Our team of experts is often asked, ‘What can I do if a will is challenged on the basis of undue influence?’
We are experienced in defending the validity of wills, including cases where the will has been challenged on the grounds of undue influence. Contact us for free 30 minute consultation about haw we can help you defend the validity of the will.
If you are a beneficiary under a will that has been challenged on the basis of undue influence, or you have been appointed as an executor of that will, then it is important to take specialist legal advice on how to respond.
Undue influence is not an easy claim to sustain, and with the right expert advice the challenge may be defeated.
As an example of the difficulty claimants face, the Court of Appeal recently overturned a High Court ruling that had found undue influence in the execution of a will. The deceased had left her most valuable asset, a house, to her daughter, while her three sons received smaller shares of the residual estate. The sons alleged that their sister had unduly influenced their mother into making the will in those terms.
At the High Court, undue influence was upheld based on the mother’s frailty, her dependency on her daughter, and the circumstances surrounding the will’s execution. The judge believed that the mother’s volition had been overpowered by her daughter, rendering the will invalid.
However, the Court of Appeal unanimously disagreed with the original judgment, emphasising the high evidential threshold required to prove undue influence in probate cases.
The Court of Appeal clarified that undue influence in wills requires coercion strong enough to overpower a testator’s free will. Persuasion or influence alone is insufficient. The court found no direct evidence of coercion by the deceased’s daughter and deemed it more plausible that the deceased had acted of her own volition when making her will, given her rational motivations. The deceased was described as strong-willed and aware of her decisions, with testamentary capacity and approval of the will’s contents. Additionally, witnesses, including her GP and solicitor, observed no signs of coercion.
Furthermore, there had been a consistent desire to benefit the daughter who had cared for her, and there was no evidence to suggest that she had manipulated her mother. The court noted that claims of undue influence must be supported by concrete evidence, as coercion is inherently unlikely in such contexts.
This case demonstrates the difficulty of proving undue influence in probate disputes, reinforcing the principle that wills should reflect a testator’s intentions unless clear evidence of coercion exists. The judgment emphasises the need for solid evidence to overturn a will, even where relationships appear contentious or outcomes seem unfair.
So, if you have been wondering, ‘What can I do if a will is challenged on the basis of undue influence?’ then contact our team of expert lawyers for a free 30 minute consultation about the best way of defending the validity of the will. We offer various funding options, including no win, no fee or deferring payment until the conclusion of the case.