Why Do I Need a Will Anyway? Assessing the Impact of a Public Legal Education Intervention Embedded in a Longitudinal Survey

Abstract

In England and Wales less than half of the adult population report that they have a will, with similarly low numbers found in other jurisdictions. Dying intestate can have profound implications on the family relationships, housing security, finances, employment, health and welfare of those who are left behind. Social policy initiatives designed to educate the public on the implications of intestacy offer a potential solution but remain difficult to evaluate. This article explores the results of a public legal education experiment embedded in a longitudinal panel survey. The experiment was designed to explore: (1) the impact of information provision on will creation ; and, (2) how 'opportunistic experiments' embedded in longitudinal surveys might support public legal education (PLE) evaluation. Whilst the impact of the information intervention in this study was not found to be statistically significant, the methodology points to the possibility of testing more bespoke and substantial initiatives in the future. Keywords: Public legal education, opportunistic experiments, evaluating interventions, wills, experimental methods, legal knowledge and capability.Recent figures suggest that only 37 per cent of adults living in England and Wales have a will (Douglas et al., 2011). Findings from other countries suggest that the rate in England and Wales is on the lower end, with the USA and Australia reporting higher rates of 44 per cent (LexisNexis, 2011) and 59 per cent (see e.g. Tilse et al., 2015) respectively. As might be expected, the prevalence of wills varies with age (National Consumer Council, 2007;Will Aid, 2014;Tilse et al., 2015); while a majority of those aged over 55 have a will, the figure is much lower for young people. Prevalence also varies with ethnicity and education level, with DiRusso (2009) observing lower rates of testacy amongst non-whites, and those without a college degree.Death has previously been described as overlooked in policy debates and absent from social policy texts (Foster and Woodthorpe, 2016). Social policy debate has typically focused on end of life care (e.g. Department of Health, 2008) rather than the implications of dying intestate. Yet social policy has a considerable impact for how death is experienced and our understanding of death (Foster and Woodthorpe, 2016), affecting not only those who are nearing the end of their lives, but also the consequences for those left behind. With an ageing population and a rising death rate in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics, 2014; Foster and Woodthorpe, 2016), the social and economic costs of intestacy, including those arising from the adjudication of disputes, administration of affairs and protection of children, are ultimately borne by the state. There is good reason to consider the role social policy initiatives might play a role in reducing intestacy and to consider how initiatives intended to initiate behavioural change can be effectively evaluated. The impact of intestacy