Wills, Probate and Inheritance

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have a will haven’t updated it for more than five years, meaning nearly half of wills made in the area are likely to be out-of-date.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…

A man’s second wife has failed to prevent his son inheriting the family home after he died. Stephanie Johnson Senior Associate Solicitor reports on this recent case. The husband had married his first wife in 1988 and their son was born shortly afterwards. He worked overseas during the early 2000s, where he formed a relationship with a second woman who lived in the Philippines. He separated from his wife and the…

The government is to allow vulnerable people to continue to be able to have their wills witnessed via video-link until 2024. Ingrid Fraser, solicitor in our Wills, Probate & Inheritance team, provides an update. The move extends measures brought in because of the pandemic. It’s designed to help people who are forced to isolate either with Covid or from another vulnerability. Ministers hope it will reassure all those who need…

January is the time for making resolutions to give ourselves a fresh start for the New Year. Jane Oakley a member of our Wills, Probate & Inheritance team reports. It’s good to take stock and decide to eat less or exercise more but there’s so much more we could be doing to improve our lives and protect ourselves for the future. Here are three New Year Resolutions relating to the law…

An increase in family disputes and contested Will cases is extremely likely as more people turn to using online and homemade will writing services, a leading disputes solicitor has predicted. David Tew, a Will Disputes solicitor with Cartmell Shepherd Solicitors, is raising awareness of the potential pitfalls of using unregulated and uninsured will writers advertising their product at a cheap rate on the internet after more families reported receiving inadequate…

The increasing use of unregulated online will writing services could lead to a surge in family disputes over a loved one’s estate, researchers have warned. Deborah Flynn Director & Head of Wills, Probate & Inheritance provides an update. Online services have become more popular over the last few years, particularly during the Covid lockdown periods. The consultancy firm, Funeral Solution Expert (FSE), analysed 26 online will writers. It found several…