Wills & Trusts Law Reports | Summer 2017 #168L applied pursuant to s8(1) of the Administration of Estates Act 1990 to remove M as her co-executor and co-trustee of the estate of their father. The beneficiaries of the estate were L (50 percent) and M’s two children (50 percent). The estate was modest including some personal chattels, a small bank account and a property worth circa £210,000.
M and his wife had issued a claim against the estate for £170,229, allegedly owed for nursing care provided to the deceased (the litigation).
L averred that M should be removed as trustee due to the ligation ...
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | September 2014 #142The deceased had died suddenly without making a will, with his wife, the first defendant, being appointed as the administratrix of his estate. Disagreement arose in relation to the administration of the estate, and the plaintiffs, two of the deceased’s daughters, issued proceedings pursuant to Art 35 of the Wills and Administration Proceedings (Northern Ireland) Order 1994, seeking removal of the existing administratrix and the appointment of a neutral professional person as administrator.
Held
Removing the first defendant as administratrix and app...
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | May 2014 #139The television presenter Jimmy Savile (the deceased) died on 29 October 2011. His estate had an approximate value of £3.3m after the deduction of various expenses incurred by the date of this hearing. By his will, the deceased appointed National Westminster Bank plc (the bank) to act as his personal representative. The deceased’s will makes gifts to a number of individual beneficiaries, one of which was the fifth defendant, the deceased’s niece, who was appointed to represent the interests of these individual beneficiaries (the individual beneficiaries). Thereafter the deceas...
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | September 2013 #132Everard Goodman (the deceased) died on 17 April 2011 leaving a will dated 15 December 2010 (the will) naming his sons, the claimants (C), his daughter, the second defendant (D2), and his widow, the first defendant (D1), as executors. However, relationships between the parties were very poor and, on 16 August 2012, D1, a beneficiary under the will as well as one of the executors named in it, issued an application for an independent professional to take over the administration of the deceased’s estate under s50 of the Administration of Justice Act 1985 (the 1985...
Scott has valuable lessons about the removal of trustees, as Ashley Crossley and Imogen Buchan-Smith explain In the judge’s provisional view, an independent professional trustee should be appointed as an additional trustee to ensure that decisions would be taken in the interests of the beneficiaries as a whole. The case is both a reminder of …
Continue reading "Trustees: Anticipating family fallout"
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Wills & Trusts Law Reports | October 2012 #123The claimant (Andrew) and the defendant (Martin) were brothers. They were the trustees of a trust created in 1991 by their mother (Elizabeth Scott). Andrew, Martin and Simon Jackson QC (a long standing friend of Elizabeth Scott) were the principal beneficiaries of the trust. There were other discretionary beneficiaries. Andrew had carried out the day to day administration of the trust since 2006.
The trust had formerly comprised a farm of 60 acres and a nursing home. Significant distributions were made. Andrew carried out significant works to a property known as the Barn, which wa...
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | June 2012 #120Dennis Griffiths (testator) died on 30 October 2008 leaving an estate worth about £430,000. By his last will, made nine years previously, the testator had appointed as his executors two partners in a firm of will writers known as ‘Will Drafters’ (respondents). The sole beneficiaries were the testator’s two stepchildren, Ruth Savidge and David Khan (applicant). The respondents initially proposed to charge 3-4% of the value of the estate to carry on its administration and the beneficiaries, who had already reached an informal agreement as to how to deal with the estate, i...
Khan v Crossland reveals flaws in the current method of passing over executors, as Michael O’Sullivan discusses ‘HHJ Behrens rejected the submission made by the defendants’ counsel that the executors needed to disentitle themselves to a grant before an order under s116 SCA could be made.’ The decision in Khan v Crossland was made by …
Continue reading "Probate: Jarndyce revisited"
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Wills & Trusts Law Reports | April 2012 #118Daphne Mary Burgess (testatrix), who was a widow, had made a will on 23 September 1996 (1996 will) leaving her entire estate equally between her three children, the first and second claimants and the first defendant. At that time, she was living at 8 Abbey Way, Bradville, Milton Keynes (8 Abbey Way) and, while retaining a sense of financial independence, she relied on her son for the payment of household bills. Her physical health deteriorated as she became older, medication was already required for hypertension when she was diagnosed with diabetes, and an arthritic condition worsened to...
Penelope Reed QC and William East look at the removal of trustees ‘The exercise of the court’s jurisdiction to remove trustees is not dependent on some finding of misconduct or breach of trust; other conduct can also suffice provided that the continuance of the trustee would prevent the trusts being properly executed.’When faced with trustees …
Continue reading "Trustees: Making the break"
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