Suspicious Mind – Why Priscilla Presley is disputing her late daughter’s Will

Prior to 2016, Lisa Marie reportedly appointed her mother, Priscilla and former business manager, Barry Siegel as Trustees of her estate. However, in her 2016 amendments, Lisa Marie instead appointed her children, Riley and Benjamin Keough. Sadly, Benjamin predeceased his mother leaving Riley as the sole surviving Trustee.

Priscilla Presley is now challenging her daughter’s Will on the basis that she believes the signature is inconsistent with her daughter’s usual signature, implying the document was forged in some way. She is also suspicious of the document’s date and misspelling of her name.

Your Will is one way you can ensure your wishes are adhered to post death, so how do you make sure your Will is as secure as it can be?

There are very strict requirements that must be met when executing a Will, these are as follows:

• The person making the Will must be 18 or over
• It must be made voluntarily
• The person making the Will must be of sound mind
• It must be made in writing
• It must be signed in the presence of 2 witnesses who are both over 18
• Both witnesses need to sign in the presence of the Testator

Despite your Will being validly executed, it may still be contested, particularly where there are issues within the family. Whilst you cannot stop someone making a claim against your estate when you are gone, there are ways you can reduce the likelihood of success. Seeking advice from a solicitor in relation to your Will is extremely important. When we receive Will instructions, we always discuss your individual circumstances and whether there are likely to be any disputes on your death. We also keep accurate, timely records of all conversations with you. This can be particularly useful if needing to demonstrate your reasoning behind certain decisions in your Will and how your Will was executed.

If you know that despite the contents of your Will, there are likely to be disagreements after your death, it may be best to appoint a firm of solicitors as professional executors to ensure there is an independent party involved with administering your estate. This will ensure that throughout the administration period, correct and complete records are being kept in relation to transactions and progress. If you appoint a relative, trying to manage the expectations of feuding family members may cause them great stress at an already difficult time.

In certain circumstances, should you wish, Greenwoods can be appointed as professional executor, which can lessen the chance of potential conflict or misinformation and maybe prevent an estate becoming contentious.  However, should this not be the case, we have a team that specialises in disputes, who can assist if required.

Where professional executors are not appointed, it is still important for the appointed executors to seek advice from a solicitor and we have a range of services for executors depending on their requirements.

If you are concerned that there may be family issues arising on your death, please contact a member of our expert Wealth Preservation team on 0203 691 2080 to discuss your options.