Wills & Trusts Law Reports | Winter 2020 #181Leonard Dunthorn (Mr Dunthorn) died in 2018, leaving a will pursuant to which the residue of his estate, after a pecuniary legacy, was to pass to his sister Ruby Watts (Mrs Watts), provided she survived him by 28 days. If she did not do so, the residue was to be divided between ten named charities. Mrs Watts survived Mr Dunthorn by more than 28 days and became entitled to his residue. She in turn passed away in 2019, leaving a will which left her residue (after a number of pecuniary legacies) to 11 named charities, the first ten of which were those charities that had been named in Mr Dun...
Deeds of variation are often misunderstood in practice. Charlotte Watts and Joshua Lewison discuss a case that highlights common misapprehensions and possible solutions The judgment confirms that the personal representatives’ power derives from the consent of the beneficiaries and not from any inherent ability to depart from the dispositions of the estate made by the …
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Lucy Cooling and Sarah Wood give the lowdown on government proposals for tax planning ‘The new rules would replace the previous Disclosure of Tax Avoidance Schemes (DOTAS) legislation relating to IHT, but unlike the current rules there is no provision in the draft legislation to accept what, in the past, has been mainstream planning.’In July …
Continue reading "Deeds Of Variation: Clarity needed"
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Wills & Trusts Law Reports | October 2014 #143The claimant claimed as the administratrix of the estate of Ellen Bolton (Ellen) for rectification of a deed of variation by which she had purported to vary the will of Hilda Bolton (Hilda).
Hilda had died on 6 February 2006. Her sister, Ellen, died on 11 September 2007. By her last will Hilda had benefited Ellen in two respects: as the beneficiary of a specific devise of a particular freehold property (the property) at clause 2(a) of the will and also as the sole residuary beneficiary under clause 5 of the will. As Ellen survived Hilda these gifts took effect. The gifts were char...
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | April 2014 #138Raymond Ayres deceased died intestate on 4 June 2008. The claimant is the deceased’s sister and the first defendant his wife.
As the deceased left no issue, his estate devolved according to the intestacy rules. Accordingly, his chattels and a statutory legacy of £200,000 went to the first defendant absolutely and the remainder of his estate was divided equally between the claimant and first defendant.
In these circumstances, the first defendant intimated a claim for reasonable financial provision from the deceased’s estate. Given the potential for post-death i...
