UK leading Will and Trust Disputes lawyer says enquiries over past three years have increased by 350%
A sense of entitlement, the rise in property values, increasingly complex family structures and/or the belief undue influence has been exercised, are the reasons behind the astonishing rise in families going to war over a will, says Alison Parry, Head of Will and Trust Disputes at JMW Solicitors.
And the potentially enormous cost of challenging a will isn’t putting people off either. “Will dispute claims vary in terms of how much it can cost and although a number do settle early on with minimal costs (if all sides are willing), it is rare to get even a simple claim to a trial for less than around £45,000 in costs,” Alison explains. “But where there are multiple parties and/or complex asset structures and/or complex legal points to be made, those claims by the time of trial can incur costs on each side of several hundreds of thousands of pounds – and these cases can last for several years.”
Alison and her team have seen a drastic rise in inheritance disputes over the last three years, with the volume of enquiries received increasing by 350%, and the number of enquiries converting to clients with valid and arguable claims increasing by 225%.
Alison suggests there are a number of reasons why inheritance disputes have increased over that time. “A significant factor is the generally larger size of estates, with much higher property values. Family structures have become more complex, and people are, on average, living longer; often those people have a medical condition which might result in a form of cognitive decline. Relatives may fear this decline has given rise, potentially, to family members making, or amending, their wills, without the requisite capacity to do so.”
She adds: “Of particular concern is the rise in requests to pursue claims that someone was subject to undue influence when preparing and executing their will, thereby rendering their will invalid.
“Although there has been far more opportunity for the unscrupulous to seek to exert influence over a testator (with people living longer and making wills later, they are often more vulnerable and potentially suffering some form of cognitive decline), particularly during and following the Covid-19 pandemic, this is a really difficult claim to bring.
“The only people likely to be truly aware of what went on is the deceased and the person who has influenced them, so it is hard to find good evidence. You would need to show that someone was actually coerced into making their will in a particular way; merely persuading someone to do it is simply not enough to succeed and that can be difficult for people to accept.”
Alison has also seen a rise in proprietary estoppel* disputes, “which are particularly prevalent in farming families,” she says.
“In the past, families tended to be on good terms and farms and land passed through the generations on what many would consider unequal terms (usually to the farming son) without dispute, or passed equally between siblings but resolved within the family to allow the farming son to continue to farm. Today however – and perhaps because there are more family fallouts in general – whether the land is left to one child, or whether it is split equally to the perceived disadvantage of the child who may have spent their life working on it, there is always at least one party who perceives the outcome to be unfair, leading to potential litigation.
“Again, these claims are difficult as there is often little by way of records or contemporaneous evidence which can back up any party’s position, as the farms have often been passed through the families for generations without issue.
“One of the biggest factors involved in most of the disputes I come across is the shock of finding out things have not been left as a party expected, or that it has been left in a way in which they perceive to be unfair, and all at a time when they are also suffering from extreme grief.
“This combination leads to an initial wish to consider a claim, as most people are now aware that claims can be brought in these circumstances.
“If more people talked about their wishes during their lifetime and told their loved ones of their intentions – and more importantly their reasons why – then there might be more understanding and acceptance, and less litigated disputes.”
