Sangha v Sangha & ors [2023] WTLR 1561
Winter 2023 #193Mr Hartar Singh Sangha made a will in 2007 dealing with both his English assets and his Indian assets. The 2007 will was executed as follows: Mr Sangha signed the will in the presence of one witness; that witness then signed the will; the second witness then entered, Mr Sangha acknowledged his signature in the presence of both witnesses and the second witness signed the will. In 2016, Mr Sangha made a further will in India dealing with his Indian assets. The 2016 will was declared to be Mr Sangha’s last will and contained a revocation clause revoking ‘all such previous documents’.
Bhaur & ors v Equity First Trustees (Nevis) Ltd & ors [2023] WTLR 851
Autumn 2023 #192In March 2007 Safe Investments Management UK (Safe), an unlimited company, transferred its shares in Gooch Investment (Gooch) to Equity Trust (BVI) Ltd, a trust company (2007 transfer), to be held on the terms of a settlement for the benefit of qualifying employees of Safe (First Staff Remuneration Trust). This transfer followed the transfer of interests in UK business assets (the estate) from the first and second appellants (Mr and Mrs Bhaur) to Safe and from Safe to its subsidiary Gooch. All these transfers took place as part of a tax scheme (scheme) promoted by Mr O’Toole, who operate...
Gorbachev v Guriev [2023] WTLR 395
Summer 2023 #191The claimant made a third-party disclosure application under CPR 31.17 and s34 Senior Courts Act 1981 against Forsters LLP, English solicitors instructed on behalf of Cypriot trustees. Forsters LLP’s position was that the trustees were the only proper parties to the application under CPR 31.17, and that any order for disclosure should be made against them. Permission was granted by HHJ Pelling QC pursuant to CPR PD 6B(20) to serve the application for third-party disclosure on the trustees out of the jurisdiction, and for the application to be served by...
Jennison v Jennison & anr [2023] WTLR 543
Summer 2023 #191The claimant was married to Graham Jennison (the deceased) who died domiciled in New South Wales on 11 July 2007. He left a will dated 16 August 2006 appointing the claimant as sole executrix. Probate was granted to the claimant on 15 May 2008 in New South Wales (NSW) (the grant).
The proceedings, in respect of alleged breaches of trust, were issued on 18 February 2019 by the claimant as personal representative of the deceased. The particulars of claim relied upon the grant. The defence pleaded that it was not admitted that the grant conferred jurisdiction to the claimant in respe...
Hudson v Hathway [2023] WTLR 207
Spring 2023 #190After Jayne Hathaway (JH) and Lee Hudson (LH) started a relationship in 1990, JH moved into LH’s home and became a joint owner. They had two sons together but did not marry. After selling their home, they bought another in joint names. In 2007 they sold that home and, with a mortgage, bought Picnic House in joint names. The mortgage payments were made from a joint bank account, into which the salaries of them both were paid. LH’s contributions towards the mortgage payments far exceeded those of JH.
In 2009, LH left JH and moved in with another woman, whom he later married. JH cont...
Begum v Ahmed [2022] WTLR 1189
Winter 2022 #189The appellant was the widow of Mohammed Yousaf Khan (Mr Khan), who had died on 22 March 2015 without making any financial provision for her under the terms of his last will dated 11 February 2014 (the 2014 will). Instead, Mr Khan had left the entirety of his estate, after payment of debts and expenses, to his daughter and personal representative, the respondent. The appellant, who was elderly and disabled, had lived at 22 Lombard Avenue, Dudley (Lombard Avenue) since 1993.
Probate was granted on 11 April 2016 and solicitors instructed by the respondent wrote demanding possession o...
Da Silva v Heselton & ors [2022] WTLR 1229
Winter 2022 #189The will of the late Gladys Townsend contained at clause 11 a charging clause, the relevant part of which was couched in the following words:
‘MY TRUSTEES shall have the following powers in addition to their powers under the general law or under any other provisions of this Will or any Codicil hereto… (g) for any of my Trustees who shall be engaged in any profession or business [to] charge and be paid (in priority to all other dispositions herein) all usual professional and other fees and to retain any brokerage or commission for work or business introduced transacted ...
Executor of HRH Prince Philip v HM Attorney General & anr [2022] WTLR 1251
Winter 2022 #189This was an appeal against the decision of the president of the Family Division (PFD) to seal for 90 years the will of HRH The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, to publish a list of 33 sealed wills of deceased members of the Royal Family, and to seal those 33 wills for 90 years (Re Will of HRH The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh [2021]).
At the start of the original hearing, the PFD directed that the hearing should take place in private, having only heard submissions from Prince Philip’s executor and the Attorney General (AG), but that the judgment should be made public....
Ali v Khatib & ors [2022] WTLR 811
Autumn 2022 #188Title to a property (the property) passed on the death of Mohammed Ali in 2003 to his wife Fateh Bibi (Mrs Bibi). Mrs Bibi died on 11 July 2006, having made a will dated 7 January 1997 (the 1997 will). Under the 1997 will, Mrs Bibi left her residuary estate in equal shares to her children: Farzand Ali, Mohammed Ramzan, Mohammed Iqbal and Parveen Iqbal. In probate proceedings brought in 2012 by Farzand in relation to Mrs Bibi’s estate, an order pronouncing in favour of the 1997 will was made on 24 January 2014 (the 2014 order). The 2014 order also pronounced against a document dated 2 Oct...