The court considered whether a gift might adeem a gift in a will by ‘by a father or a person in loco parentis’ but ‘the matter must be regarded from a wider point of view’. The rule against double portions is, in effect, no more than one way of supplying an intention to the testator by ascribing it to him by way of rebuttable presumption. The donor’s intention does not need to have been expressed; it may be ‘irresistibly drawn from all the circumstances of the case’
Sargant J said: ‘It is clear that in all cases of ademption or satisfaction the question is one of intention to be gathered in various ways.’ and ‘no one, whether lawyer or layman, can come to any other conclusion than that the intention of the testatrix in executing the last deed poll was to preserve the equality which had hitherto been maintained and not to disturb it in the flagrant way which this latter alternative would involve.’ As to In re Ashton: ‘In my judgment the acceptance by the appointee of the substituted provision was not a necessary condition of arriving at the conclusion at which the Court of Appeal arrived. All that was necessary to be shown was a clear intention of the testatrix to make the appointment by way of satisfaction or antecedent satisfaction of the provision made by her will.’
References: [1920] 1 Ch 397
Judges: Sargant J
Jurisdiction: England and Wales
This case cites:
- Cited – Re Ashton ChD 1897
Stirling J said: ‘Prima facie the duty of making a provision for a child falls on the father, but may fall on or be assumed by some other person. I do not say that in no case and under no circumstances can the duty fall on or be assumed by the . .
([1897] 2 Ch 574)
This case is cited by:
- Cited – In Re the Estate of Marjorie Langdon Cameron (Deceased); Peter David Phillips v Donald Cameron and Others ChD 24-Mar-1999
One of the testatrix’s children was thought to be profligate, and had failed to maintain his own son. Acting under an enduring power of attorney, the testatrix’s attorneys made a substantial gift in establishing an educational trust for that son’s . .
(Gazette 21-Apr-99, Times 02-Apr-99, Gazette 28-Apr-99)
These lists may be incomplete.
Last Update: 27 November 2020; Ref: scu.194479
