Lawyer Monthly - November 2021 Edition

29 NOV 2021 | WWW.LAWYER-MONTHLY.COM WHY IS PRINCE PHILIP’S WILL GOING TO BE SEALED FOR 90 YEARS? member of the Royal Family in the custody of the President of the Family Division. Sir Andrew noted that modern convention dictates that only those executors of the wills of immediate family members to the Sovereign (children, consort, first or second in line to the throne and their children) are able to apply to seal a royal will. The executor of Prince Philip’s will based his application to seal it on the fact that it was longstanding practice to do so; that there were no instances of such applications being refused; and that it was important to maintain consistency so that the public did not infer that a sealed will was due to a desire to conceal. He also made the point that the law allowing public inspection of wills following grant of probate, namely to ensure the deceased’s wishes were carried out, all beneficiaries traced, and the deceased’s creditors notified did not apply to the Royal Family. The judgment contained a discussion about whether or not the Executor’s application should be subject to a private or public hearing, with the Attorney General representing the public interest. The Attorney General supported the case for the hearing to be held in private, not least as “media interest in matters to do with the Royal Family was, seemingly, insatiable and highly intrusive. To have any part of the process in public would…simply fuel media curiosity.” Sir Andrew accepted the arguments of both sides, concluding that there is a need “to enhance the protection afforded to the private lives of this unique group of individuals, in order to protect the dignity and standing of the public role of the Sovereign and other close members of Her family.” Accordingly, he granted the executor’s application, very much in line with how previous applications of this nature have been determined. A new issue which was raised at the hearing was whether royal wills should be sealed for a time-limited period. At present, Royal wills aresealed indefinitely. SirAndrewquestioned whether sealing a will for an indefinite period was either necessary or proportionate. Both parties initially suggested a period of 125 years, but he considered that an initial period of 90 years was proportionate and sufficient. On the expiry of this time limit, the will is to be opened in private in the presence of a prescribed group to include the Keeper of the Royal Archives, the Sovereign’s solicitor, and Attorney General as well as any personal representatives of the deceased as may be living. It will be that group who will determine whether the will be re-sealed or whether it will be made public. Considering the high profile of the members of the Royal Family, it is not surprising that there is an inexhaustible curiosity about various aspects of their private lives. Given that the underlying reasons behind the sealing of Royal wills had been made public in the course of this judgment, Sir Andrew was of the view that the names of the thirty sealed wills currently in his safekeeping, should be made public, not least to avoid “the Press making fishing applications to the Registry.” However, both parties objected on the basis that such a publication was likely to give rise to excessive media interest and speculation which would be “bound to be inimical to the dignity and integrity of the Sovereign”. Contrary to established law which enables public inspection of wills following grant of probate, there are sound reasons for upholding the practice of sealed wills for senior members of the Royal family and these have, for the first time, been clearly set out in an open written judgment. The only member of the Royal Family whose will does not need to be proved by grant of probate is that of the Sovereign.