Banks v Goodfellow
The classic test for testamentary capacity. A person can have mental illness and still make a valid will if the illness does not affect the will decision.
Cases teach principles
What courts have looked for
Case examples help explain evidence and legal principles. They do not decide another family's facts.
Hughes v Pritchard [2022] EWCA Civ 386
Solicitor evidence and medical evidence both matter. The golden rule is good practice, not automatic proof.
Rea v Rea [2024] EWCA Civ 169
Undue influence requires strong evidence of coercion. Frailty, opportunity, and an unfair-looking result may not be enough.
Edwards v Edwards [2007] EWHC 1119 (Ch)
Fraudulent calumny: false poisonous stories about a natural beneficiary can help invalidate a will if the proof is strong.
Hawes v Burgess [2013] EWCA Civ 74
Suspicious circumstances and the solicitor's role can be important when knowledge, approval, and capacity are disputed.
Ilott v The Blue Cross [2017] UKSC 17
Family provision claims are not the same as proving a will invalid.