Lambert relatives get half costs

Two relatives who brought an unsucessful challenge to the last will of the late art collector Gordon Lambert are entitled to half of their legal costs from the estate, the High Court has ruled.

Mr Justice Roderick Murphy also directed that former RTÉ broadcaster Anthony Lyons, a long-time friend of Mr Lambert who will benefit most from the will, and the executors of the estate should get all of their legal costs out of the estate. The total legal costs of the 13 day action are believed to be substantial.

The judge made further orders today directing the August 2003 will be admitted to probate. He also directed a codicil to the will which disinherited any beneficiary who challenged the will should stand.

The latter order means the deceased’s niece and goddaughter June Lambert, Pembroke Lane, Dublin, and his nephew Mark Lambert, Rathdown Park, Greystones, Co Wicklow, who brought the case, cannot claim their inheritances.

The action was against Mr Lyons and two other executors of Mr Lambert’s will — Olive Beaumont, Heytestbury Lane, Ballsbridge, Dublin, a trustee of the Gordon Lambert collection and a senior curator at the Irish Museum of Modern Art, and Catherine Marshall, Kevin Street, Dublin.

The judge made final orders in the case after last month rejecting claims by June and Mark Lambert that Mr Lyons exercised undue inflience over Gordon Lambert in relation to the making of his last will. No claim of undue influence was made against Ms Beaumont or Ms Marshall.

Mr Lambert, a single man, died in January 2005, aged 86. He had suffered with Parkinson’s Disease. Under his last will, Mr Lyons (75), of Churchtown, Dublin, was the main beneficiary. The will also provided for various legacies to family members, including the plaintiffs and legacies to Ms Beaumont, Ms Marshall, and the Gordon Lambert Charitable Trust at IMMA.

One quarter of the residue was left to cetrian family members and a further quarter to other family members, with a cap of €100,000 per beneficiary. Three eights of the residue was left to Mr Lyons and one eighth to Ms Marshall.

The judge noted the realisation of the assets, particularly the value of Mr Lambert’s home at Hillside Drive, Rathfarnham, exceeded the sum of the schedule of assets prepared by him prior to making his will. A schedule of his assets on August 2003 valued his home at €680,000 but it was sold in April 2006 for €4.5 million to a developer.

The judge also noted the last will of 2003 was preceded by some 30 other wills and codicils from 1979 on, all of which were drafted by and on advice from Mr Lambert’s solicitors. Mr Lyons was first included as a beneficiary in a will of 1985.

The judge also noted all the wills were drawn up after detailed attendance by solicitors on Mr Lambert.

Today, Frank Callanan SC, for Mr Lyons, said his client was not seeking his legal costs against the two challengers at this stage but was reserving his position if they appealed to the Supreme Court. Mr Lyons, Ms Beaumont and Ms Marshall all sought and received their costs out of the estate.

James Gilhooley SC, for the plaintiffs, sought their costs out of the estate but Mr Justice Murphy ruled they were entitled to half those costs on grounds including they were made aware by solicitors for the executors, prior to the hearing, of all previous wills and core documents related to those.