Disputed wills – another interesting yet depressing tale

Let’s face it, money changes people and where there’s a lot of money at stake, disputes can get very nasty, especially where families are concerned. Will disputes are quite common and fall into many categories. The ones that get reported tend to be the cases worth very big money, as indicated below.

Nothing quite says holiday cheer like a fight among family members, especially with an entire mega-inheritance—about $400 million—hanging in the balance.

A 104-year-old childless heiress who passed away in May 2011, Huguette Clark allegedly left two signed wills which don’t exactly see eye to eye. The two wills were both reportedly signed within a month of each other in 2005. Offering up one will signed in March 2005, 21 relatives filed court papers Monday as part of a their claim that they are the rightful beneficiaries of the estate. But a will signed in April 2005 leaves the family out of the loop and instead gives the fortune to create an art foundation, using her oceanfront property in Santa Barbara, Calif., as a museum, and even tosses $34 million toward Clark’s nurse, plus half a million each to her attorney, Wallace Bock and her accountant, Irving Kamsler.

via Two Conflicting Wills Turn a $400 Million Estate Into a Fight | NewsFeed | TIME.com.

Caveats and Preventing Probate

When a person dies leaving an Estate which requires someone to distribute it to beneficiaries, it is necessary for the executor mentioned in the Will, or administrator of the Estate (where there is no Will), to apply for a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration from the Probate Registry.

In certain situations there may be a party who was involved with the Deceased who may not wish for Probate to be granted to a particular executor or administrator. In such circumstances they would need to enter a Caveat with the Probate Registry to, in effect, block any grant of Probate until such time as matters can be resolved.

Caveats are usually used in the following situations:

• There is a concern around the validity of the deceased’s Will.

• The executor has refused to provide a copy of the Will.

• There is concern that undue influence or fraud may have occurred when the Will was signed.

• There are concerns that the assets of the estate will be disposed of contrary to the wishes expressed in the Will.

• There is a dispute as to the entitlement of the person applying to the Court to administer the estate.

 A Caveat should not be used as a method of extending the limitation period where you intend to bring a claim for Financial Provision from a person’s estate. Should you do so, the Courts could make a Costs Order against you.

You can enter a Caveat either directly or via your solicitors. Although there is a form to complete which sets out what information must be included in your application, you can actually simply write a letter to the Probate Registry requesting a Caveat be entered, provided you include all the requisite information. It should be noted that such an application can only be made in writing. They will not be taken over the phone.

The information required includes:

a)            A signed request asking for a Caveat to be entered.

b)            The full name and date of birth as stated on the death certificate.

c)            The last permanent address of the deceased.

d)            The name and address of the person requesting the Caveat.

This information is used to prevent Probate being granted in the estate without you being informed first. It is this information which you provide that is used to check against any applications for Probate so it is essential that you get these details correct. Should there be a discrepancy in the name or dates, it could mean that the Caveat would not be effective.

 In addition to the request, there is a Court fee of £20.

Once in place the Caveat will remain in force for 6 months. Should you wish it to continue after that time, you will be able to apply for it to be extended for a further 6 months in the last month before it expires. An additional fee will also need to be paid at that time. If at any time you wish to remove the Caveat, you can simply write to the Probate Registry and request that they remove it. Once the 6 months passes the Caveat expires. No reminder will be sent to you. You must make sure that if you want to extend it you make a reminder for yourself.

If you are an executor or administrator of an estate trying to obtain Probate, it can be quite surprising to find out that there is a Caveat entered against the estate that you are dealing with. This is because the Probate Registry will enter the Caveat without telling you, until you apply for Probate.

Should you disagree with the Caveat which was entered you can issue a ‘Warning’ to the person who requested the Caveat. This requires you to complete a specific form to be sent to the Leeds Probate Registry. There is no fee for a warning.

This article courtesy of Shmuel Portnoy of Darlingtons, Solicitors in London. Please contact Darlingtons for advice on wills, probate and a full range of business or personal legal issues.

This Warning is then sent to the person who requested the Caveat who will then have 8 days to respond. Such a response must be in the form of an ‘Appearance’. This is a document which sets out the summary grounds as to why the Caveat has been issued.

If the person who entered the Caveat does not file an Appearance, then you can apply for Probate and the Caveat will be removed. Should an Appearance be filed, then the Caveat will remain in place indefinitely until such time as either an agreement is reached between the parties, an application is made to the Probate Registry for a directions hearing, or formal contested probate proceedings are commenced at Court.

It should be noted that once a Caveat has been challenged and an Appearance has been filed, the Caveat cannot be removed without an order of the Registrar on agreement of both parties or by order of the Court. This could mean that even if the person who applied for the Caveat now wishes to remove it, they may no be able to, incurring further unwanted costs.