Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Guernsey Court of Appeal: No duty of care owed by will-drafting advocate to potential intestacy beneficiaries; remedy lies in challenging the will (Dorey v Ashton [2023] GCA008)

Published on: 11 April 2023

Published by a LexisNexis Private Client expert

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Dorey v Ashton [2023] GCA008. The facts

The appellants were three of the four adult offspring of Sir Graham Dorey, a former Bailiff of Guernsey. In 2004, the respondent advocate prepared Wills of personalty and of realty for Sir Graham Dorey. Although he was known to have dementia, a consultant psychiatrist had concluded that he nevertheless retained testamentary capacity at the relevant time. The claimants disputed the circumstances in which those Wills were executed. Absent the Wills, the children would have taken 100% of Sir Graham’s estate on intestacy, because a pre-nuptial agreement between Sir Graham and his second wife, their stepmother, contained a disclaimer of any claim to the estate while expressly allowing Wills to be made. Under the Wills, a share of Sir Graham’s estate was directed to his second wife under those instruments. Sir Graham died in 2015. All four children brought proceedings challenging the Wills against their stepmother. That litigation was settled by payment of a sum of money to the stepmother, with each party meeting their own costs. The three children subsequently issued proceedings against the respondent advocate to recoup their expenditure, alleging breach of a direct duty owed to them 'to take proper steps...

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