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These articles are provided for general interest and information only. They do not constitute legal advice. Whilst every effort is made to ensure that the content accurately reflects the law in England as at the date of preparation, no liability is accepted for any loss or damage arising from any act or omission resulting from any information contained herein.
Three sisters who challenged their late father’s will have lost their battle at the High Court.
The will was made the day George Wharton, who was suffering from terminal cancer, was discharged from hospital, in anticipation of his marriage to a woman who had been his partner for more than 30 years. This took place the same day. The will left Mr Wharton’s entire estate to...
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The Bribery Act 2010 came into force on 1 July 2011. Under Section 2 of the Act, it is an offence for a person to request, agree to receive or accept a financial or other advantage intending that, in consequence, a relevant function or activity should be performed improperly.
A former Magistrates’ Court clerk has become the first person to be convicted under the Act. Munir Yakub...
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When an elderly man who had suffered a stroke befriended a woman to whom he gave his entire life savings of more than £500,000, opposition from his family was inevitable.
The man’s family claimed that the woman had exercised ‘undue influence’ over the man during the period of sixteen months during which he made fifteen transfers totalling £549,000 to her...
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A recent personal injury case serves as a reminder to employers to carry out thorough risk assessments with regard to all areas of the workplace.
Marie Wallace, 64, worked as a clerical assistant at Kirkriggs School in Glasgow. In June 2007, she fell from a toilet that she was standing on in order to open the window, which was seven feet above floor level, as a courtesy to other users....
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A battle over a relatively modest estate of less than £150,000 shows the sense of achieving a negotiated settlement where possible rather than resorting to protracted legal proceedings and adopting an excessively adversarial stance.
The argument stemmed from ‘mutual wills’ made by a married couple. Mutual wills are used when a couple both agree to a certain course of...
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The wave of litigation which has followed the turmoil in the financial markets as a result of the credit crunch has led to many decisions that have resulted in those suing financial institutions being left to lick their wounds (and also facing sizeable legal bills).
Two recent cases have been decided in favour of financial institutions that sold complex financial instruments to buyers...
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When a Jersey multi-millionaire gave most of his assets away to one of his daughters in the months prior to his death, leaving an estate of less than £100,000 to be shared by all three of his children, it was perhaps inevitable that a legal challenge would result.
The man and his wife had previously made ‘mutual wills’, under which the surviving spouse undertook to...
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The introduction of ‘protected conversations’ between employers and employees was first mooted in a speech given by the Prime Minister on promoting exports and growth. A protected conversation would be one in which an employer and employee could engage in a frank conversation, at either’s request, that would not be admissible as evidence in any ensuing Employment Tribunal...
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When a dependant of a deceased person is unexpectedly not provided for under the will, the normal course of action is to bring a claim against the deceased’s estate under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.
However, the reason why the person was not provided for may also give cause for challenging the will.
In a recent case, a man who was...
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One of the basic rules for creating a valid will is that it must be signed and the signature must be witnessed by two people. Failure to follow this or a number of other simple rules can lead to a will being successfully challenged in court.
Recently, the daughters of a Sikh man who left the large majority of his estate of nearly £900,000 to his sons won their legal battle to...
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