Trust, Wills and Probate

The saga of the estate of the late Bernard Matthews, who made his fortune supplying turkey-based products, will serve as a salutary reminder of the complexities that can attach to...

The need for clear thinking about the ownership of bank and other accounts held in joint names was illustrated recently by a case concerning a dispute over an account following...

The power of trust beneficiaries to direct in certain circumstances the actions of the trustees of the trust under which they benefit was clearly shown in a recent High Court...

When a Yorkshire farmer disinherited his son and left the whole of his estate to his daughter, the son challenged the will in court. The son had worked with his...

Each year approximately 250,000 people are reported missing in the UK and some of these people are never seen again. In England and Wales this can often leave the missing...

When a charitable gift in a will fails (other than because the estate lacks the assets necessary to make the bequest), the resulting effect on the distribution of the estate...

Failing to make formal arrangements over who should own property is a frequent cause of family disputes. One such case concerned an industrial unit, which was owned by a...

When a person no longer has the mental capacity to make a valid will (‘testamentary capacity’ in legal terms), an application can be made for a ‘statutory will’ to be...

A bequest in a will can fail for a number of reasons, one of the commonest of which is that the beneficiary is uncertain. For example, a bequest to a...

Making a bequest to a charity is relatively common. However, sometimes this can backfire spectacularly, as happened in the case of a Cheshire man who bequeathed a property to the...