Baker & anr v Hewston [2023] WTLR 815
Autumn 2023 #192Stanley was married to Agnes and had three children: Ronald, Martin and Jennifer. He also had eight grandchildren including Jennifer’s daughter Emma and Ronald’s son Luke. Stanley separated from Agnes in the 1980s and moved in with his partner Kathleen, supported for many years by her daughter, the defendant. In 2010, Stanley and Kathleen each made wills leaving half shares in their new jointly owned home in Birmingham (the ‘Bungalow’) to Martin and the defendant. Kathleen died in April 2014 and Stanley handed the deeds to the Bungalow to the defendant in an envelope marked ‘Di, keep saf...
Etroy & anr v Speechly Bircham LLP [2023] WTLR 885
Autumn 2023 #192The first claimant (the settlor), who was then non-domiciled in the UK, established the Helios April Trust (HAT) in Jersey in 2002. As events then stood, the trust held excluded property for inheritance tax purposes and in which the settlor had an interest in possession. The Finance Act 2006 significantly changed the tax regime for trusts, principally by removing many of the differences between the tax treatment of life interest trusts on the one hand and discretionary trusts on the other. In particular, any additions of UK-situs assets to interest in possession trusts were trea...
James v Scudamore & ors [2023] WTLR 961
Autumn 2023 #192The deceased died on 21 June 2010. His will, dated 6 March 1998, gave a life interest in the matrimonial home to his second wife, with remainders to the claimant and his brother, who were children of the deceased’s first marriage. A codicil, dated 26 December 2002, replaced the life interest with an absolute gift to the second wife. The deceased’s second wife obtained probate, relying on a copy of the codicil as the original could not be found, and administered the estate. The second wife made a will by which 70% of her residuary estate went to her sister, and 30% to the claimant’s three...
Larsen & anr v Annan [2023] WTLR 1023
Autumn 2023 #192The deceased, George, was the father of the three parties. He died leaving a will dated 26 March 2013. It made a gift of £10,000 to each of his three children, with the residue being left to his wife Lilly. In the event she predeceased him (as happened) it was left to his daughter Heather, the defendant, absolutely. It also appointed Heather as executrix. The estate was valued at approximately £480,000.
It was clear from the attendance notes surrounding the drawing up of the will that the deceased did not regard the claimants as having behaved well. Wayne had killed his niece’s pa...
Naidoo v Barton & anr [2023] WTLR 1047
Autumn 2023 #192Nirmalathevie Naidoo (Mrs Naidoo) died on 10 February 2016. Her husband, Dr Govindarajaloo Naidoo (Dr Naidoo), had predeceased her on 12 January 1999. They had two daughters and five sons. The first defendant, David Barton (Mr Barton) (formerly known as Ramamurthie Naidoo), was one of their children, and his wife (Mrs Barton) was the second defendant. The claimant was another of their children.
By this claim, the claimant sought:
- (1) an order pronouncing in solemn form for the validity of Mrs Naidoo’s will dated 21 July 2015 (the 2015 will), by which he was appointed ...
Pead v Prostate Cancer UK & ors [2023] WTLR 1089
Autumn 2023 #192James Murray McKay (the deceased) left a will dated 3 August 2016 (the will).
Clauses 4.1 – 4.3 of the will were pecuniary legacies to a number of the deceased’s family members (the family members). Clause 4.1 gifted £50,000 each to the deceased’s stepson and wife, clause 4.2 gifted £10,000 to the deceased’s step great-granddaughter, and clause 4.3 gifted £20,000 each to three step grandchildren.
Clauses 4.4 – 4.8 were legacies to a number of charities (the charities). Clauses 4.4 and 4.5 each gifted £2,000 to Macmillan Cancer Support for the benefit of stated causes, claus...
Sleight v Callin [2021] WTLR 1147
Autumn 2023 #192A deceased was survived by his widow and the defendant, his daughter. Although he had been a successful businessman during his lifetime, during the economic downturn that began in 2007 the deceased’s business empire collapsed, and he died heavily indebted. The defendant obtained a grant of probate of the deceased’s will and began to administer his estate with the assistance of professional advisers. More than six years after the death of the deceased, when she realised that the estate was insolvent, the defendant applied to the County Court for an insolvency administration order under th...
Tolley v No Defendant [2023] WTLR 1187
Autumn 2023 #192Caroline Fisher was an only child and her parents were deceased. In September 2020 she made a will appointing the claimant, her friend, as her executor. In January 2022, she drove into the sea and had not been seen since. The claimant issued a CPR Part 8 claim under the Presumption of Death Act 2013 for a declaration of presumption of death before the will had been proved. Section 1(5) of the 2013 Act provides that the court must refuse to hear the application if:
- (a) it is made by someone other than a missing person’s spouse, civil partne...
Kekwick v Kekwick & anr [2023] WTLR 579
Summer 2023 #191The claimant’s mother settled a trust by way of a trust deed dated 29 April 1985. The trust was originally a discretionary trust with the claimant and his mother as trustees and a wide class of beneficiaries. The only asset of the trust was the family home in Surrey (the property). The trust was a discretionary trust during the claimant’s mother’s lifetime, with an absolute trust in favour of the claimant on her death. By a deed dated 30 June 2008, the first defendant (the claimant’s cousin) and the second defendant (a solicitor) were appointed as trustees.
The claimant’s mother d...