When it comes to making a Will, there are set requirements that must be satisfied for the Will to be deemed valid. These requirements are set out in our earlier blog.
Family dispute over a deathbed Will
In a recent case before the Court, John, the eldest child and son of the deceased, Margaret, sought to have the deathbed Will made by his mother deemed invalid. The evidence John relied upon was a video of his sister, Lisa, placing a pen in her mother’s hand and guiding her to sign the Will.
Lisa had prepared the Will using an online template and listed herself as the executor and main beneficiary of her mother’s £700,000 estate. Lisa can be seen in the video placing the pen in her mother’s hand that she was unable to grip and hold.
At the time the Will was signed, it is reported that Margaret was only able to communicate by saying ‘yeah’ or grunting.
Following submissions from John’s barrister, Judge Jane Evans-Gordan stated:
‘I am satisfied that the deceased had no idea what was going on. She was unable to act independently and, although she responded with a ‘yeah’ or even a grunt when addressed as mum, that was simply a response to being directly addressed and didn’t indicate consent to signing the will or acknowledging its contents’.
Margaret died 8 days after signing the Will. At the time of signing, she was said to be so ill that she could barely flicker an eyelid. She had been diagnosed with dementia in 2021, and the Judge said she had no idea what was going on.
The Judge also stated that:
‘Nobody ensured that she understood what was happening by asking her questions about the contents of the will or asking her to tell them her wishes, and she cannot fairly be said to have signed the will’ and ‘Merely reading out the document and asking if she understood was not enough’.
Comment
The Will was deemed to be invalid, and Margaret was deemed to have died intestate. This meant that her £700,000 estate was split equally between her two children despite Lisa’s attempts to inherit it all.
Evidence such as a video is not always available in these kinds of matters; however, if you are concerned about the validity of a Will, there are several grounds that can be relied upon when seeking to have a Will deemed invalid.
How can we help?
Faye Henderson is an Associate in our expert Dispute Resolution team, specialising in inheritance and Court of Protection disputes.
If you need any advice concerning the subject discussed in this article, please do not hesitate to contact Faye or another member of the team in Derby, Leicester, or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online enquiry form.
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