A DAUGHTER left £250 in her father's will is challenging it in court, claiming he did not understand or approve its contents.
Bhavenetta Stewart-Brown is contesting the 2021 will of her father, Laxmikant Patel, who died at 85, leaving the family’s northwest London home, valued at £600,000, to his eldest daughter, Anju Patel.
According to The Times, Stewart-Brown told the High Court that she and her brother, Piyush Patel, received minimal inheritances due to claims that they had “failed in their sense of duty.”
In his will, Laxmikant wrote: “But as a father, I have not forgotten them,” referring to the £250 given to both Stewart-Brown and Piyush.
The earlier 2019 will had split the estate nearly equally, with an extra £50,000 for Anju to balance earlier gifts. Stewart-Brown now wants the court to uphold that version. Her lawyer, Timothy Sherwin, argued that the 2021 will was prepared under “odd” circumstances soon after Laxmikant was diagnosed with lung cancer and allegedly could not properly read English.
The court heard claims that Stewart-Brown, a Care Quality Commission inspector, had a “bad temper” and “took massive advantage” of her father.
Judge Jason Raeburn is overseeing the case. The hearing in the case continues.
Dr Nik Kotecha OBE DL (L) with Rosella Miccio. (Photo: Davide Preti)
