Wills, Probate and Inheritance

The High Court has settled a dispute between four siblings over the validity of their father’s Will. Stephanie Johnson, Senior Associate Solicitor, reports on this recent case. The court heard that the father had died on 11 September 2016. He had four children: the claimant and her three siblings (S1, S2 and S3). In a will found after his death, the father left his estate to his first wife, who…

The High Court has rejected a man’s claim that he was entitled to inherit his brother’s estate instead of the brother’s wife. Stephanie Johnson Senior Associate Solicitor reports on this recent case. The issue arose because in September 2002, the deceased had executed a will bequeathing his whole estate to his brother. However, following his marriage in 2010, he had instructed solicitors to draft a new will, but before executing it…

Three siblings have failed to overturn their stepmother’s will after she left everything to her biological son.  Rebecca Armstrong Associate Solicitor in our Will Claims team reports on this recent case. The son claimed that his mother had changed the will after the siblings’ father died so that he could look after her parrot.  The case involved 61-year-old Ian McLean and his siblings Sean and Lorraine, and their half-brother, a self-titled “Lord” Brett…

The trustees of a man’s will have been told they cannot put a time limit on his daughter’s right to bring a claim against them unless they provided all the facts that determined how the estate should be divided.  Stephanie Johnson Senior Associate Solicitor reports on this recent case. The case involved two siblings in dispute over the will of their late father.   The deceased owned an estate worth around £3.5…

The High Court has ruled that a man’s will that existed only in draft form on a computer, but which was signed by two reliable witnesses, should be accepted as valid.     Rebecca Armstrong Associate Solicitor in our Will Claims team reports on this recent case. Is a draft will legally binding in the UK? So, what of the question is a draft will legally binding in the UK? This is indeed a highly…

The heart-breaking experience of TV presenter Kate Garraway’s inheritance case highlights the value of drawing up Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) to protect your future.  Jane Oakley, Private Client Legal Executive in our Wills, Probate & Inheritance team reports. Kates’s husband Derek Draper suffered a terrible reaction to Covid and still has a long way to go in his recovery.  The Good Morning Britain star said that the two of…

The government is to launch a 10-Year Plan to tackle dementia following estimates that one million people will be living with the disease in the UK by 2025 and 1.6 million by 2040. Sharon Crisp, Probate Executive in our Wills, Probate & Inheritance provides an update. Speaking at the Alzheimer’s Society Conference 2022, Health Secretary Sajid Javid confirmed the plan will focus on how new medicines and emerging science and…

An elderly farmer who suffered from dementia understood what he was doing when he changed his will shortly before his death and so the alterations should be accepted as representing his true wishes. David Tew, Associate Solicitor in our Will Claims team reports on this recent case. That was the decision of the Court of Appeal in a case involving a dispute between members of the same family. In 2005 the…

Deborah Flynn, Solicitor and Associate member of SFE calls for residents to review their wills ahead of “Update Your Will Week”. Research commissioned by SFE (Solicitors for the Elderly) has revealed that almost half (45%) of people living in the North of England who have a will haven’t updated it for more than five years, meaning nearly half of wills made in the area are likely to be out-of-date. Of…

The Court of Appeal has defined the meaning of ‘UK assets’ in a dispute over a man’s will involving his wife and his children. Ingrid Fraser, Solicitor in our Wills, Probate & Inheritance team reports on this recent case. The deceased had been living in Russia where he had substantial assets. In 2013, he made a will in the UK, where he also had assets. The will defined his estate…