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Contested Wills & Probate

A contested will can cause a great deal of distress and division within families at what is already a stressful and upsetting time. All the more reason to call on our experienced specialist professionals who can provide clear guidance, practical advice and strong support to help you achieve the best possible solution under difficult circumstances.

Whether you feel the need to contest a loved one’s will – perhaps you have been inadequately provided for, or left out completely – or as an executor you are dealing with another’s attempt to challenge a will, our experienced and approachable legal specialists can help.

When can a will be contested?

If you act quickly, within six months of the granting of probate, it is usually possible to challenge a will if you can prove it is unfair. Of course, this is often not as easy as it sounds, and what may seem unfair to one party may seem perfectly acceptable to another – so the fairness of a will is judged against established criteria designed to offer clear guidance to the disputing parties.

A will may be contested if it can be proved undue pressure or influence was exerted on the will-maker, or if there are grounds to believe the will-maker lacked full mental capacity at the time of writing the will.

Any evidence of fraud – a forged signature, or signs the will has been tampered with, for example – may constitute good reason to challenge the document’s validity; a will may also be deemed invalid if it was drawn up incorrectly or is in breach of current legislation.

And if a will fails to make adequate provision for a dependant – a child, for example, or a current or former spouse, civil partner, cohabitee or other dependant – it may be possible to challenge it under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.

How can we help with contested wills or probate?

However you are caught up in a wills, probate or inheritance dispute, we are on your side.

Our knowledgeable team will advise you on the most appropriate course of action from the start, including any action that may be needed to preserve disputed assets before the estate is distributed.

Whenever possible, we will seek to resolve your case without the distress and expense of going to court and, by communicating regularly and in plain English, we will make sure you remain firmly in control of the process every step of the way.

Why choose us?

Our dispute resolution team has a wealth of experience in all manner of disputed matters. We pride ourselves on getting to know our clients personally and forging the strong relationships we believe are essential in order to represent your best interests in everything we do.

You can count on our dispute resolution lawyers for consistently excellent top-quality advice and support at all times and, as a valued client of our leading full-service law firm, you will have access to extensive and dependable legal and financial expertise from professionals you already know you can trust.

Getting started

Whatever your concerns, contact us as soon as possible – timely advice, given in confidence, can make all the difference.

Our respected team can also help with the full range of wills and probate services including will-writing, inheritance tax, grant of probate and deeds of variation, while our fully-qualified financial advisors can provide you with professional investment advice.

To find out how our expert dispute resolution team can help, call us on 01243 786668 or click here. Alternatively, you can email us at info@georgeide.co.uk or contact us directly using the details shown.

George Ide LLP. We’re on your side

Contact our dispute resolution team

For further information about any of our services or to book a no-obligation consultation, call us on 01243 786668, email the dispute resolution team at info@georgeide.co.uk, click here, or contact us directly using the details shown.

Mark Robertson | Head of Dispute Resolution

Dispute Resolution

01243 971549 mark.robertson@georgeide.co.uk

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Paul Lewis | Partner

01243 812408 paul.lewis@georgeide.co.uk

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Ian Oliver | Partner

Dispute Resolution, Compliance Officer, Legal Practice (COLP)

01243 812421 ian.oliver@georgeide.co.uk

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Zoë Halliday | Legal Assistant/Secretary

Litigation

01243 786 668 zoë.halliday@georgeide.co.uk

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Client Testimonials

Thank you for your email and thank you so much for your help with it all. You have dealt with everything brilliantly so as not to cause me any stress or worry so thank you.

Rachel Cook

Paul Lewis

Thank you for all your effort and excellent advice and work in this matter. It’s very much appreciated and I will certainly use you and your firm again in the future should I require legal services.

Roger Koep

Paul Lewis

Dear Mr Lewis. First of all I would like to say a huge thank you to you and your team about the hard work, time and money which you spent to deal with my claim. I agree with you that the settlement is reasonable enough and I know that you’ve did your best to get it.

Plamen Krastev

Paul Lewis

I really appreciate your work in this matter, including all of the updates and advice, everything has been so smooth. I will recommend you to my clients. Hollie Redman

Paul Lewis

I have received the final settlement cheque and I am happy with this. Thanks again for your services. You’ve been excellent in every way. I would recommend you to anyone. Thanks.

Fazal Mahmood Chishty

Paul Lewis

Ian Oliver and Paul Lewis of George Ide Solicitors, and their appointed barrister, were outstanding in helping us defend an HMO licensing prosecution by a local authority. This was a complex matter which should never have been taken to trial by the local authority. However, thanks to the care, knowledge and tenacity shown by George Ide, the correct judgment was given. Thanks again for guiding us through this stressful experience.

Ian Wiggett, Pace Property, Lettings & Management Ltd.

Ian Oliver / Paul Lewis

Thank you seems such a trivial word and yet without your tenacity, we would not be here today. For all the medical providers you sought out and your words of stability at each and every stage I cannot thank you enough. You will never know how much of a difference you have made, without your constant reassurance and steps of transition to medical assistance especially during Covid I know I would not be at this stage on my journey.

Michele Scott-Green

Paul Lewis

Both Michael and I are very grateful for your good wishes and for the continued support that both you and all your colleagues at George Ide have given us through this process.
If, for any reason, we find ourselves in need of legal advice we would most definitely make your company our first choice and would also have every confidence in recommending you to others.
Wishing you every continued success in the future. Kindest Regards

Jan and Michael Gosling

Paul Lewis

On April 9th 2010 it was my turn to be involved in a traffic accident with an uninsured driver. Although my injury was only a minor back injury, I wanted to be able to claim some sort of compensation if only for some treatment of physiotherapy. George Ide LLP, appointed by my insurance company, have been absolutely superb in representing my claim for personal injury against the Motor Insurance Bureau. With the expertise of Paul Lewis, Head of Accident Management, he has managed to increase the original offer made by the MIB almost threefold. It has been a long process, as Paul advised from the outset, but has been worthwhile and rewarding. I do hope that I do not need to use Paul’s expertise ever again, but know that if I do I would be in the hands of a very capable and friendly team.

Ms H

Paul Lewis

Dear Paul. Thank you for you email. I am so pleased that everything has finally come to an acceptable solution. I am grateful for all your attention throughout. I have, at all times, felt supported by yourself and your firm and confident that you were working in my best interests to resolve the claim.

Kind Regards Janet

Paul Lewis

Thank you very much for your email. I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you for all your advice and perseverance, especially with regards to the final settlement. Both myself and my wife are so pleased that this matter is finished! We wish you all the best for the future. Kind regards,

Garry

Paul Lewis

Dear Paul. Thank you so much for negotiating a satisfactory sum (exactly as you had predicted) and I am very grateful to have had the benefit of your excellent service throughout this ordeal. Horrid though it was, your expertise and guidance were of immense help. We can now happily put this whole thing behind us and finally move on. With very warm thanks and best wishes.

Michael Tudor

Paul Lewis