We answer some of your FAQs about Negligent Will Drafting claims
A claim can be made by anyone who has lost out on an inheritance under a will as a result of negligence by the solicitor who drafted the will. The term used for such a person is a disappointed benificiary. A claim can be made notwithstanding the fact the solicitor did not act for the disappointed benificiary.
An individual who would have received an inheritance or gift or legacy or benefit under a will and receives nothing as a result of the negligence of the solicitor drafting the will.
Any individual named as a beneficiary in a will that is ultimately invalid due to the negligence of the solicitor drafting the will or someone who would have been the beneficiary of a will had it been prepared and executed. Alternatively, a will may be valid but a gift in the will fails because the testator has not been advised to take action which ensures the gift in the will is effective.
A testator is an individual who has executed a will. A woman who has executed a will may be referred to as a testatrix.
A professional negligence claim may arise in state solicitor who drafts a will in respect of:
- advice provided to the testator relevant to the will which if wrong either reduces the value of the estate or deprives the beneficiary of their inheritance under the will;
- preparation of the will when negligence by the solicitor either reduces the value of the state, deprives a beneficiary of their inheritance or results in the will being invalid;
- execution and witnessing the will. If the strict requirements are not complied with the will may be invalid and some or all of the beneficieries may lose their inheritance under the will because the estate may be distributed under the intestacy rules which can result in a different distribution of the estate to that under the will.
In certain circumstances yes. Even if clerical errors can be rectified so that the will is valid, there may still be a professional negligence claim against the solicitor who drafted the will for the costs of rectifying the will which have taken from the estate and will reduce the value of the estate when distributed. In these circumstances the beneficiaries may lose part of their inheritance to cover the legal costs of rectification look to recover their loss from the negligent solicitor who drafted the will.
We answer some of your FAQs about bringing a claim in general
There are a number of different ways your case can be funded which we shall discuss with you when you first make an enquiry with the firm.
- Pay as you go on either a fixed fee or an estimate basis
- Conditional fee agreement (also known as 'No win no fee' agreements)
- Damages-based agreement (where we receive a share of your compensation as our fees)
We are happy to discuss our fees with you to agree a fee structure to help progress cases which have real merit.
This depends on a number of factors including whether the case can be settled by agreement or whether it ends up going to court and being determined by a Judge at a court hearing.
You may have to go to court to give evidence if the case cannot be settled by agreement. However, the vast majority of cases are settled either before court proceedings are issued, or after they are issued but before the case is heard by a Judge to make their final decision.
We are happy to speak with you by telephone, on a no obligation basis. During that call, we will discuss with you how we could help with your case. You can then decide if you want to formally instruct us to assist you.