Revoking a Will: does ripping up a will destroy it in law

Specialist contentious probate solicitor, Cavelle Leigh, discusses the case of Carry Keats and the current dispute over whether her Will has been legally destroyed.

A high-profile case in the press at the moment is that of 92-year-old Carry Keats who, in somewhat dramatic fashion, tore up her Will on her deathbed.

But does tearing the Will revoke the Will?

Certainly, her younger sister Joanna seems to think so. If the Will is revoked, and no other is found, Joanna will inherit the entire estate to the tune of £800,000 under the rules of intestacy. These determine how a person’s estate will be distributed if they die without a valid Will.

Put simply, the order of priority is:

• spouses
• children
• parents
• siblings
• half- siblings
• grandparents
• uncle and aunts
• half-uncles and aunts
  and finally…
• the Crown

The Will however left no provision for Joanna with whom Mrs Yeats purportedly had a love-hate relationship.

Instead, it left the bulk of her estate to her five cousins David, Angela, Kevin, Jason and Leon. They had allegedly offended Mrs Keats by proposing that they put her in a care home. If the Will is revoked, they’ll receive nothing as, as you’ll see, cousins do not even feature never mind take priority under the rules of intestacy. Unsurprisingly then, they contend that the Will has not been revoked.

Has the Will been revoked or not?

S20 of the Wills Act 1837 states that a testator can revoke a Will simply by burning, tearing or otherwise destroying it, or authorising another person to do so in their presence.

In this instance, Mrs Yeats destroyed only three-quarters of the Will due to her frailty and instructed her solicitor to finish the task.

The cousins argue that Ms Yeats could not have had testamentary capacity to make such a decision at the time, because of her illness and the medication she was taking.

Ms Yeats’ lawyer disagrees stating “'Her character hadn't changed. She was still the same old Carry. She knew who I was and why I was there.”.

The case in the High Court continues…

What can we learn from this case?

• get your affairs in order by making a Will
• instruct a solicitor who may foresee inheritance disputes and can help ward them off
• review your Will every few years to ensure it accords with your wishes

If you would like to book an appointment to make or review and update a Will, or are yourself involved with an inheritance dispute, Holmes & Hills have specialists who can help with both situations.