McDaniel v Talbot & Anor [2026] EWHC 928 (Ch) shows what can happen when a Will is not updated after family life changes.
- Mark Talbot’s 2014 Will left everything to his wife and expressly excluded his daughter, Emma, citing twenty years without contact.
- From 2019 they reconciled and became close. Emma helped care for Mark and his elderly mother. He died suddenly in 2022 without changing his Will.
- Emma claimed under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. The High Court found she was in genuine financial need and that her caring role was the “special circumstance” an adult child usually needs.
- The reason given in the Will had disappeared, so it carried little weight. She was awarded £123,418, about 8% of a £1.57 million estate.
The lesson: your Will speaks at your death, not on the day you sign it. Review it whenever your family changes.
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Six short reads each week on tax, Wills, family wealth and running a business, from John Ireland. Since 1996, three decades of protecting families.