It has recently been reported in the media that Comedian, Sean Hughes, £4m estate has been given to the charity, Shelter, after his estate has been in limbo for years. Sean died in 2017 leaving a handwritten Will. He never married and he had intended for his three properties to benefit Shelter who he supported in his lifetime. However, due to the wording in the handwritten Will this left ambiguities and his estate went to the High Court in London for determination. He used an online Will writing service to write his Will, with no legal assistance. The main problem with the handwritten Will was that he left “my three houses to Shelter”. Following his death, his family identified that he only owned one of the houses, the other two were in the name of a company that he was a director of. The Court ruled that the correct construction of the Will was that the properties should pass to Shelter. If the Judge had ruled the other way, then the properties would have formed part of his residuary estate which was to go to his family, not what he intended.
This high-profile case demonstrates how important it is to have a solicitors drafted Will so that it can be ensured that the correct terminology is used and therefore the persons wishes can be carried out on their death.
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