A Birmingham man has lost a bitter legal row over a disputed will with the partner of his dead father.
David Perrins launched a legal battle to overturn the will of his father Robert after he left everything, including his £195,000 home in Bournville, to his partner of nine years Ann Dooney.
But it is likely that the entire state left by Mr Perrins may now be swallowed up by the legal costs of the long-running battle, which could leave Ms Dooney without a home and his son facing a large bill.
Mr Perrins, of Quinton, was aged just 16 when he first took up his case seven years ago against Ms Dooney and the executors of the will, solicitors Phillip Holland and Sharon Moore.
London’s Civil Appeal Court has now failed to overturn the ruling last year that the document was valid. Ms Dooney could also face losing the estate following a ruling at the original High Court hearing last year.
At the time the court decided Mr Perrins would have to pay for Ms Dooney’s costs, but the executors’ legal costs would be covered by the estate. Now a further hearing will determine whether this ruling will be applied to cover the costs of the appeal hearing, which are thought to exceed the value of Robert Perrin’s estate.
Sir Andrew Morritt, one of three of the judges hearing the appeal, urged the warring sides to bury the hatchet to avoid the spiralling legal costs. He said: “The wreck of the testator’s estate is already total, there can be nothing left in it for anyone.”
In the High Court ruling last year, Mr Justice Lewison accepted that Mr Perrins did not have the legal and mental capacity when the will was made – but nevertheless upheld it as valid because of instructions he had given to a solicitor the previous year that he wanted Ms Dooney to be his heir.
Mr Perrins’s legal team, headed by Penelope Reed QC, argued at the Appeal Court last month that the judge misapplied the law and reached the wrong conclusion.
Mr Perrins, a Birmingham accountant, died after suffering from multiple sclerosis at the age of 47. He met Ms Dooney on a disability course and struck up a relationship. At the time he had separated from his wife.
The pair moved in together and Mr Perrins made no secret of the fact that he wanted to marry Ms Dooney, telling social workers and even his ex-wife about his wishes. In 2001 he executed changes to his will in the car park of his solicitor’s office.
There was no suggestion there was a breakdown in Mr Perrins’ relationship with his son. The hearing was told how Robert Perrins was always pleased to see his son.
Both Ms Dooney and Mr Perrins refused to comment.
