Meaning of jargon in will.

[thistlebay]

Hi
I wonder if anyone out there has any knowledge of the legal jargon in a will.  I obtained a will of a person who made same 11 years prior to dying in 1971.
He had been married 3 times, had 5 children to his 1st wife who died young, married the 2nd and had one son to her and she then died and then 4 years later married his 3rd wife.
His last son became ill in his teens and although he worked for approx. 25 years he had to give up because of ill health. His last son was approx 18 when his father died but  still lived with them. 
This man and his wife and son moved to a bigger house approx 7 years before he died so the property stated on the will is different to that of the property he actually died in.  All his other children were much older and married with families of their own.
This is part of the will:
I appoint my wife ......  .... to be the Executrix and Trustee of this my will and she also to be the guardian of my son ....   ..... during his minorit.  I direct her to pay all my just debts funeral and testamentary expenses.  I appoint my Trustee to be a Trustee for the purposes of the Settled Land Acts.  I Give and Devise to my Trustee my house and premises; ........ in the City of ...... for my son .... ..... and I declare that the Devise shall not vest absolutely in my said son until he attains the age of twenty one years.  If he shall pre-decease me or die under the age of twenty one years this Devise shall fall into and form part of my Residuary Estate.  I give my Trustee full power of sale and any money liable to investment which might accrue whether by way of income arising out of the said premises or capital representing proceeds of sale thereof and income thereon may be invested in or upon or applied in the purchase of any investment security or property of any kind, (whether producing income or not) approved by my Trustee, and may, pending investment be placed on Deposit or current acct at any Bank or with any company incorporated with limited liability.  I authorize my Trustee to apply any part of the presumptive or vested share of my said son in the said Trust property under this my will for his advancement in the world.

At this point he goes on to leave his other children their legacies of money.

Then:  As to all the rest residue and remainder of my property of every kind and description and wheresoever situated of or to which I may die seised or possessed or entitled to or over which I may have any power of appointment I give Devise and bequeath same to my wife ....   ..... absolutely.

Now, my question is this:  The wife dies about 20 years later and her stepson is still living with her, the son referred to in the will.  They are living in the property his father died in but not the property mentioned in the will.  The stepmother has made a will bequeathing the house and everything in it to her 3 nieces but that her stepson can live in the property until his death.

The testators son is still alive now and wishes to know legally where he stands in regard to the will of his father as he was of the understanding that after his stepmother died he would inherit the property, is this correct?  Does anyone have any legal knowledge on this at all?

Just to add to this, the wife of the deceased had to go to a solicitors to swear or something of that nature, told to me by the stepson as he went with her,  that there was no will left by her husband and yet I managed to find this one! She told all his children that their father had not made a will and they were told by the stepmother they could have just £? each, a very very small amount.

We did go to a solicitor for advice after finding this will but he claimed this only surviving son (the stepson of his wife who was to be looked after her in the will) has no claim or rights to the property he still lives in to this day.

Any help appreciated.
Many thanks

[AntonyMMM]

It sounds like the will was never taken to probate and the estate of the father dealt with as intestate - so the contents of the will are not relevant at this stage. He would need to get the original administration of the estate overturned and this will admitted to probate -  whether (or how) that can now be actioned after so much time, I have no idea.

I would be getting a second opinion from a solicitor who specialises in probate and trust law.

Probate disputes can be expensive and very divisive in families - he needs to consider whether that is something he wants to do.

[ScouseBoy]

What date did the Wife who should have been the executor/trustee  die on, please?

Have you obtained a copy of the grant of probate  following the mans death?

[ScouseBoy]

Thistlebay,    Where from and how  did you get the copy of the will from, please?

[groom]

Antony's advice is sound, this sounds like a very complicated situation which can only be sorted out by a solicitor who specialises in probates and who knows what he is talking about. Unless we have anyone here who is that sort of lawyer, any ideas will only be opinions and probably not a lot of help.

It does sound as if the wife either didn't know, or said she didn't know of the will and it was dealt with as if there was none. When an estate is dealt with, sometimes an insurance is taken out in case future heirs come forward. It might be worth seeing if that is the case.

[ScouseBoy]

I think that it would be worthwhile to get a Second Opinion from another specialist Inheritance solicitor.      If necessary they can ask for a barrister to give an opinion.

[mazi]

I think a search of the probate registry for his will or intestacy, and more so for that of his wife, is the first step,

Expert advice is a sound idea, but who will pay for it, and is there any hope of recovering the cost, the wife is dead, the executor of her will may be untraceable.

Mike

[groom]

Just a thought as well, it might also be worth finding out what happened when they brought the new property. It could be that it was brought in both their names and both names were on the deeds. That might have a bearing on the will as the house would not be his to give.

[mazi]

Just a thought as well, it might also be worth finding out what happened when they brought the new property. It could be that it was brought in both their names and both names were on the deeds. That might have a bearing on the will as the house would not be his to give.

That was my thought as well, it was usual then to buy a property in joint names,  the will you heve found may have been invalid, are you certain it was made after he married his third wife?

The will you have found refers to a specific named property, as it was sold before he died it forms no part of hie estate, and cannot be applied to the new house.

The only people who have lost out are the five sons of his first marriage, but there may not have been money in the estate to pay their bequests.

If the last wife left a valid will which went to probate then the executor of that will is responsible for the ultimate fate of the house