Case studies

In a recent case we represented a lady whose husband of 20 years had died and, without her knowing, had changed his will in favour of his stepson. The client’s main concern was not so much a monetary one as seeking to establish why her husband had done this without telling her.

By making enquiries, by way of what is called a standard Larke-v-Nugus letter, Robert was able to obtain a copy of the file from  the solicitors who drafted the new will. This included file notes which recorded exactly why the deceased had made the will that he had.

It was clear that there was good reason for this having taken place which put the client’s mind at rest. In addition she obtained a substantial sum from the estate by way of a successful application under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.

It can often be the case that once the initial enquiries have been carried out, the client establishes the reason why they have been left out of the will, or why the estate has been distributed in the way that it has, and this provides peace of mind without an actual claim having to be made.

In another case we were instructed at very short notice to vary a trust. The trust had a value of in excess of £1 million. There were 3 beneficiaries, all of whom were minors. The terms of the trust were such that they would obtain their respective shares of the trust fund once they had reached the age of 21.

Approximately 18 months before the eldest child’s 21st birthday, the trustees instructed solicitors to obtain a variation of the trust so that the age when the children would benefit was raised to 25. The reason for this was that the eldest child had “gone off the rails”, and it was feared that he would spend his inheritance on drink and drugs.

For whatever reason the solicitors did not make the application, and one month before the child’s 21st birthday we were instructed to act in place of the previous solicitors. By urgently obtaining witness evidence, drafting the claim and personally taking the papers to the court we were able to obtain an order varying the trust at the eleventh hour.

We have referred elsewhere in this website to mediation. In a recent case it was agreed between the parties that mediation should take place before court proceedings were issued. The claim was that a will was invalid through lack of knowledge and approval/lack of capacity. The estate was worth £2.5 million.

At mediation it was agreed that the parties would split the estate on a 50/50 basis. This illustrates the potential benefit of mediation. If the case had gone to court the judge would have ruled for or against the validity of the will. One party would succeed and obtain the whole of the estate, and the other would lose. There would have been no other order that the judge could make.

At mediation however the parties can agree to whatever settlement they see fit. In addition if parties face each other at mediation, and there is an amicable settlement, there is much more prospect of the damaged family relationship being repaired.

We were instructed to advise the wife of the deceased in a case where her husband had been diagnosed with cancer. He formed a relationship with the nurse who was caring for him.

Unbeknown to his wife of 30 years, he changed his will immediately before his death, while still of sound mind, and left his entire estate to the nurse. We were instructed by his widow and sent a letter of claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.

We suggested mediation but this was rejected and, consequently, we issued proceedings under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, The claim succeeded and our client was awarded £1.8 million.

As you would expect a lot of cases involve delicate family relationships. In one case the deceased, a successful businessman, died leaving an estate worth £9 million. He had one child, a daughter aged 16 years of age. He had divorced the child’s mother and re-married. His new wife had known the daughter since she was 6 years old and enjoyed a very good relationship.

Her husband/the child’s father died suddenly. In his will he left the bulk of his estate to his new wife, and the sum of £90,000 to his daughter. His new wife was executor of the will. She received a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 from solicitors instructed by the daughter’s mum, who was claiming on her behalf.

Having considered the case we advised that there was no doubt that the provision made for the daughter was inadequate. We suggested that a sensible offer of settlement should be made so as to avoid expensive and acrimonious court proceedings. Settlement was achieved and the client continues to have a good relationship with her step-daughter.

We were consulted by a gentleman who had assets of around £12 million. He was estranged from his only child and was didn’t want him to benefit under his will. Although an adult, his son suffered from ill health and would most likely succeed in a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.

We advised the client on this basis, and suggested that to avoid a claim after his death it would be better to make some provision under the will for his son, so as to potentially avoid an expensive claim against the estate in the event of his death.

The client accepted this. When he died, the estate was administered in accordance with the will and the son did not make a claim.