Why writing a clear will is key - Sir Michael Butler's £ 8-million 9-year family dispute

Sir Michael Butler died in 2013 and was a collector of 17th-century Ming porcelain and had over 800 individual items estimated to be worth over £8 million.  

500 of the items were left to his four children in equal shares by a Deed of Gift which split up his chattels and unfortunately, his children did not share the same views as to what should happen to the vast collection.

The Side Letters

In a Side Letter to the Deed of Gift, Sir Michael expressed that he would like the collection to be kept together after his death, though contradicting the Side Letter, he had also stated that it could be ultimately split up, stressing that family harmony was supposed to be the most important thing.

Sir Michael’s two youngest children wanted the collection to remain together as a tribute to their late father and kept pushing that their father would have wanted the collection to not be split up as he had expressed in the Side Letter.

Sir Michael’s eldest two children, wanted to take a share of 125 items each and sell them, as they wanted the cash from the legacy, rather than the individual items.  They expressed that they had the legal right to enjoy the inheritance from their father in whatever form they wanted.

The Dispute

In 2016, the family went to court to fight over the collection and a judge decided that the collection would be allowed to be split up and that the eldest children would be able to sell the items.

In the news recently, it has been reported that still to this day the collection is triggering bitter family relations, as the youngest children are trying to buy back the collection that was sold, piece by piece.

Chattels can be passed away either in a will when a person passes away, or by executing a Deed of Gift in their lifetime.

The lesson

This is a sad example of why making your intentions clear in a legal document is so crucial.  If Sir Michael had intended the collection not to be split up, then he could have made those intentions clearer in his legal documents and the dispute may not have arisen.  These types of disputes are not only financially expensive but also change the family dynamics so much and cause a lot of tension and animosity between family members.

The drafting and words used in a Will or Deed of Gift are very important to get correct, as using the incorrect terminology can change the way a document is interpreted.

If you would like to put in place a Will or a Deed of Gift, then please contact one of our specialists.  I am based in the Colchester office and can be contacted on [email protected] or 01206 217609.