Many estate disputes involve the making a family provision application which is addressed here. However, wills can also be attacked on a number of other grounds as outlined below.

If a will is ruled invalid, the legal effect is that the previous will is enlivened or if there is no previous will, the estate is administered on intestacy.

Contact our Accredited Specialist in Wills and Estates, Manny Wood, if you have any questions.

Capacity

The validity of a will can be challenged on the basis that the will maker did not possess the sufficient mental capacity to execute the will.

To be successful, there must be evidence to support a finding that the will maker did not have the ability to understand the nature and effect of making a will, did not understand the extent of the assets that are being disposed of, did not comprehend potential claims against the estate, or that there was disorder or delusion that was affecting the will maker.

It is important to obtain and preserve medical evidence and other documentary evidence such as the file notes of the solicitor who prepared the will.

If the capacity of a will maker becomes contentious, contact us as soon as possible to ensure that you have the best prospects of success.

Knowledge and Approval

A will can be challenged on the basis that the will maker did not have “knowledge and approval” of the will.

To be successful there must be evidence that the will maker did not have “knowledge and approval”. This may include witness statements and evidence from a solicitor if a solicitor was involved in the making or execution of the will.

It is important to investigate who provided the instructions to the solicitor to make the will, the circumstances in which the will was executed including whether the will was read to the will maker and whether the will maker had time to consider its content.

This type of case is often raised when capacity is at issue but can be established in circumstances where the will maker did not suffer from a loss of capacity, but where the will was executed in suspicious circumstances.

Undue Influence

A will can be challenged on the basis that the will maker was the victim of undue influence.

This type of case can be made out in circumstances where capacity and “knowledge and approval” are not an issue.

Cases where a will maker may have been particularly vulnerable by virtue of ill-health or where a beneficiary is in a position of power or control can give rise to a finding of undue influence.

Evidence of witnesses to the circumstances surrounding the execution of the will is very important to a claim’s prospects of success.

Contact our Accredited Specialist in Wills and Estates, Manny Wood, if you have any questions.