Beautiful Virgin Islands

Wednesday, Aug 27, 2025

A court battle is brewing over Prince Philip's will

A court battle is brewing over Prince Philip's will

The document is going to be kept secret for 90 years, according to a ruling earlier this year.
A deep-seated debate on privacy is taking place after the Guardian newspaper announced it was taking legal action over the media's exclusion from a hearing on Prince Philip's will earlier this year.

In September, Andrew McFarlane, president of the High Court's Family Division, ruled that Philip's will would be sealed for 90 years. Among the few present was a lawyer representing the duke's estate from law firm Farrer & Co, the Queen's private solicitors, and the attorney general, the government's chief legal adviser. The media weren't told of the hearing or permitted to attend, with the public interest represented by the attorney general.

A Guardian News & Media spokesperson told CNN in an emailed statement that the High Court's decision to ban the media from the court hearing without informing outlets or allowing them to make representations "is a clear threat to the principles of open justice."

"It is also concerning that the court appears to believe that only the attorney general can speak to the public interest," the spokesperson continued. "We are seeking permission to argue that the behaviour of the high court in this instance constitutes a failure of open justice and that the case should be reheard."

According to British law, if a person prepares a will prior to their death, it becomes a public document after being admitted to probate, and anyone can obtain a copy from the Probate Registry for a fee.

However, anyone can ask the court to "seal" a will and keep it private, according to Geoff Kertesz and Judith Swinhoe-Standen from UK law firm Stewarts. "The court must be persuaded that it would be 'undesirable or otherwise inappropriate' to make the will public," they told CNN. "Historically, the courts have approved such applications only for senior members of the royal family. It is unclear under what, if any, other circumstances the court might agree to keep a will private."

One recent senior royal whose will was made public was Diana, Princess of Wales, who gave up her HRH title when she divorced Prince Charles.

Judge McFarlane said in his ruling that "it has become the convention that, following the death of a senior member of the Royal Family, an application to seal their will is made" and that "it appears that such applications have always been heard in private and have invariably been granted."

He said it was understood that the first member of the royal family whose will was sealed was Prince Francis of Teck, the younger brother of King George V's wife Queen Mary, who died in 1910.

Legal and royal expert Michael L. Nash told CNN: "It was Queen Mary who used these unusual royal powers and prerogatives never used before."

Francis died suddenly at the age of 40, following a botched medical examination of his nose, according to Nash, who also authored "Royal Wills in Britain from 1509 to 2008." He said the prince was a "reckless gambler" but also an "extremely lovable character," who bequeathed treasured family jewels to his mistress in a draft version of his will.

Nash, who has seen a copy of the draft will that surfaced in archives in Northern Ireland, said the prince was constantly in financial trouble, and upon his death "Queen Mary knew that the creditors, once they saw the will, would descend and everything that Frank died possessed of would have to be sold in order to satisfy these massive debts."

He continued, "And she was absolutely mortified that the public would be able to know about the state that her brother had got himself into."
Nash also pointed out that the family has faced legal challenges to the secrecy of royal wills before, the most recent of which was considered by the court in 2007. He highlighted an application by Robert Andrew Brown, who claimed to be the illegitimate child of the Queen's sister, Princess Margaret. Brown sought to open Margaret's will, as well as that of the Queen Mother, but the claim was dismissed as a fantasy, Nash said.

Privacy has become the debate of the modern era for the British monarchy, with the question of how much privacy a family member deserves routinely emerging. Critics often say royals use their positions and privilege to secure exemptions and evade scandal, while also noting that the Windsors are funded by taxpayers.

In his judgment, McFarlane said he was the custodian of a safe holding more than 30 envelopes, each of which supposedly contains the secret will of a dead royal. The most recent additions were made in 2002 with those of the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret.

McFarlane also touched upon why privacy was afforded for royal wills, saying: "The answer to the question 'why should there be an exception for senior members of the Royal Family?' is, in my view, clear: it is necessary to enhance the protection afforded to the private lives of this unique group of individuals, in order to protect the dignity and standing of the public role of the Sovereign and other close members of Her family."

Lawyers Kertesz and Swinhoe-Standen said there was a notable difference in the handling of the Duke of Edinburgh's wills and those of royals before him.

"All previously sealed royal wills are to be kept private indefinitely, but Prince Philip's will is different in that its privacy is time-restricted to 90 years," the pair said. "After 90 years, certain officials may inspect it, and they may then invite the court to rule on whether the will should be made public at that point, or kept private for a further period."

Nash described the time limit as an "important advance," as the previous position meant wills were concealed in perpetuity. "That gave serious misgivings to historians, lawyers, researchers -- everybody that had a valid reason for reading the will," he added.

"I can see in future cases that 90 years tumbling down to, say, 50 years or even less. So that there is at least some possibility of people living now being able to read (a will) at some time in the future during their lifetime."
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
Nurse who raped woman continued working for a year despite police alert
Drought forces closures of England’s canal routes, canceling boat holidays
Sweet tooth scents: food-inspired perfumes surge as weight-loss drugs suppress appetites
Experts warn Britain dangerously reliant on imported food
Family of Notting Hill Carnival murder victim call event unmanageable
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
×