Jill Langley, the 70-year-old daughter of British millionaire Robert Harrington, has secured a significant legal victory after successfully contesting her late father’s will, as reported by The Telegraph.
Harrington, who passed away in 2020 at the age of 94, had disinherited his only child, leaving his entire estate—valued at £1 million—to his much younger wife, Guixiang Qin. However, Langley claimed her father had been manipulated by Qin, a former lawyer from China who was 39 years younger than him.
In April, the will was declared invalid by a judge, who found that Qin had exerted “undue influence” over the elderly Harrington, leaving him mentally unfit when he made the decision to cut out his daughter. As a result, Harrington was deemed to have died intestate, meaning no valid will was in place. Qin had denied the allegations, insisting that their relationship was genuine and that Harrington had wanted to provide for her.
Despite Qin still receiving approximately £475,000 from the estate, Langley managed to reclaim £200,000, while Qin faced estimated legal costs of £139,000.
In a recent High Court hearing, Langley won another round in the legal dispute when Master Julia Clark ruled that Qin was “not a fit person” to manage the estate, stripping her of her role as joint administrator. The court cited the earlier findings of undue influence and Harrington’s mental incapacity in its decision. Qin, representing herself, was removed as the administrator in favour of Langley.
The case has drawn attention due to Langley’s accusations that Qin had lured her elderly father into a “predatory marriage” shortly before his death. She further claimed that after securing his fortune, Qin buried him in the “cheapest possible grave.”
