Woman surprised with High Court verdict after Will challenge

Posted 06/10/2009

A woman who took legal action after being excluded from her late father’s Will despite a prior agreement has expressed surprise after a judge ruled against them.

Averil MacDonald and Deborah Bannigan claimed they agreed with their parents that their £231,000 home would be bequeathed to them.

However, their father’s Will was changed after his first wife died and he married another woman, leaving all his assets to her.

This went against the agreement that two sisters allege was made in the mid-1980s and reinforced with monthly payments of £200 to cover living costs, bills and stop him from having to downsize in later life.

Speaking to the Telegraph after the High Court rejected their claim, Ms MacDonald said: “We were surprised when the judge ruled against us.

“It was a bit of a blow, to say the least.”

The case follows a recent study from consumer group Which? that revealed many people are suffering from “Will apathy” and presuming they do not need to have one.