I saw a case on the Chancery Division court list this week. Property, Trusts and Probate. Behind the formal language, it was a family tearing itself apart. A brother and sister fighting over their late mother’s estate. Mostly, the family home.
I’ve sat in rooms while families navigate this. The legal fees are one thing. They can reach £50,000 or more, eroding the very inheritance being fought over. But the personal cost is higher. Relationships are permanently broken for the sake of assets. The process is brutal.
The Anatomy of the Dispute
It never starts with a court summons. It starts years earlier, with gaps in the planning. In this case, the mother’s will was 20 years old, written when her husband was still alive. It was never updated after he died. When her health failed, one child organised a Lasting Power of Attorney. The other felt sidelined, and later claimed their mother lacked capacity to sign it.
Verbal promises were made about the house. A few vague sentences about who should get what. In law, these promises mean nothing. Without a clear, updated will, the old document and the rules of intestacy take over. The result is a formal dispute in the High Court. The family home becomes a legal problem, not a legacy.
The Planning That Was Missing
A modern will, professionally drafted, would have provided clarity. It would have extinguished any debate. But the Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) was the other critical failure. An LPA isn’t just for paying bills. It’s a tool for managing complex assets and family dynamics during a difficult time.
It can appoint joint attorneys. It can specify how decisions must be made. It can even name a professional to act as a neutral party if required. This structure forces transparency. It protects the person who has lost capacity, and it holds the attorneys to a high standard of conduct. It keeps families out of court.
This is not a rare event. It is the predictable outcome of inaction. If this situation sounds at all familiar, we should talk.
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Written by Sean Kiani, Estate Planner at Inheritance Made Simple. Sean writes and reviews the firm's guidance on estate planning, wills, trusts and inheritance tax, and works with families across Bournemouth, Poole, Dorset and Central London. Verify Sean's Society of Will Writers membership listing.