header-logo header-logo

Home Login E-newsletter About us
26 November 2009 / Michael Tringham
Issue: 7395 / Categories: Features , Wills & Probate
printer mail-detail

2010: the Year of the Will?

© Copyright LexisNexis 2026. All Rights Reserved.

Michael Tringham predicts the future for inheritance law

If 2009 was the year of contentious probate, perhaps 2010’s sobriquet will be the Year of the Will.

BBC2 has recruited Sir Gerry Robinson, former chairman of broadcaster Granada, to present Legacy, a 6 x 60-minute TV series intended to help people “confront the emotional dilemmas of writing a will.

Sir Gerry will work alongside a lawyer to guide people through the process and deal with “the taboos of choosing between the people you love”. These include what to do, having remarried, about legacies for step-children. The programme makers were spurred on by research showing that even among the UK’s over-60s, one in four does not have a valid will.

Law Commission reviews intestacy laws

Meanwhile the Law Commission has set a legal cat among some pigeons with its consultation paper reviewing the intestacy laws. Comments are welcome until the end of February next year via the Law Commission’s website: www.lawcom.gov.uk.

The declared intention is to “bring inheritance law up to date to meet the needs and expectations of modern families...”. Cohabitation

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Read All
Jurit LLP—Caroline Williams

Jurit LLP—Caroline Williams

Private wealth and tax team welcomes cross-border specialist as consultant

Freeths—Michelle Kirkland Elias

Freeths—Michelle Kirkland Elias

International hospitality and leisure specialist joins corporate team as partner

Flint Bishop—Deborah Niven

Flint Bishop—Deborah Niven

Firm appoints head of intellectual property to drive northern growth

NEWS
Read All
NLJ this week: No such thing as a ‘Welsh seat’
Talk of a reserved ‘Welsh seat’ on the Supreme Court is misplaced. In NLJ this week, Professor Graham Zellick KC explains that the Constitutional Reform Act treats ‘England and Wales’ as one jurisdiction, with no statutory Welsh slot
NLJ this week: Jury reform risks justice for efficiency’s sake
The government’s plan to curb jury trials has sparked ‘jury furore’. Writing in NLJ this week, David Locke, partner at Hill Dickinson, says the rationale is ‘grossly inadequate’
NLJ this week: Crypto fightback offers ‘new frontier for law’
A year after the $1.5bn Bybit heist, crypto fraud is booming—but so is recovery. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Holloway, founder and CEO of M2 Recovery, warns that scams hit at least $14bn in 2025, fuelled by ‘pig butchering’ cons and AI deepfakes
NLJ this week: Time to revive the duty to report crime?
After Woodcock confirmed no general duty to warn, debate turns to the criminal law. Writing in NLJ this week, Charles Davey of The Barrister Group urges revival of misprision or a modern equivalent
NLJ this week: When are experts truly ‘necessary’?
Family courts are tightening control of expert evidence. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Chris Pamplin says there is ‘no automatic right’ to call experts; attendance must be ‘necessary in the interests of justice’ under FPR Pt 25
Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
back-to-top-scroll