Bell v Crewes

In Bell v Crewes, the court was asked to determine the validity of an informal will, and whether the estate of the deceased, Mr Bell, should be distributed in accordance with that will. The court was also asked to determine whether the plaintiff, who had unsuccessfully sought to have the will admitted to probate, was entitled to costs from the estate. Mr Bell had drafted an informal will but had instructed his solicitor to prepare a new will. He died before the new will was executed. The defendant, Mrs Crewes, sought to have the informal will admitted to probate, but the plaintiff opposed her application.

The primary legal issues were whether the informal document was intended to form the will of the deceased, and whether the deceased intended the document to operate as his will "without more". The court held that the informal document was not intended to form the will of the deceased, and that the deceased intended the document to operate as his will only upon its execution. The court also held that the plaintiff was not entitled to costs from the estate.

The court found that the deceased had intended the document to operate as his will only upon its execution. The court found that the deceased had not intended the document to operate as his will "without more". The court held that the informal will was invalid, and that the estate should be distributed in accordance with the intestacy rules. The court also found that the plaintiff was not entitled to costs from the estate, as the plaintiff had not succeeded in their action to have the will admitted to probate.

The court refused to admit the informal will to probate, and ordered that the estate be distributed in accordance with the intestacy rules. The court also ordered that the plaintiff's costs be paid from the estate of the defendant, Mrs Crewes.