“An Englishman still remains at liberty at his death to dispose of his own property in whatever way he pleases or, if he chooses to do so, to leave that disposition to be regulated by the laws of intestate succession” Re Coventry (deceased) [1980].

An alternative dispute resolution method for professional negligence matters, first offered in early 2015, has just been relaunched. In February 2015 an adjudication pilot scheme was introduced as an alternative to court for professional negligence disputes.

It is not very often that a forfeiture case is reported, and yet there were two in as many months this spring. The well-established forfeiture rule is a matter of clear public policy and provides that if a person unlawfully kills another they are not able to inherit from their estate.

Mediation is a form of “alternative dispute resolution” (ADR) involving a third party neutral mediator seeking to resolve the dispute between parties on a face to face basis, normally lasting one day.

The recent amendments to the Family Procedure Rules 2010 (effective as of 29th April), mark a significant change to conventional approaches to dispute resolution in family matters. With a pronounced emphasis on mediation and other non court dispute resolution methods (NCDR), these changes herald a new era of resolving familial disputes.

Disclosure involves identifying and making available documents that are relevant to the issues in dispute to the other parties to the case.

We often see ‘without prejudice’ ("WP") on communications between parties in dispute. The suggestion seems to be that adding that banner to a letter might offer some magical protection down the line if the dispute is not resolved. It doesn’t, but a fuller explanation of the principle of without prejudice might be useful.

Contentious probate is the umbrella term for any dispute relating to a person's estate after their death.

The pre-action protocol encourages an early exchange of information, narrowing of issues and consideration of alternative methods of dispute resolution, with a view to wherever possible promote settlement of disputes without the need to issue court proceedings.

Jean Clitheroe had three children, Debra, Susan and John. On 19 December 2009, Debra sadly died of cancer. Jean was, understandably, deeply affected by Debra's illness and death and as Jean put it, "took to her bed" from the day of Debra's death in late 2009. Jean remained bedridden until her death on 11 September 2017.