can either work with your existing lawyers or recommend foreign lawyers to advise on legal issues in their respective jurisdiction
We can meet you at your home, your office or our office in Congleton. We also offer meetings by Microsoft Teams or by telephone.
Wills for High Net Worth Individuals and Couples
As a Band 3 ranked firm for Private Wealth Law in the Chambers High Net Worth Guide 2026, we regularly advise high net worth individuals, families and business owners on complex estate planning and succession matters.
We provide bespoke advice to clients with net assets typically ranging from £2 million to £6 million and above. Our expertise includes Inheritance Tax planning, asset protection trusts in Wills, succession planning and reducing the risk of future challenges to a will. We work closely with accountants, financial advisers and other professional advisers to create integrated estate plans that reflect your personal, financial and family objectives.
This approach helps ensure that your wealth is preserved and passed to future generations in accordance with your wishes whilst minimising unnecessary tax and administrative burdens
Wills for Business Owners
We offer a bespoke Will writing service for business owners. Our role involves advising on Wills including structuring Wills to take into account Inheritance Tax reliefs such as Business Property Relief. Business protection matters such as cross option agreements also needs to be reviewed as part of the process.
We work closely with you, your family and your existing professional advisers to ensure that your will reflects both your personal wishes and your wider business succession objectives.
Please visit our business owner services page for more information about the services we offer to owner managed businesses.
Wills for Vulnerable people
Our solicitors have many years of experience in preparing Wills for vulnerable people such as adults with learning disabilities and people diagnosed with dementia. We recognise that different people have different support needs and we offer a personal and sensitive approach to Will making. We provide our advice in jargon free plain English to make the process straightforward as possible.
As solicitors, we assess a person’s mental capacity to make a Will (known as ‘testamentary capacity’) and in certain circumstances it may be necessary to obtain a formal report from a medical professional. Should a separate capacity assessment be required, we are able to arrange this as part of the process.
Recommended guides
Wills, Succession Planning, Inheritance Tax
Contact us
Make an appointment
For urgent wills, please call us on 01260 769 639.
Further information
Our process
Step 1: Initial meeting
During our initial meeting we will discuss your aims and wishes. We will review your personal circumstances and inform you of your Inheritance Tax position. We will advise you if there are any alternative ways of structuring your Will to meet your wishes and limit or avoid any identified risks.
Our initial meeting can be at your home, our office, online video or by telephone.
Step 2: Confirming your instructions
We will provide you with a summary of your instructions (in plain English) and provide you with our engagement documents which confirm the cost and estimated timeframe for completion.
We can provide the documents to you by post or via our online portal, whichever you prefer. We use a secure online portal to ensure your personal information is kept safe.
Step 3: Reviewing the draft Will
Once you have confirmed your instructions, we will provide you with a draft Will along with a plain English version for you to review. We can meet with you to review the documents or provide them to you by post or via our online portal, whichever you prefer.
Step 4: Signing the Will
Once you have approved the draft Will, we will prepare the final versions and meet with you to sign the Will. Two independent people are required to witness your Will and we can provide both witnesses. Alternatively if you prefer to sign your Will at home, we can send the final version to you with full signing instructions.
Step 5: Finalisation
Once your Will has been signed, we will discuss where you can keep your original Will. There any several options including keeping the Will at our office at no cost to you. If you decide to keep your Will at our office, we will provide you with a folder containing a copy of your Will and other important documents.
How much does it cost to write a Will
Our initial meetings are free of charge and we offer fixed fees for our Wills.
For details of our fees, please see our price list.
How long does it take to make a will
In most cases, it usually takes between two and four weeks to complete your Will. However, in urgent cases we can complete the process much more quickly if required.
Which solicitor will act for you
Natasha Yelland and Melissa Howman deal with most Wills matters including complex Wills and cross border Wills. However, the most complex situations will involve the whole team and will be lead by Paul ClarkTEP who is a member of the Law Society Private Client and Estates Advisory Committee and assists the Law Society with organising their cross border programme. He is also a member of STEP which is a leading worldwide organisation for solicitors specialising in this area of law.
Paul and Natasha offer home visits in Cheshire. Melissa Howman offers home visits in Northwich, Winsford and surrounding areas.
What our clients say
‘My Will was drawn up to my exact requirements’
‘You made it so easy for me’
‘Explained what I needed to know when making my Will’
‘An enjoyable experience’
To find such reliability in today’s business world, in my experience, is rare and to be valued’