Planning ahead
Protect your family before anything happens
A local will with a correctly worded choice-of-law election, a written opinion on who would inherit today, your marriage regime confirmed, your UK trust reviewed — each a fixed fee, each signed personally by Colin Carroll. Choose your country.
Choose your country
Portugal
The legítima, a Portuguese will, your marriage regime — and the election that restores your freedom.
Wills, opinions & fixed fees →
Spain
The legítima and its regional variations, a Spanish will registered centrally, gananciales or separation.
Wills, opinions & fixed fees →
Italy
The legittima — which protects the spouse strongly — an Italian will, and the election that displaces it.
Wills, opinions & fixed fees →
France
The réserve, a French will (essential for unmarried couples — a partner inherits nothing without one), your regime.
Wills, opinions & fixed fees →
Why plan at all?
Because in all four of our countries the default answers are set by law, not by your wishes — and the difference between the default and a single well-drafted clause can be the family home. The background, in plain English:
Start here
Can I choose English law for my Portuguese or Spanish estate? (Brussels IV)
Under the EU Succession Regulation (Brussels IV) a British or Irish national can elect the law of their nationality in their will instead of the forced-heirship rules of Portugal, Spain, Italy or France — English law gives full freedom; Irish law protects a spouse’s share. It decides who inherits — not the tax.
Read the guide →
Forced inheritance across Portugal, Spain, Italy & France
The reserved shares that protect close family in each of the four countries — and how they differ.
Read the guide →
We live together but aren’t married — what happens when one of us dies?
Why an unmarried partner is often not a legal heir across PT/ES/IT/FR — and what a will can do about it.
Read the guide →