The father had lived with his second wife in a property that was purchased solely in his name. In 2001, he had written a will that left everything to his two sons.
After he died, his son’s solicitor wrote to the wife to ask what she intended to do about living in the property. She said that she was going to India with her husband’s ashes and would discuss the matter when she got back.
When she returned, she produced a will from the father that was dated 2005. She said that it had been in an envelope that he had given to her before he died and asked her to take to India for safe keeping. When she was in India, she was surprised to find that it contained a will leaving everything to her.
The son claimed the will was a forgery.
The court was told that analysis of the new will showed that it was not a c
onvincing document. It was a single sheet of paper, and there was no back sheet that would have been used by a solicitor. A handwriting expert even suggested that it may have been someone other than the husband who actually signed the will.
The wife gave evidence saying that her husband had said that his sons had already had enough from him. She was unable to provide witnesses to support her story.
The court held that, based on the father’s previous actions, it was unlikely that he would have drafted a new will without using a solicitor as his previous wills had been drawn up by professionals.
The will was revoked as the evidence put to the court made it inherently unlikely that the father had executed it.
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