2024: The year as seen through the eyes of an inheritance and wills dispute lawyer

2024 has seen a vast increase in contentious probate cases reaching trial. As with 2023, the national press has shown a continuing fascination with these types of cases.

We take a brief look at some of the cases that have been grabbing headlines in 2024:

• A string of high-profile cases examined solicitors getting it wrong - and sometimes right - when it comes to drafting wills that are subsequently challenged for lack of capacity.
• What happens when you tear three quarters of the way through your will, and get somebody else to finish the job for you? That was one of the questions for the court in Crew v Oakley.
• Can you write half of your will on a mince pie box? Read on for the answer to that particular riddle...
•  When is your biological child not your child for the purposes of your will, and when can somebody not your biological child actually be deemed your child? The court grappled with those issues as well in two cases this summer.