Challenges against Wills can be brought for a number of reasons including concerns of undue influence and coercion. In this context, undue influence means to manipulate a testator into making a Will which does not accurately reflect the testator’s wishes.
According to the Ministry of Justice, there has been a huge increase of almost 34% in disputes over the validity of Wills in England and Wales. Charlotte Frazer, partner at Farrer, has suggested that the Covid-19 pandemic allowed for vulnerable older people to become isolated with restricted access to relatives and medical professionals making them susceptible to such coercion.
In the recent case of Rita Rea, a Will was overturned on the grounds of undue influence by the deceased’s daughter. Mrs Anna Rea died on 26 July 2016. She had three sons and one daughter named Rita Rea. Mrs Rea instructed a solicitor to prepare a Will in 1986 following a divorce which divided her Estate equally between her four children. Mrs Rea made a later Will in 2015, leaving a large asset to her daughter Rita Rea on the basis that she had cared for her in the years before her death. The remainder of the Estate was to be split equally between the four children.
Whilst Rita attempted to prove the later Will, her brothers challenged its validity. The Court of Appeal considered the possibility of undue influence looking at all the circumstances of the case as “it is in the nature of undue influence that it goes on when no one is looking”. This included Mrs Rea’s physical and mental strength and the huge change in her wishes.
The Ministry of Justice reported that there has been an increase in probate disputes ending in Court. Last year, 195 of these disputes were heard at Court compared with 145 in 2017. At Hewitts, we have a team of specialist Contentious Probate Lawyers with a wealth of experience in this area of law who are able to guide you through the Court process
If you have concerns about the validity of a Will and require advice, then please feel free to contact a member of our Dispute Resolution team of specialists based in Bishop Auckland and Darlington.
