I read with interest the short article on the current intestacy rules.

The situation needs a considerable overhaul but I doubt whether this or any other government will find time to grasp the nettle and improve the position.

Although the situation of the surviving spouse (usually the wife) or civil partner is a lot better than it was 50 years ago, the problems created by intestacy will always remain.

It has been said that the intestacy rules are an attempt by the legislature to write a will for the intestate. That the research referred to in the article ‘showed substantial support for the inclusion of cohabitants in the intestacy rules’ demonstrates that the current intestacy rules fail in their attempt to write such a will for the intestate.

What is required is a strong campaign led by the Law Society to bring home to the public that there will never be a substitute for a well-considered will, prepared by a competent solicitor, which takes into account the complexities that surround so many family relationships in today's world; and that, even if there are no such ‘complexities’, the authority of a good will must be preferred to the laws of intestacy.

Andrew Kidd, head of private client, Silverman Sherliker, London EC2