How enforceable is a will?

[Osinjak]

My mother passed away in Jul this year and I was the sole executor of her tiny will. I've done as she wished so no dramas but one thing that has irked me throughout the whole sorry episode was my tragically moronic brother's behaviour. He's an utter waste of skin at the best of times but he really surpassed himself this time through properly nasty emails, not calling to ask how she was doing before she died, ranting on Facebook about perceived slights from his family and so on. You know, the sort of behaviour you'd expect from a 47 year old man.

Anyway, my mother left him around £1k in the form of a half-sovereign and PO account with about £500 in it. At one point I was seriously considering not giving him the coin but selling it and giving the money to one of her favourite charities as he was being such a dhead. I didn't and it's now sat in a box in the garage along with a load of his other crap that he refuses to collect. For the avoidance of doubt (and my own sanity) I'm not going to sell it but if I did, where would I stand from a legal perspective? It got me thinking about wills in general, I could have completely ignored everything my mother wanted in her will and done something else instead as there are no checks etc? Idly curious before anyone starts berating me.

[Osinjak]

Thanks all. Just to park the brother thing for a sec, he lives overseas and refuses to give anyone his address. He comes back to the UK periodically but same deal, doesn't tell anyone when he does and certainly doesn't hand out the address where he stays. His stuff is in the garage and it's staying there until he comes up with a cunning plan to collect it - that's it. However, I was more interested in the legal side of things and how enforceable a will actually is? When I finally got it from her solicitor I asked her what happens next and she just said to get on with what was in her will (which I did) and to get in touch if I had any questions. I was a bit perplexed because I thought that someone would check to see that I had carried out her wishes, quite who I thought that would be is beyond me.

[Osinjak]

Breadvan72 said:

OP, very large books are written about the law relating to wills, but, in very broad summary, a will is enforceable at the suit of its beneficiaries, provided that the will complies with some formal rules and that the bequests that it contains conform to some rules as to clarity and do not offend against various aspects of public policy.

An executor who failed to execute the wishes of a testator would expose him or herself to a claim by a beneficiary who thereby suffered loss. An executor owes what are known as fiduciary duties to beneficiaries. An executor can step down, but until he or she does so he or she owes those duties.

Roger, thanks. The beneficiaries in my mother's will were charities who had no idea the money was coming to them but were obviously very grateful. What I have learnt from this whole sorry saga has reinforced the cliche about how the death(s) of relatives bring out the best and worst of people, so very true in my case. My father has been superb, my estranged brother an absolute weapons-grade tool. As my best friend says, a med neg lawyer, people are bds - especially when it comes to money.

[Osinjak]

Ugh, without going into all the sordid details of my miscreant sibling the sooner I can offload his crap the better for all concerned, we can then get on with our respective lives.

[Osinjak]

Breadvan72 said:

Look at section 12 of and Schedule 1 to the Torts (Interference With Goods) Act 1977.

Useful read that - thanks. When he disowned his family some years ago he had some expensive camera equipment that I had loaned him that I subsequently asked him to return. Radio silence. Repeated texts and emails went unanswered (pointless calling him, he never picked up the phone) and in the end I threatened him with legal action. It was a complete bluff, I had no idea what recourse I had to 'legal action' but boy did that get a reaction. Called me all the names under the sun, privately and on bloody Facebook of all things. I eventually got most of my stuff back but I just wrote the rest of it off, it just wasn't worth it. What is it with people?

[Osinjak]

Ayahuasca said:

I cannot understand how a parent could leave their children anything other than equal shares.

Quite easily really, especially if one child is a monumental bell end and the other isn't (or is less of a bell end perhaps).