Failure of gifts—ademption


Published by a ÀÏ˾»úÎçÒ¹¸£Àû Private Client expert
Practice notes

Failure of gifts—ademption


Published by a ÀÏ˾»úÎçÒ¹¸£Àû Private Client expert

Practice notes
imgtext

When applying the doctrines of ademption and abatement, a distinction is drawn between specific, general and demonstrative legacies.

Classification of legacies

The different types of legacies were explained in Walford v Walford as follows:

'Legacies are of three kinds: there is the specific legacy which is a specific res secured under the testator's Will on his death; and, of course it does not abate if the rest of the assets are insufficient for the payment of general legacies; but it has this disadvantage, that if the particular res which is the subject of the specific legacy disappears in the meantime then the legatee gets nothing. The class of legacy at the other extreme is a general legacy which comes out of the residence and which abates if the residue is insufficient, but which prima facie, under a rule of administration of the court, carries interest as from a year after the testator's death. There is an intermediate class of legacy, namely a demonstrative legacy, which is simply a general legacy, with the quality attached to it that it is directed to be paid

Powered by Lexis+®
Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
Related legal acts:
Key definition:
Ademption definition
What does Ademption mean?

The complete or partial withdrawal of a legacy by an act of the testator during his life.

Read more readmore

Popular documents

Where a beneficiary is present when a Will is signed and witnessed, but is not an attesting witness to

Where a beneficiary is present when a Will is signed and witnessed, but is not an attesting witness to the Will, are there any grounds to challenge that beneficiary's entitlement under the Will?See Practice Note: Requirements for a valid Will which sets out the formalities for the proper execution

Revival of revoked Wills

Revival of revoked WillsModes of revivalA testator who has revoked their Will either with or without making a new one may wish to revive the revoked Will. The testator may write out the revoked Will again and execute it in accordance with section 9 of the Wills Act 1837 (WA 1837) or take advantage

Contents of Wills—rules of apportionment

Contents of Wills—rules of apportionmentThe rules of apportionment should be considered at the moment of drafting the Will. Whenever a Will creates a trust, some rules of apportionment may be applied or excluded unless they have been dealt with expressly in the wording of the Will.Essentially, the

Conditional and dependent relative revocation of Wills

Conditional and dependent relative revocation of WillsIf a testator revokes the Will and that revocation is shown to be subject to a condition, the revocation is ineffective if the condition is not satisfied. Revocation will not be held to be conditional unless there is clear evidence what the