Making a will crucial as marriage "strengthened as a contract"?

Making a will may be more important than ever following the significant ruling in a divorce case on Wednesday (October 20th).

Dr Carmen Draghici, expert in family and child law at the City Law School, claims the judgement - which ruled consideration should be given to a pre-nuptial agreement drawn up in Germany - "[strengthens] marriage as a contract", making personal autonomy more important in family matters.

This implies making a will could be the best way to ensure an individual's wishes are respected in the event of a death, as court is more likely to take them into account rather than reverting to general laws governing division of assets and estate.

Pre-nuptial agreements are not recognised in Britain, but the legal services expert observes they will now be awarded "decisive weight", indicating the parameters of law as it relates to personal life are in flux.

Nicholas Granatino went to the Supreme Court after his divorce settlement was slashed from £5 million to £1 million, but lost his case to have the pre-marriage agreement thrown out.