After a significant hiatus we are returning to the world of blogging this week with a special guest post from our friend the noted writer, Brendan Joshfranklin. Brendan brings with him a wealth of experience of the nuances involved with different industries having written in relation to a broad variety of topics in his career to date. As a result, Brendan is able to offer his own fascinating insight into the field of Will Writing in what we hope will be the first of a number of guest posts. We hope that you enjoy what he has written and, as always, any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
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When it comes to will writing and disclosing what you would like to leave, and to whom, it’s important to make sure the finer details are correct so as to leave no room for error or misinterpretation.
Arguably no case illustrates this point more effectively than that of the late Michael Crowley-Milling and his will.
Michael Crowley-Milling was a renowned physicist who, upon his death, left a £2.1million fortune.
Often remembered for helping to invent the first touchscreen prototype, Crowley-Milling originally intended to leave his fortune to his wife, but decided that if she predeceased him, he would leave the entirety of his finances to The Royal Society.
When his wife passed in 2005, he decided to leave a sum of £400,000 to his brother’s children or grandchildren (if his brother’s children passed), and then leave the remainder of his money “Within the United Kingdom” to The Royal Society.
However, Crowley-Milling actually had accounts with a combined total of just over £900,000 in Jersey and the Isle of Man, which while both are a part of the British Isles, are both actually situated outside of the United Kingdom.
As a result, this led to a disagreement, and ultimately a huge court battle, over whether he intended to donate this money to The Royal Society or his relatives.
This is why having the will writing process undertaken by an experienced, professional service like Andrew Douglas Wills and Legal Services to avoid any confusion in what you truly intend to do with your assets, is so important.
What happened?
As you would expect, his family claimed that because Jersey and the Isle of Man are outside of the UK, the remaining money should go to them. The Royal Society claimed the opposite, and for all intents and purposes, the will made his intentions clear to leave the remainder of his money to The Royal Society after specifying how much he wanted to be left to his relatives.
The Royal Society were represented by Withers Worldwide. They ultimately convinced the court that it was merely a geographic error on Crowley-Milling’s part to omit Jersey and the Isle of Man. “Nugee J [the judge] determined that the words ‘United Kingdom‘ should be construed as incorporating the Isle of Man and Jersey.”
Mr Crowley-Milling’s relatives had argued that he was far too intelligent to have ever confused the regions, an instance referred to by geographers as a “cardinal sin”.
However, the judge ruled that intelligence in one field doesn’t necessarily account for knowledge in another like will writing when he said that “Lawyers may understand perfectly well the technical meaning of the term ‘UK’.
“But there is no evidence that laymen – even highly intelligent laymen – would have grasped the difference between the UK, Great Britain and the British Isles.
In summary, the judge declared: “I am entirely satisfied that Mr Crowley-Milling did intend to include the off-shore accounts in his will.”
Will Writing Services
Despite making for a fascinating case study, the court battle, high fees and the stress involved for his relatives, could have actually been avoided if an expert will writing service like Andrew Douglas Wills and Legal Services had been utilised in this instance by Crowley-Milling.
Using this kind of service is important because, as pointed out earlier, high intelligence doesn’t mean that mistakes can’t occur in the will writing process.
This is why experience and expertise in will writing really counts to make sure that you and your family can rest assured that there will be no discrepancies or margin for error in your will.
If you’d like to find out more about will writing services, prices, and processes get in touch with us today at Andrew Douglas Wills and Legal Services to see how we can help you throughout Essex.
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About the Author
Brendan Joshfranklin is a freelance writer that has written hundreds of articles for companies across the internet, within a variety of different sectors. Brendan’s passion is research, creating blogs and on-page copy. With a BA in Philosophy, Brendan enjoys learning about a multitude of different industries and processes within them. Furthermore, he relishes the opportunity to link these processes with popular stories and events that people can relate to.
If you have any questions for Brendan or you would like to enquire about his writing services, please e-mail brendan.joshfranklin@gmail.com and he will happily get back to you.
