29 March 2011 – Supreme Court refuses permission in RSPCA v Sharp

The Supreme Court last week refused to grant permission to the executors of an estate to appeal against a Court of Appeal decision on the construction of a will.

The claim was originally brought by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) in the High Court and concerned the estate of Mr George Mason, of which the RSPCA was a beneficiary.

Mr Mason, had, in Clause 3 of his will, provided for a legacy to be given to certain named beneficiaries. The wording of the clause was as follows: 'I give the amount which at my death equals the maximum which I can give to them by this my Will without Inheritance Tax becoming payable in respect of this gift'. Clause 4 provided for a gift of a property owned by the testator, and Clauses 5 and 6 provided for a gift of residue to the RSPCA.

The RSPCA contended that the true construction of Clause 3 was that it amounted to a gift of only the testator's unused nil-rate band after the value of the property given in Clause 4 had been taken into account. The executors of Mr Mason's estate contended that Clause 3 meant that the named beneficiaries under that clause were to receive a legacy amounting to the whole of the nil-rate band, without any deduction being made in respect of the gift of the property.

The High Court agreed with the executors, but the Court of Appeal then unanimously overturned Peter Smith J's decision and allowed the RSPCA's appeal. The Supreme Court refused an application for permission to appeal brought by the executors, meaning that the Court of Appeal's decision is now final.

Penelope Reed QC acted successfully for the RSPCA. The Court of Appeal judgment can be found here.