A wife had been suffering severe domestic violence. In one of her husband's uncontrollable rages he had followed her into a room and she picked up a loaded shotgun and took off the safety catch, merely intending to threaten him. Unintentionally she shot and killed her husband. She was charged with murder but convicted of manslaughter instead, and got put on probation. He had bequeathed £1000 to her. His will left her nothing else. The questions were:
Whether she could benefit from survivorship (i.e. was there still a joint tenancy) and to the Will-bequeathed £1000 given the common law forfeiture rule
Whether she would be entitled to relief from forfeiture.
Judgement
Mr Justice John Vinelott held the threat of violence was serious enough for forfeiture. As this pre-dated the manslaughter she stood to lose absolutely his half-share in the property. Although the events were before the passing of the Forfeiture Act 1982, forfeiture was not precluded – for the confiscation the court had .[1][2] Severance occurs if one beneficiary unlawfully kills another.
Taking into account their conduct and the wife’s financial position it was just for the wife to be relieved from forfeiture.
the forfeiture rule unless modified under the Act of 1982 applies in effect to sever the joint tenancy in the proceeds of sale and in the rents and profits until sale.
On appeal
The Court of Appeal unanimously upheld the decision of Vinelott J.
Cases applied
R v Chief National Insurance Comr, Ex parte Connor [1981] QB 758[2]
Gray v Barr (Prudential Assurance Co Ltd Third Party) [1971] 2 QB 554[2]
decd, 1985, english, land, case, acts, severance, joint, tenancy, forms, ownership, land, deceasedcourtcourt, appealfull, case, namein, deceaseddecided8, 1985citation, 1986, 1985, 1985, 833case, historyprior, action, appellant, also, failed, high, court, befor. Re K 1985 Ch 180 is an English land law case of acts of severance of a joint tenancy one of two forms of co ownership of land Re K deceasedCourtCourt of AppealFull case nameIn re K deceasedDecided8 May 1985Citation s 1986 Ch 180 1985 3 WLR 234 1985 2 All ER 833Case historyPrior action s Appellant also failed in the High Court before Vinelott J 1985 Ch 85 1985 2 WLR 262 1985 1 All ER 403 Subsequent action s noneCase opinionsthe forfeiture rule unless on the facts modified under the Act of 1982 applies in effect to sever the joint tenancyCourt membershipJudge s sittingAckner LJGriffiths LJBrowne Wilkinson LJKeywordsCo ownership administration of estates manslaughter of the testator forfeiture of beneficiary statutory modification Contents 1 Facts 2 Judgement 3 On appeal 4 Cases applied 5 See also 6 ReferencesFacts EditA wife had been suffering severe domestic violence In one of her husband s uncontrollable rages he had followed her into a room and she picked up a loaded shotgun and took off the safety catch merely intending to threaten him Unintentionally she shot and killed her husband She was charged with murder but convicted of manslaughter instead and got put on probation He had bequeathed 1000 to her His will left her nothing else The questions were Whether she could benefit from survivorship i e was there still a joint tenancy and to the Will bequeathed 1000 given the common law forfeiture rule Whether she would be entitled to relief from forfeiture Judgement EditMr Justice John Vinelott held the threat of violence was serious enough for forfeiture As this pre dated the manslaughter she stood to lose absolutely his half share in the property Although the events were before the passing of the Forfeiture Act 1982 forfeiture was not precluded for the confiscation the court had 1 2 Severance occurs if one beneficiary unlawfully kills another Taking into account their conduct and the wife s financial position it was just for the wife to be relieved from forfeiture the forfeiture rule unless modified under the Act of 1982 applies in effect to sever the joint tenancy in the proceeds of sale and in the rents and profits until sale On appeal EditThe Court of Appeal unanimously upheld the decision of Vinelott J Cases applied EditR v Chief National Insurance Comr Ex parte Connor 1981 QB 758 2 Gray v Barr Prudential Assurance Co Ltd Third Party 1971 2 QB 554 2 See also EditEnglish trusts law English land law English property lawReferences Edit Section 2 of the Forfeiture Act 1982 a b c Searching Case Law ICLR Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Re K decd amp oldid 1082980984, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
