Invalid Wills and costly legal battles – why using a solicitor to make your Will can safeguard against problems later

The shocking case of a woman who ‘guided’ her frail and dying mother’s hand to sign a Will which left her everything and her brother nothing has been successfully challenged in the High Court.

Extraordinary film footage from Lisa Baverstock’s own phone shows her repeatedly attempting to put a pen in her mother’s hand before manipulating it to create a signature.

Judge Jane Evans-Gordon said 76-year-old Margaret Baverstock, who had dementia, arthritis and a suspected lung congestion and was able to do little more than grunt, had ‘no idea what was going on’ at the time and ruled the Will invalid.

At a time when the number of disputes over Wills is growing, making your Will as robust as possible is important just in case it is challenged in the future.

Using a solicitor to make or update your Will protects against errors, ensures everything is done correctly to ensure validity and dramatically reduces the risk of a family member being able to exert undue influence over a vulnerable relative.

What happened in this invalid Will case?

It was John Baverstock, Margaret’s son, who contested the Will after becoming suspicious about his sister Lisa’s actions.

Shortly before their mother died in 2021, the siblings had fallen out over what John says was a misunderstanding with little contact between them since.

It was only a year later that John, who said he’d had a ‘loving and caring relationship’ with his mother, found out that she’d made a Will naming Lisa as the executor and sole beneficiary of her £700,000 estate, cutting him out entirely.

This Will, drafted by Lisa using an online template, had been written and signed eight days before Margaret’s death when she was barely capable of speaking.

What did the judge decide in this contested Will case?

Judge Jane Evans-Gordon ruled that Margaret Baverstock lacked the necessary testamentary capacity to make a Will and did not understand or approve its contents.

As there was no other Will, she was declared intestate – meaning there was no legally valid Will in place.

As a result, it was ordered that her £700,000 estate be split down the middle between her children, John and Lisa Baverstock. In addition, Lisa was told to pay her brother’s legal costs of up to £80,000.

How do you make sure your Will is correctly drafted?

Will making is not always straightforward. Family set-ups and blended families can be complicated and the legal process for correctly drawing up a Will is strict.

For example, if your Will is not signed or witnessed correctly, your estate may end up being treated as if you had died without making a Will at all. This is called dying intestate and means your estate is left to your next of kin in a fixed order, decided by the government and not necessarily as you wanted.

A correctly drawn up Will is an inexpensive way of avoiding difficulties in the future for your family and friends after your death.

It also gives you the chance to take wealth preservation steps to structure your affairs, not only to minimise your liability for inheritance tax, but to maximise tax relief too.

Making your Will as robust as possible is important just in case it is challenged in the future.

Solicitors, unlike Will Writers, have professional legal qualifications, are regulated by the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority and must have professional indemnity insurance. This means if something goes wrong, you have somewhere to go for redress and to claim compensation.

Get in touch.

Wards Solicitors wins high praise in the 2025 edition of the independent Legal 500 guide of outstanding legal professionals for its exceptional professional service standards and high levels of technical expertise.

We are also Bristol Law Society’s Regional Firm of the Year and our Wills, Probate and Mental Capacity Team has been chosen as Devon and Somerset Law Society’s Private Client Team of the Year.

Our specialist Wills and Mental Capacity solicitors are all highly experienced. Many are members of The Association of Lifetime Lawyers (formerly Solicitors for the Elderly) and the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP). Both organisations require the highest standards from its members with proven qualifications and experience.

We offer a free initial appointment, can meet you in one of our offices or come to your home and always ensure the strict protocol for Will signings is followed to the letter.

• If you want to make or update your Will, please contact our Wills and Mental Capacity Team.
• If you want to contest or defend a Will, please contact our Probate Disputes Team.