Stephen Lawson

Martyn Frost

Professor Emeritus of Old Age Psychiatry Robin Jacoby

Testamentary capacity is an increasingly difficult and important area in will preparation. The rise in capacity issues, associated with the increasing aging population and longer life expectancy, has become a fruitful area for dispute and litigation. This book equips practitioners with the knowledge and practical guidance needed in this complex but commonplace problem area. Featuring an explanation of the law relating to testamentary capacity, the book also includes a practical section on the role of the will draftsman. Covering all associated areas such as interviews, questioning, recording of relevant information, and risk management policies, these issues are put into context by a guide to mental health issues that can affect capacity. This books also features a section on litigating in this area including pre-litigation considerations, a guide to ADR and settlement, and procedural issues. Written by experienced wills practitioners and an expert in old age psychiatry, this book is the first to link relevant medical issues directly to law and practice, presenting all the information a draftsman or litigator needs on the subject. This is an invaluable resource for all concerned with issues of testamentary capacity.

Law, Practice, and Medicine

Testamentary Capacity

'A Victorian Tragedy', for the first time, describes how the landmark court case of Banks v Goodfellow (1870) came about, what happened to the protagonists and how an enlightened judgment provided a practical definition of testamentary capacity that has since been used throughout the common law world law. This fascinating story is set against the backdrop of the mid-Victorian world and how it affected the lives of those caught up in the case. Set in the Lake District, around Keswick, the central issue was the mental illness of the testator, John Banks, and how he coped with living in a world that often derided his paranoia - "From the appearance of the man anyone would take him for a person out of his mind" as a local clergyman put it. The lives of John's relatives were scarred, and often ended early, by other illnesses common at that time, but these lives also interweave with 19th century issues of emigration, marriage reform and early mortality. Extensive use is made of original court papers and contemporary newspaper reports, both from the national and local press, to present the picture that was placed before the court of how John Banks was affected by his insane delusions. The conduct of the Assize court hearing is explained, together with how the court and jury dealt with the radically opposed evidence from either side. 'A Victorian Tragedy; covers this case in detail not previously dealt with before and offers a different approach to re-evaluate an important case in the context of its time and the treatment of the insane in the 19th century. While the book will undoubtedly appeal to lawyers, the book's portrayal of a mid-Victorian family and the treatment of the insane will also be of interest to the more general reader.

Martyn Frost

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