Most lawyers will agree that this is a growth area for the profession at the moment, so much so that, over the last four years, the number of law firms offering advice on contested wills and trusts has more than doubled. In 2021, the High Court dealt with 105 disputed probate cases increasing from 68 in 2020 and 72 in 2019. Obviously, these figures do not include the many cases settled before they reached Court, but after much stress and expense had been incurred.
Several factors may explain the increase - poorly drafted wills, more complex family structures, the increase in re-marriages, blended families, and cohabitation and the property-boom led increase in the value of estates which makes wills worth challenging.
During Covid some people rushed to make a will which could have led to more poorly drafted wills open to dispute particularly if these wills were drafted quickly by individuals with no professional help. Others may still have an old will prepared many years ago with no updates or amendments to reflect personal and financial changes. There were also unexpected deaths during Covid leading to more disputes.
On top of that, adults are generally living longer and for wills that are created at the end of someone’s life, while they are subject to illness, the issue of their capacity to make a will arises.
Even in the best organised and prepared families with an up-to-date, unchallenged will, disputes can arise. James, Katharine, Charles, and Caroline, the children of Sir Michael Butler, a former adviser to Mrs Thatcher, have been arguing over an incredibly expensive Ming vase collection which Sir Michael spent decades collecting.
The 800-piece collection, worth £8 million, was handed to his children as part of the Butler Family Collection. However, Sir Michael left no note saying what he wanted to happen to the collection. The siblings have been divided, with James and Katharine wanting to keep the collection together and Caroline and James wanting to sell their half.
The dispute has lasted six years with Katherine and Charles both fighting to keep the collection together, whilst Caroline and James have fought to remove their share from the collection, which is held in the family museum in Dorset.
The split has caused the siblings to cease all communication and has resulted in rumours being circulated about their late father, such as a supposed affair he had whilst married to their mother, and numerous family secrets to be aired publicly with allegations that Katharine and Charles were treated more favourably financially than Caroline and James. Caroline also alleged in an email that Sir Butler preferred the collection to his own children.
The message to take from all of this, according to David Roper, wills and probate lawyer with Lawcomm Solicitors in Whiteley, is that you should make sure you have a will, that it does what you intend it to do and that the family are aware of your wishes now. Failing that, a note left with your will explaining your reasoning behind your decisions and what your wishes are can go a long way to avoiding unpleasant family arguments later. A solicitor preparing a will will do their utmost to make sure that any “red flags” in your family situation, or your wishes, are noted and managed as far as possible.
If you wish to discuss the above further with our in-house expert, call on 01489 864 137 or email David.Roper@lawcomm.co.uk
The contents of this article do not constitute legal advice.
