October 2020 #217 – Law Journals

Inheritance Act claims: The winner takes it all?

Amanda Noyce examines recent case law to determine whether success fees are recoverable in 1975 Act claims These cases are intrinsically extremely dangerous for lawyers to undertake, particularly since the decision in Ilott. Move over Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice; if there was ever a prize for the best opening line, HHJ Gosnell’s comments in …

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Wills: A welcome update?

Lucinda Brown and Alexander Morgan discuss the impact of the video-link will The possibility of undue influence being exerted on the testator is a key risk of arranging for a will to be executed by video-link. The government has announced that, in September 2020, it will introduce new legislation in England and Wales to allow …

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Estate administration: More than remote

Personal representatives risk being personally liable if they fail to discharge their duties to creditors. Adam Carvalho and Joseph de Lacey discuss recent judicial guidance on the scope of due diligence It was not clear whether the executors would be able to rely on the protection in s27 in circumstances where, even if no response …

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Family investment companies: Keeping it in the family

A family investment company is a useful way of preserving a family’s wealth. Eamonn Daly outlines the pros and cons Tax rates on income and gains accumulated within the FIC compare very favourably with those applicable to individuals and trusts. Family investment companies (FICs) were developed just over a decade ago. They have gradually become …

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Trusts: Hush money

Mark Pawlowski considers the interrelationship between proprietary estoppel and secret trusts To what extent is it open to a testator to change their will or revoke the instructions they have given to their secret trustee so as to frustrate the expectations of the secret beneficiary? The answer to this question depends on whether the secret …

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Charities: Joined-up thinking

When is a charity not a charity? When it is a club. Timothy Sherwin explains Practitioners should be careful in the drafting of membership provisions in any charity, and especially those charities which rely on s5 of the 2011 Act, in order to ensure that they do not restrict entry to the membership more than …

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Sanctions and trusts: Avoiding a costly breach

The use of targeted sanctions by global decision-makers is on the rise. Henry Wickham analyses how this trend affects Jersey trust structures Typically, under a Jersey discretionary trust the legal title to the trust fund vests in the trustee and therefore the concept of ‘ownership’ by a designated person is unlikely to be applicable. Sanctions …

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Mistake and Inheritance Act claims: Unintended consequences

Francis Ng outlines a rare modern example of rescission for mistake in hostile proceedings Clarke is unusual in that it is a rare modern example of rescission for mistake in hostile proceedings. Deputy Master Linwood gave judgment in Clarke v Allen on 23 May 2019. The decision covered two claims by Matilda Clarke (Matilda). One …

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Musings from Manchester: Witnessing history

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Just how many of the recent changes to the working practices of the private client practitioner are here to stay? Geoffrey Shindler weighs it up Where were we when we were so rudely interrupted by a pandemic? February seems not only some months ago, but light years away. Which is strange because if the economy …

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