Lost Wills, Burglaries and a Timely Reminder for All Solicitors

An article by Mary Carolan in last Wednesday's Irish Times certainly sent a small shiver down my spine as a practising solicitor.

The case concerned a deceased man from Limerick whose will was lost following a burglary at a solicitor's office back in 2012.

Last Monday, Judge Siobhan Stack refused an application to "reconstitute" the will, noting that while there were opinions as to what the will probably contained, there was no admissible evidence before the Court as to its actual contents.

Thankfully, burglaries of solicitors' offices are rare enough. But this case is a reminder that unusual events do happen. Burglary, fire, flood, accidental destruction — sometimes reality is stranger than fiction.

I suspect many solicitors around Ireland quietly looked towards their wills safe after reading the article!

The case also raises an important issue for modern legal practice.

While the original signed will remains critically important, there is now a very strong argument for comprehensive digital backup systems, including securely scanned copies and detailed records, to help address eventualities such as burglaries or, God forbid, fires.

No system is perfect, but good record-keeping can become absolutely invaluable many years later, when memories fade and witnesses are no longer available.

For solicitors, it is a reminder of the enormous trust clients place in us when they leave wills and title documents in our safe custody.

Sometimes the most important legal lessons come from the cases we hope we never encounter ourselves!