Family loses legal fight over will

While this blog focuses on will contests and other probate disputes in Texas, the basic elements are typically the same around the world, whether in Dallas, Fort Worth, Plano, or England:

The four children of a former wealthy Bishop's Stortford estate agent have lost their legal fight over his will. When Edwin John Watson died his children Catherine Beaven, Marilyn Watson, Edwin Watson and Janet Dixon discovered he had disinherited them in his final will, drawn up in November 2000. Earlier this month at London's High Court, the four siblings challenged the will, arguing that Mr Watson, 81 when he died in April 2006, lacked the mental capacity to know the implications of what he had done. But they were opposed by Mr Watson's second wife, Margot, whose lawyer said that, although mentally frail, Mr Watson knew exactly what he was doing and had been generous to his children throughout his lifetime. Today, Wednesday October 29, Mr Justice Floyd described the litigation as "unfortunate". He dismissed the children's challenge and upheld the 2000 will. He said there was "nothing irrational" in Mr Watson's decision to disinherit his children, and he had the "necessary testamentary capacity".

I suspect the judge was at least partially influenced by the fact that Mr. Watson had already given his children substantial funds prior to death and even the will pushed by the children did not leave them a lot of money.