Elliott v Simmonds & anr [2016] EWHC 732 (Ch)
October 2016 #163Kenneth William Jordan (Mr Jordan) died on 4 August 2012 leaving a wife (from whom he was estranged) and two adult children. The claimant was Mr Jordan’s partner during the last years of his life and the first defendant was his daughter from a relationship that predated his marriage. He had previously made a will giving pecuniary legacies to the first defendant and two of his sisters with the residuary estate passing to the claimant. Subsequently, in January 2012, Mr Jordan gave instructions to Mr Mumford (who was his brother-in-law), a solicitor with the firm Melia Mumford, to make a ne...
Elliott v Simmonds (costs) [2016] EWHC 962 (Ch)
October 2016 #163On 7 April 2016 judgment was delivered pronouncing for the force and validity of the will dated 1 February 2012 (2012 will) of Kenneth William Jordan (Mr Jordan) in solemn form of law and ordering that a caveat entered by the first defendant in respect of his estate cease to have effect. The normal rule of costs is that costs follow the event. However, the Court has discretion to make a different order, taking into account, for example, the conduct of the parties. In a contentious probate claim, there are also specific exceptions to the normal rule arising under case law and under the Ci...
Lewis v Warner [2016] EWHC 1787 (Ch)
October 2016 #163A died on 6 May 2014. A reconstituted will admitted to probate left A’s only child (L) her entire estate comprising principally of her home (the property). A had lived in the property with her partner (S) for almost 20 years. S continued to live there after A died.
L, as executrix of A’s estate, issued a claim for possession of the property, damages for trespass and mesne profits against S. S issued an application under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. Both claims were heard before Recorder Christopher Gardner QC.
There was no real dispute as ...
National Westminster Bank plc v Lucas & ors [2016] EWHC 1934 (Ch)
October 2016 #163The bank, which was the executor of the estate of Jimmy Savile, sought the approval of the court to the making of final distributions out of the estate to numerous individuals (PI claimants) who had applied for compensation under a scheme designed to notify, process and settle claims without formal case management in court (scheme). As well as claims against the bank, many of the PI claimants had parallel claims against third parties including the BBC, NHS, Barnardos and MIND. The scheme, which had been opposed by the first and second defendants acting as the trustees of the Jimmy Savile...
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution & ors v Headley & anr [2016] EWHC 1948 (Ch)
October 2016 #163Evelyn Irene Farmer (the deceased) died on 12 January 1996 leaving a will dated 10 August 1993 (the will). The claimants were five of the ten charitable remaindermen under the trusts created under the will. They took absolutely upon the deaths of the deceased’s son and daughter in law. The deceased’s son was deceased but the daughter in law was still alive, and consequently the claimants’ interests were yet to fall into possession. The defendants were the executors of the deceased’s estate.
In 2007, the defendants wrote to the claimants enclosing an interim...
Collins v Collins [2016] EWHC 1423 (Ch)
September 2016 #162Anthony Collins (settlor) had three children by his marriage to Valerie Collins, namely Rachel who was born in 1989, Michael who was born in 1991 and Charley who was born in 1998 (children). The settlor was entitled to a whole life policy with Allied Dunbar (policy) and, during the course of divorce proceedings, gave an undertaking to the court to execute a declaration of trust in favour of the children on terms to be agreed between the parties. The settlor did not comply with the undertaking because he did not seek the agreement of Valerie Collins to the terms of any trust. Instead, by ...
Anstey v Mundle & anr [2016] EWHC 1073 (Ch)
July/August 2016 #161This was a claim brought by Valerie Anstey, one of the three daughters of the late George Carty. Valerie contended that Mr Carty should be buried in England. Her half sister, Sonia Mundle and her cousin, Cynthia Allison argued that he should be buried in Jamaica. Valerie was supported by another half sister, Stephanie Watson.
Owing to the defendants’ failure to undertake not to repatriate the body pending resolution of the dispute, Valerie sought and was granted an urgent interim injunction forbidding the removal of the body from the jurisdiction. Owing to the urgency of th...
Bainbridge v Bainbridge [2016] EWHC 898 (Ch)
July/August 2016 #161The claimants, who were father and son, farmed together in partnership Seamer Grange Farm. They were advised to place this property in trust and that there would be no capital gains tax chargeable on the transfer. The first claimant, who held the legal title, transferred the partnership land to the trustees of a discretionary trust which was created by a trust deed dated 24 June 2011. Unfortunately, the advice which they had been given was incorrect; capital gains tax was exigible on the transfer, amounting to more than £200,000 plus interest and possible penalties. The claimants and def...
Kebbeh v Farmer [2015] EWHC 3827 (Ch)
July/August 2016 #161Malcolm Mitchell (the deceased) died on 26 September 2011 in Gambia. By his final will dated 5 May 2006 he divided his estate between his three daughters equally, subject to minor pecuniary bequests. The will left no provision for his second wife, Haddy Kebbeh (the claimant). The claimant brought a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 (the Act). The defendants claimed that the deceased died domiciled in Gambia, and that the claimant therefore had no claim pursuant to s1(1) of the Act.
The deceased had moved to Gambia...
Purrunsing v A’Court [2016] EWHC 789 (Ch)
July/August 2016 #161The claim arose from a purported sale of a property to the claimant by a fraudster who purported to be, but was not in fact, the registered owner of the property. By the time the fraud was discovered the whole of the purchase price had been paid by the claimant to the second defendant (the claimant’s conveyancer), by the second defendant to the first defendant (the fraudster’s solicitor) and by the first defendant to an account in Dubai upon the fraudster’s instructions.
The fraudster’s instructions to the first defendant were that the property had been given to him by his father,...