Validity of Sirius' Will

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 124558


--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "tonihollifield" <tonisan9 at h...>
wrote:
> 
> 
> eggplant9998 wrote:
> > 
> > Now that Harry is popular again the Ministry will probably do
> > something to try to get back on Harry's good side, like giving a
> > posthumous pardon to Sirius Black. ... but it would make Sirius's 
> Will a legal document again.  
> 
> --Snipped--


> Toni:
> 
> I've seen ... the idea that Sirius' will ... would become a legal
> document should he be pardoned posthumously. Is there a provision 
> in British law that voids the wills of convicted murderers?  ..., I 
> can't see any legal reason ... why the  will of a convicted murderer
> would be void.  Assuming all requirements of executing a will were 
> followed, ... 
> 

bboyminn:

Ah yes, a topic to which I've wasted ...er...ahem... /dedicated/ many
a waking hour as I pondered the possibilities.

First, I think the really key is not legality of a murder's will, but
in the case of Sirius Black, the credibility of any will that might be
found.

Remember, there are still living members of the Black family. They are
not direct descendants, but they are very closely related, and would
therefore have a valid right to make a claims against the Estate, and
to challenge a claim by anyone outside the family.

In Europe, especially among the wealthy and the aristocrats, the
standard method of inheritance is that the oldest and nearest male
relative inherits the entire estate. Although, frequently through a
Will, various other family members can receive something, the bulk 
and most significant aspects of the Family Estate are passed to the
oldest and nearest MALE relative.

Of course, the purpose of this 'oldest male gets it all' method is to
prevent the family fortune from being diluted down to nothing as it is
spead thinner and thinner through each subsequent generation of
inheritors.

So, who in this group of surviving cousins has a male child? 

You win! It's Draco, son of Narcissa Black-Malfoy. That sets up a
pretty nice subplot for a conflict over the Black Family Estate
between Harry, via a contested Will, and Draco, by right of entailed
inheritance. 

Harry would not want the money but even more than that, he could not
stand that Draco would get Sirius's money. So, undesireable as the
fight might be, he would certainly fight to keep it out of Malfoy's hands.

> Toni continues:
>
> That being said, it occurred to me that if Sirius did have a will, 
> at  the time he executed it, he probably left everything to James.  
> ... unless Sirius made sure that his estate would go to "James and 
> his heirs" ...edited...
> 
> Toni 

bboyminn:

First, a point I always like to bring up. There are really TWO Estates
in question. The first is the probably substantial Black Family
Estate, the disposition of which is probably controlled by
entailments. The Second, would be Sirius's Personal Estate which,
since he inherited money from his Uncle, is probably significant in
size, but not nearly as substantial or as legally complex as the Black
Family Estate.

Now to the point of Sirius's will. He may or may not have had a Will
prior to his imprisonment, although he could have created one out of
spite just to make sure his family never got any of his money. But,
that Will would not cover the Black Family Estate, at least not at the
time it was executed.

Now, I would like to remind everyone that young men, brave and foolish
as they often are, are not so inclined to create Wills. But older and
wiser men, trapped in their family home with nothing but endless long
hours in which to wonder, worry, and fret, especially those prone to
melancholy moods, might be inclined to do so. 

I can see Sirius sitting around Grimmauld Place worrying about himself
and his own fate in these dark and dangerous times. Further worrying
greatly about Harry, the young boy for whom Sirius is suppost to be
responsible. A boy whose future Sirius is suppost to guard and insure.
In those dark melancholy times, I can very easily see Sirius hand
writing a Will naming Harry as the beneficiary of both the Black
Family Estate and of Sirius's personal estate. 

Unfortunatly, Sirius is not really in a position where he can call in
a lawyer and make sure the Will is properly documented and placed on
file. So, the best he could do is hand write it and have some of the
other Order members witness his signature by adding their own.

Sticky business that. Order members, by signing, would be admitting
that they were consorting with the most wanted criminal in the wizard
world. Oh yes, very sticky indeed. Therefore, that handwritten will
could never be presented until Sirius's name was cleared. Even then,
it would not look good for those who witnessed the Will. Although, I
think the witnesses would escape any prosecution, it just generally
wouldn't look too good, once it was known that they we actively
engaged in hiding a wanted man from the Ministry.

So, first and foremost, the Order must hide Sirius's death until they
can gather all the resouces necessary to make revealing his death work
to their advantage. The first thing necessary would be to clear his
name. Once his name is clear, the handwritten Will can be revealed.
That then opens the door for people like the Malfoys to contest the
handwritten will.

I think, there will be one surprise witness that will swing the
resolution in favor of Harry, and I think that witness will be none
other than ....sound the trumpets.... Phineas Nigellus, or at least
the portrait of Phineas. I suspect that he and Sirius had many
conversation while Black was hiding out at Grimmauld Place, and
Phineas may have even witnesses the Order members co-signing the
handwritten Will. 

Score one for Harry.

Although, I think Harry may inherit Sirius's personal estate with
relative ease, it will be the Black Family Estate that causes the big
stink. 

So, in conclusion, it is not so much the legality of a murder's Will,
as it is establishing Sirius's credibility before his Will can be
presented.

Just a thought.

Steve/bboyminn