fbpx

Missing Backpacker's Tireless Mother Granted Declaration of Death

26th May 2021 By

When people go missing and are not heard from for years, there has to be a point where the law recognises that they have died. The High Court performed that sad task in the case of a much-loved young man who vanished without trace over 30 years ago whilst on a backpacking trip to Canada.

After the 20-year-old travelled to Canada to see the country and visit members of his family, he stayed in touch with his mother, with whom he had a close and loving relationship. However, his contact with her abruptly ceased whilst he was staying at a campsite in British Columbia in May 1989. Despite her tireless efforts, she had since been unable to find any trace of him. His passport had not been renewed and international advertising campaigns had yielded nothing.

Given the passage of so many years since his disappearance, the mother reluctantly applied to the Court under the Presumption of Death Act 2013 for a declaration that he had died. Such declarations can be granted where a person has not been known to be alive for a period of at least seven years or where the Court is satisfied on the evidence that a person has died.

In granting the declaration sought, the Court found that he was domiciled in England on the date of his disappearance. His daughter and half-brother had been notified of the proceedings and did not oppose the application. The Court was entirely satisfied that he had died and found that he probably did so at the campsite on the night that he was last seen alive.

Prior to his disappearance, his mother had placed her home in their joint names with a view to promoting his long-term financial security. The Court declared that they had owned the property as joint tenants and that his share of the freehold therefore passed automatically to his mother on the date of his presumed death.

Source: Concious

Latest News

Tenants Can Purchase Freehold When Landlord Cannot Be Found

11th June, 2024 By

The Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 gives qualifying leaseholders the right to join together to buy the freehold of their properties – a process known as collective enfranchisement. A recent case demonstrated that this right can be exercised even when the landlord cannot be found. The leaseholders of two flats in a terraced house wished to purchase it from the landlord, but were unable to ascertain his whereabouts and therefore could not serve notice on him under Section 13 of the Act. They therefore applied for an...

Court Refuses to Set Aside Divorce Order Applied for by Mistake

6th June, 2024 By

While the courts have a range of powers to set aside orders, they will only exercise them in limited circumstances. In a somewhat surprising case that has attracted much comment, the High Court declined to set aside a final order of divorce that had been applied for by mistake. A couple separated in January 2023, after more than 21 years of marriage. In October that year, while financial remedy proceedings were still ongoing, the wife's legal representatives inadvertently applied for a final order of divorce in respect of her instead...

Waiting Time for Grants of Probate Falls

3rd June, 2024 By

Following concerns last year about delays in processing probate applications, recent figures from HM Courts and Tribunals Service show that waiting times for grants of probate are continuing to improve. The average time from submission of a probate application to probate being granted fell to 11.3 weeks in March 2024, a decrease from 13.7 weeks in February and 13.8 weeks in January. This is the lowest figure since March 2023, when the average was 10.8 weeks. The longest waiting time since then was in November, at 15.8 weeks: that month,...

Late Appeal Against Tax Penalties Rejected

31st May, 2024 By

It is incumbent on taxpayers to make sure they fully comply with their obligations to file returns and pay any tax due. The point was illustrated by a recent case in which a taxpayer whose return had not been received by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) failed to persuade the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) that he should be permitted to appeal against the resulting penalties. On the evening of 31 January 2014, the man had completed his 2012/13 Income Tax return on HMRC's website. Shortly afterwards he went to Cyprus, and...