Johnston and Matthew v Johnston

The plaintiffs, executors of an estate, sought to propound a will that the defendant contested on several grounds, including the testatrix's alleged lack of testamentary capacity, the will not being an expression of her true wishes, and the presence of undue influence in its execution. The matter was before the court on an application for summary judgment. The legal issues before the court were whether the plaintiffs had a real prospect of success in their application and whether the defendant's defences, as potentially expanded by a Third Further Amended Defence, could be substantiated. The court examined the evidence and the arguments presented by both parties, focusing on the validity of the will and the testatrix's capacity to make it. The court concluded that the case did not have a real prospect of success for the plaintiffs due to the strength of the defendant's defences and the presence of genuine issues of material fact that needed to be resolved at a trial. The court also allowed the defendant to file and deliver a Third Further Amended Defence and counterclaim. The final orders included dismissing the application for summary judgment, granting the defendant leave to file and deliver a Third Further Amended Defence and counterclaim, and ordering the defendant to pay the plaintiffs’ costs of and incidental to both applications, to be assessed on the standard basis.