Legal 500 Leading Firm 2026 / The Time Best Law Firms 2026 / 40+ Years of Expert Legal Practice in London
Legal 500 Leading Firm 2026 / The Time Best Law Firms 2026 / 40+ Years of Expert Legal Practice in London
Probate and inheritance disputes can involve valuable assets, difficult family relationships and significant legal costs. Alternative Dispute Resolution, commonly known as ADR, can provide a structured way to explore settlement without taking every issue to a final court hearing. Lewis Nedas Law advises beneficiaries, executors, administrators and family members on mediation, negotiation and other forms of ADR in contentious probate matters.
Call +44 20 7387 2032 or complete our online contact form to discuss your probate dispute with our London lawyers.
Call +44 20 7387 2032 Request a ConsultationLewis Nedas Law has provided legal services for more than 40 years and is recognised as a Legal 500 Leading Firm 2026 and in The Times Best Law Firms 2026. Our lawyers advise on contentious probate matters involving:
Inheritance Act 1975 claims
Executor and administrator disputes
Beneficiary disagreements
Disputes concerning estate assets
Proprietary estoppel claims
Questions about testamentary capacity
Undue influence allegations
Disagreements concerning estate administration
ADR can be considered before court proceedings start or after a claim has been issued. The appropriate process depends on the legal issues, evidence, value of the estate and positions taken by the parties.
Alternative Dispute Resolution refers to methods used to resolve disputes without asking a court to determine every issue at trial. Forms of ADR relevant to probate disputes can include:
Negotiation
Mediation
Early Neutral Evaluation
Expert determination in suitable cases
Other structured settlement processes
Different forms of ADR have different legal effects. Mediation usually involves a neutral mediator helping the parties explore settlement. The mediator does not ordinarily impose a decision. Early Neutral Evaluation involves an independent evaluator giving an informed assessment of the issues or likely outcome. Negotiation involves the parties, often through their solicitors, exchanging settlement proposals directly.
Yes. The Civil Procedure Rules expressly give courts in England and Wales power to order parties to engage in Alternative Dispute Resolution. The court's case-management powers can therefore extend beyond encouraging settlement.
The rules governing legal costs can take account of a party's conduct concerning ADR. A failure to comply with an ADR order, or an unreasonable failure to engage in ADR, may be relevant when the court decides costs.
This means parties to probate litigation should consider ADR seriously rather than treating it as an optional exercise with no procedural consequences.
Mediation is one of the most frequently used forms of ADR in inheritance and probate disputes. An independent mediator is appointed to help the parties explore whether an agreement can be reached. A typical mediation may involve:
Choosing and appointing a mediator
Agreeing a mediation date
Preparing a written summary of each party's position
Providing key documents to the mediator
Attending the mediation in person or remotely
Private discussions between each party and the mediator
Negotiating settlement proposals
Recording any agreement reached
Parties do not normally have to reach an agreement simply because they attend mediation. If terms are agreed, they should be recorded properly so that the intended settlement has legal effect.
Mediation is usually conducted on a confidential and without-prejudice basis. This means settlement discussions will ordinarily not be placed before the trial judge as evidence of admissions made during negotiations.
There are legal exceptions to confidentiality, so it should not be presented as absolute in every circumstance. The mediation agreement and advice from your solicitor should explain how confidentiality applies in the particular case.
Early Neutral Evaluation, often shortened to ENE, provides parties with an independent assessment of a dispute. An evaluator may be an experienced barrister, solicitor, retired judge or another suitably qualified professional. The parties can submit documents and written arguments before the evaluator gives an opinion on matters such as:
The legal strengths and weaknesses of each case
Evidential difficulties
Likely issues at trial
Potential outcomes
Areas where compromise may be realistic
An ENE opinion is commonly non-binding unless the parties have agreed otherwise. It can help parties reassess their positions before incurring the cost of a full trial. The Civil Procedure Rules expressly recognise Early Neutral Evaluation as a case-management tool aimed at assisting settlement.
