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Succession disputes and family provision

Members advise and litigate in all areas concerning the succession of property, including questions relating to capacity, undue influence, breach of trust, estoppel and fraud. Recent cases include:

  • Birley v Birley (litigation over the estate of the late Mark Birley, the owner of Annabel’s nightclub)
  • Jones v Firkin-Flood (contentious trusts dispute concerning the removal of trustees of the Bredbury Hall Trust)
  • Walters v Smee (recent decision of the High Court on testamentary capacity concerning the Will of a lady suffering from Alzheimer’s)
  • Sharp v Adam (important decision of the Court of Appeal concerning the testamentary capacity of a Deceased who suffered from multiple sclerosis)
  • Walker v Walker (bitter high profile family dispute concerning allegations of breach of trust and the overturning of various Deeds entered into under undue influence)
  • Nina Kung v Wong Din Shin (decision of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal on the validity of an allegedly forged Chinese will)
  • D v R, Estate of R (construction of a homemade Will, resulting/constructive trusts, proprietary estoppel).
  • Green v Gaul (limitation, removal of a personal representative, administration of estate, trusts)
  • Hansen v Barker-Benfield (lifetime undue influence, due execution of a Will, testamentary capacity)


Junior tenants regularly advise on smaller value estates and trusts and are involved in claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependents) Act 1975. Recent cases include:

  • The Estate of Charles Albert Rayns
  • Gold v Curtis.

The directories say:

Andrew Child is recommended for traditional chancery work in Chambers & Partners as being “sensible to work with and [having] great clarity of thought”.

Barristers specialising in this area: