Hamilton v Hamilton & anr [2016] EWHC 1132 (Ch)
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | December 2016 #165David Hamilton (David) died 10 February 2007. His last will dated 6 March 2006 (the will) named the first and second defendants (his solicitor and daughter respectively) as his executors and trustees. Under the terms of the will, subject to various legacies he left the residue of his estate (defined as ‘all my property of every kind, wherever situate’) to be held upon trusts for the primary benefit of his children Alan and Carolyn in equal shares. Under the trusts applicable to each share, Alan and Carolyn had a life interest in income, with remainder to their respective chil...
Barnsley & ors v Noble [2016] EWCA Civ 799
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | November 2016 #164Michael and Philip Noble were brothers who built up a substantial property empire known as the Noble Organisation. It had a complex ownership and management structure involving a number of companies and partnerships and certain trusts for the benefit of their respective families. Michael died in 2006. The executors were Philip, his widow Gillian, and John Barnsley (an accountant associated with PricewaterhouseCoopers). There was a demerger of the business side and property side of the Noble Organisation with Philip taking the business assets and Gill taking the property assets. This was ...
Haastrup v Okorie [2016] EWHC 12 (Ch)
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | June 2016 #160This was an application to strike out, or alternatively, for summary judgment in relation to, a claim in relation to the estate of Captain Haastrup brought by the claimant.
Captain Haastrup died on 8 October 2012 in England. On 20 January 2014, the claimant obtained letters of administration in Nigeria. On 20 June 2014, these letters were resealed in Leeds District Probate Registry. It subsequently emerged that the claimant had been injuncted by the Nigerian court to restrain him from relying on the letters of administration or from ‘parading himself as in any way as the administr...
Henderson v Wilcox [2015] EWHC 3469 (Ch)
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | April 2016 #158The claimant had been convicted of the manslaughter of his mother (the deceased). He had a low IQ though there was no clear medical view that he suffered from a mental disorder. However, he had not argued that he was unfit to plead and he had not raised a defence of diminished responsibility. He was sentenced to be detained in hospital under s37 of the Mental Health Act 1983. He was detained in a medium security establishment, and it was considered unlikely that he will ever be fit for discharge.
The deceased’s house did not form part of her estate. It had ...
Ingrey v King & anr [2015] EWHC 2137 (Ch)
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | January/February 2016 #156This was an application by Mr Ingrey, the proving executor of the estate of John Henry King (the deceased) seeking direction in relation to the distribution of Mr King’s estate (the estate). The defendant, Ashley King, is the deceased’s son and sole beneficiary of the estate following the compromise of a claim brought under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 by the deceased’s widow and two young children.
The estate was sworn for probate with a gross value of c.£9.6m and a net value of c.£3.5m. The assets in the estate included a share of a par...
Wilby v Rigby [2015] EWHC 2394 (Ch)
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | December 2015 #155This was an application to remove Mr Ian Rigby (Ian) as administrator of the estate of Sybil Rigby. Sybil Rigby died on 30 November 2011, leaving two adult children, Ian Rigby and Janice Wilby (Janice). By her will dated 8 February 2001 Sybil Rigby appointed Janice and Ian to be her executors and trustees and gave the residue of the estate to Ian and Janice in equal shares. The value of the net estate was £271,134. The estate contained Sybil Rigby’s home (the property), which represented more than half the value in the estate
Janice initially agreed that Ian could administer...
Bahouse & anr v Negus [2008] EWCA Civ 1002
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | September 2012 #122Henry Bahouse (D) died on 27 March 2005 leaving an estate of approximately £2.2m in including a flat worth approximately £400,000. He had been married twice before and there was a son of his first marriage, Gordon (G), the residuary legatee under D’s will of 24 January 1996 and one of the executors seeking permission to appeal the decision of the lower court. Cyd Negus (C) was D’s cohabitee. No provision was made for her in the will and she made various claims against the estate. In the High Court she was awarded maintenance under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependents) Act...