Court cases involving family trusts might be presumed to be rather dry. Not so. Many family-related disputes involve an unavoidable amount of dirty linen being washed in public as each side seeks to gain the advantage. In Marcus v Marcus, a new level of intimate detail was revealed as the court had to consider if the alleged illegitimacy one of the parties precluded them from benefiting from a Settlement Trust.

Family members involved in farming operations may unwittingly create various partnerships over many years. These have significant legal consequences that may only become apparent in a moment of crisis, such as the death of a family member or a family fallout. To avoid protracted disputes and further breakdown of relationships, it is always advisable to ensure that partnership agreements and wills are consistent and correctly reflect the intentions of the parties.

A Part 36 offer is a formal offer which can be used to settle all or part of an action but it is not an admission of liability. The rules surrounding Part 36 offers are contained within the Civil Procedure Rules and the aim is to encourage parties to try and settle their disputes.

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) decides on financial services disputes by considering what is fair and reasonable in all the circumstances of the case, rather than based on the letter of the law.

Entering business is usually a carefully planned undertaking, however, this may not always be true of a partnership. Where family members, often across different generations and over many decades, are involved in a farming operation, they may unwittingly create various partnerships. All partnerships – even those that are unconsciously entered into – have significant, immediate and longer-term legal consequences which often only to come to light in a moment of crisis, such as the death of a family member or a family fallout. To avoid protracted disputes and further breakdown of relationships, it is always advisable to ensure that partnership agreements and wills are consistent and correctly reflect the farm family’s intentions.

Although most never reach a final hearing at court, the number of will-related disputes is growing year on year. Contesting a will is rarely straightforward: it is a complicated legal process requiring careful management and is often emotionally and financially draining. This article endeavours to explain the practical considerations of this type of litigation and how to minimise the attendant risks.

The Justice Secretary, Dominic Raab, has today (23rd March 2023) proposed a new rule that would make it mandatory for separating couples to try mediation to settle their child custody and financial disputes, only seeking the court’s intervention as a last resort.

Research by the Association of Lifetime Lawyers (ALL) shows only 52% of Wills are drafted by solicitors, suggesting that the remainder are created using templates or AI. The ALL warns that AI-drafted Wills often fail to meet legal standards, risk excluding or wrongly including beneficiaries, and can lead to costly disputes.

A leading disputes lawyer believes a “growing insurance war” could last longer than the Covid-19 crisis which has sparked it. Several small businesses across the UK have voiced their anger around being denied insurance pay-outs despite believing they were specifically covered against the global pandemic.

Mediation is a well known tool amongst those familiar with disputes. It can be very effective in clearing a way to settlement, but it can also sometimes feel like a rather unsophisticated ‘cutting of the cake’, purely to avoid the costs risk of losing at court. There are more subtle alternatives, that might allow the parties to settle but within a framework that more clearly reflects the legal merits - for example, expert determination or early neutral evaluation.