Wills & Trusts Law Reports | Summer 2019 #175By her last Will and Codicils thereto Patricia Folkes appointed the First and Second Defendants, who were her solicitors, and the Third Defendant, who was her accountant, to act as executors (“Executors”). Her estate, which included a large house in substantial grounds called Stourton Hall and a holiday home at Pen-y-Graig, was left on discretionary trusts for the benefit of her three children and seven grandchildren. She also left a letter in which she said that her personal chattels at those properties had already been given to the Fourth Defendant, Constantine Folkes. She died on 20 D...
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | Spring 2018 #171The claimant claimed a beneficial interest in a residential property registered in the joint names of the first and second defendants, his sister and brother-in-law respectively, on the basis that in 1959 he paid £600 towards the purchase price. By the time the matter came to trial in October 2015 both first and second defendants had lost capacity.
Giving judgment at first instance, HHJ Faber found both claimant and defendant witnesses to be unreliable. She concluded that on the evidence available she could not arrive at any finding as to who had made the £600 downpayment in 1959,...
Costs, discount rate, alternative dispute resolution ‘A party who makes serious allegations of misconduct runs a significant risk of being subjected to indemnity costs if they prove unsuccessful.’ In part one, we reported on the judgment for this case, where the Ministry of Justice was found to be liable for a stress-at-work claim. We will …
Continue reading "Case Report: Marsh v Ministry of Justice [2017] EWHC 1040 (QB) (Part 2)"
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Employers’ liability; breach and causation; Personal Protective Equipment Regulations ‘This case illustrates the need to identify the statutory criteria as interpreted by the relevant authorities and focus evidence and arguments accordingly.’ This case provides a telling illustration of the stringency of the Personal Protective Equipment Regulations 1992 (the PPE Regulations) and the evidential difficulties a …
Continue reading "Case Report: The Chief Constable of Hampshire Police v Taylor [2013] EWCA Civ 496"
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David Sawtell reports on the impact of Fairclough Homes on applications to strike out It would only be in a very rare case where, at the end of a trial, it would be appropriate to strike out a case rather than dismiss it on the merits. The purpose of striking out a claim was to …
Continue reading "Procedure: Lucky strike"
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Mark Fowles looks back at the year’s important personal injury cases ‘English law has always been nervous about dealing with issues of causation The modern test is a test of policy. The first test is predominantly factual. The second gathers up much of the traditional language that lawyers use in attempting to set a limit …
Continue reading "Review: A year in the life"
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Paul Jones identifies costs certainty at the expense of insurers ‘As the claimant attended the appointment, the defendant undertook video surveillance that showed the claimant apparently walking without difficulty until he approached the clinic when he was seen to start to limp and use a walking stick.’ An argument that is often raised by defendants …
Continue reading "Inflated Claims: I’ve told you a million times, do not exaggerate"
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