S'pore man given S$1 by mother in her will, challenges it, fails & has to pay aunt S$74,892

A man challenged his mother's will after he was bequeathed S$1, but lost the case against his aunt and now has to pay her S$74,892.29 in costs.

According to a judgment made public on Mar. 12, the plaintiff is the youngest of the deceased's three sons, "who were at one point or another, causes of distress and concern".

The dispute centres around a 2020 will under which the deceased had revoked all prior wills and appointed her youngest sister, the defendant, as the sole executrix.

The woman had executed three separate wills in 2018, 2019 and 2020.

In the previous two wills, she had bequeathed her HDB flat to her granddaughter, P, the child of the plaintiff.

She bequeathed S$1 to each of her three sons in all three wills, but each will had different bequests regarding her properties and assets.

A 'capable, independent woman'

According to the judgment, "the deceased was a capable, independent woman of strong character".

Her first marriage ended in 1980 after she commenced divorce proceedings against her absent husband.

She then became a single mother of three sons and worked as a carpark attendant.

She remarried in 1992 and helped her second husband start a scaffolding business.

In 2004, she started her own maid employment agency, bringing in domestic workers from India, which she operated till her death on Sep. 19, 2021.

Sons were 'causes of distress'

Her first son was declared an undischarged bankrupt after taking over his late stepfather's business.

According to the judgment: "It was further alleged and undisputed by the parties that N had even forged the deceased’s signature and sold off two of her properties in order to pay off the said debts."

After his mismanagement incurred debts, the business eventually closed sometime in 2015 or 2016.

Her second son has a history of drug-related offences, including consumption and trafficking.

In 1999, he was first sentenced to 10 years' jail, and in 2008, he was caught abusing drugs again and sentenced to 8 years' jail.

He turned over a new leaf in his second jail stint, and at the time of the trial, he had been gainfully employed as a pharmaceutical driver since 2016.

Third son was 'troubled youth' with multiple convictions

According to the judgment: "The plaintiff is the youngest son of the deceased and from the evidence provided, arguably the son who gave the deceased the greatest cause for concern."

A troubled youth, he was placed in the Boys' Home for three years at the age of 12 for causing grievous hurt to a prefect in his class.

The plaintiff ran away from home at 15 and was sent to a Reformative Training Centre for four years.

He experienced "two failed marriages, a series of failed businesses and convictions for other offences".

The plaintiff was convicted of stealing jewellery from his first mother-in-law and sentenced to jail.

After his release, he married a woman who gave birth to P.

He subsequently divorced P's mother and married his current wife, B.

Granddaughter

The granddaughter, P, lived with the deceased from when she was three to 12 years old.

The deceased cared greatly for her and took care of P's expenses solely; she also applied for custody of P sometime in 2015.

Court documents noted that "the plaintiff did not take care of P".

However, the deceased suffered a stroke in 2012 and was "deeply troubled over the issue of who was to care and provide for P upon her demise, given the lack of parental involvement and guidance in P’s life".

The 2018 & 2019 wills

In the 2018 and 2019 wills, the deceased bequeathed the HDB flat to her granddaughter, P.

In the Aug. 24, 2018 will, the flat was to be held on trust by the trustees, her sister and a friend of the deceased till P attained 21 years of age, and the deceased's sister was bequeathed all other assets.

Neither the plaintiff nor the defendant was involved in the preparation of the 2018 will.

In the 2019 will, the flat was to be held until P reached 30, where the trustees would transfer the HDB flat to her absolutely, with the condition that the flat must not be sold and P must stay at the property till her demise.

The deceased's assets were also bequeathed to P in the 2019 will.

The May 15, 2019, will was drafted by a long-time family friend of the deceased, D, who also represented the plaintiff in other legal matters, such as his custody application for P.

As D's practice was not to act as a witness for any will he had drafted, he referred E to the deceased, who explained the will to her in Tamil.

Under the 2019 will, D and the plaintiff's wife, B, were the executors and trustees of her will.

P allegedly stole grandmother's jewellery

In 2019, the deceased found her jewellery missing from her home, and the only person living with her at the time was P.

According to the judgment, the deceased suspected P of stealing her jewellery upon the instigation of the plaintiff and filed a police report.

P was upset by the accusations and stayed with her father for two days before asking to return.

On Nov. 19, 2020, P was taken in by Child Protection Services (CPS) and on Dec. 2, 2020, she was placed in longer-term care in a centre.

Her grandmother would visit her weekly until Sep. 18, 2021, when the deceased failed to turn up for her usual visit.

The 2020 will

The deceased's final will, executed on Jun. 22, 2020, revoked all prior wills and made the following bequests.

The deceased gave her sole property, a Housing and Development Board (HDB) flat located at Klang Lane in Little India, to her second son.

All of her other assets, including Singtel shares, money in her bank account and in the account of the employment agency she ran, were bequeathed to her sister.

Her sister, who has resided in Perth, Australia, since 2005, was not present at the execution of the 2020 will.

The court's findings

The plaintiff claimed that his aunt played a leading role in the drafting of the 2020 will, in which she benefited greatly.

He also argued his aunt had "started to manipulate the deceased to try and separate the deceased from her sons and P", citing his family assets to be worth more than S$5 million.

Based on the evidence, District Judge Cassandra Cheong dismissed the plaintiff's claims.

Cheong said: "The deceased was not a weak-willed, elderly lady who was ignorant in relation to the workings of a will."

The deceased had also bequeathed her other assets, save for the HDB flat, to her sister in her 2018 will, which would not make it inconceivable.

Cheong also noted that the woman's second son was bequeathed the flat due to two factors.

Firstly, HDB rules against the creation of a trust over an HDB flat as the flat could not be held on trust for P until she reached 30 years old.

Secondly, in such a situation, the minor's custodian, such as a parent or legal guardian, would manage the flat until P turned 21.

Cheong granted the defendant's counterclaim and provided a declaration pronouncing that the 2020 will was valid.

Hence, the aunt was entitled to apply for a grant of probate, recognising her as executrix based on the will.

The plaintiff is appealing against the decision.

Top photo from Nadeesha Athukorala/Google Maps and Megumi Nakazawa/Google Maps