Probate litigation can involve substantial costs and may place further strain on family relationships. ADR can give parties greater control over settlement discussions and create room for solutions that a court might not impose after trial. Potential benefits can include:
Greater privacy
Earlier opportunities for settlement
Reduced exposure to litigation costs
Flexibility over settlement terms
Focused discussion of the key issues
An opportunity to preserve family or business relationships
ADR does not guarantee settlement. Some cases require a court decision, particularly where there is a fundamental dispute about validity, fraud, legal authority or factual evidence that cannot be resolved by agreement.
Mediation can be considered across many contested probate matters. Examples include:
Parties may dispute whether a Will is valid because of testamentary capacity, undue influence, improper execution, fraud, forgery or lack of knowledge and approval.
Certain family members and dependants can seek reasonable financial provision from an estate under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. A mediation can allow the parties to discuss financial needs, estate value and competing claims without requiring the court to decide the entire dispute.
Beneficiaries may raise concerns about delay, estate accounting, asset sales, conflicts of interest or the way an executor is administering an estate. ADR can create a forum for resolving practical administration issues.
A person may claim they were promised an interest in property, relied on that promise and suffered detriment. These claims can involve detailed factual evidence and may be suitable for settlement discussions after the legal and evidential positions have been assessed.
No. Entering negotiations or mediation does not automatically suspend a statutory or procedural deadline.
This is particularly significant for claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, where an application must ordinarily be brought within six months from the date on which representation is first taken out. Other claims can be affected by different procedural rules or limitation principles.
Legal advice should be sought early so that settlement discussions do not cause a deadline to be missed.
If no agreement is reached, the dispute can continue. The parties may return to negotiations, consider another form of ADR or proceed with litigation.
A failed mediation does not mean the exercise lacked value. It can clarify the disputed issues, identify missing evidence and give each party a clearer understanding of the other side's position. No party should assume that mediation will shorten later proceedings in every case.
Costs are a major consideration in contentious probate. In civil litigation, the court has discretion over who should pay legal costs and how much should be paid. The general rule in many civil claims is that the unsuccessful party pays the successful party's costs, but the court can make a different order.
Conduct matters. The Civil Procedure Rules permit the court to consider whether a party failed to comply with an ADR order or unreasonably failed to engage in ADR when deciding costs. Parties should therefore obtain advice about both the merits of their case and the financial risks of litigation.
Funding arrangements require careful consideration. Lewis Nedas Law does not operate probate disputes on a standard no-win, no-fee basis.
The Supreme Court decision in Hirachand v Hirachand [2024] UKSC 43 confirmed that a success fee payable under a Conditional Fee Agreement cannot be included, directly or indirectly, as part of an award for reasonable financial provision under the Inheritance Act 1975.
Clients considering litigation funding should understand how their own legal costs may affect the financial value of any settlement or award.
Our lawyers can assist with:
Assessing the legal basis of a probate dispute
Reviewing Wills and estate documents
Advising on evidence
Corresponding with executors, beneficiaries and other parties
Making or responding to settlement proposals
Preparing for mediation
Selecting an appropriate mediator
Attending mediation
Advising during negotiations
Drafting or reviewing settlement terms
Continuing with court proceedings where settlement is not reached
Our role is to protect your legal position while helping you understand the commercial and personal consequences of each available route.
Lewis Nedas Law has provided legal services for more than four decades.
The firm is recognised as a Legal 500 Leading Firm 2026.
Lewis Nedas Law is included in The Times Best Law Firms 2026.
Our lawyers advise on private client matters and civil disputes involving estates, Wills, executors and beneficiaries.
Lewis Nedas Law Limited is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority under SRA number 567461.
The court has power to order parties to engage in ADR. The appropriate form and timing depend on the circumstances of the case.
A mediation discussion is not itself binding. If settlement terms are agreed and properly documented, they can create binding obligations.
A party can raise reasons why ADR may not be suitable, but unreasonable refusal or breach of an ADR order can have costs consequences.
No. ADR does not automatically stop legal deadlines. Inheritance Act claims usually have a six-month period from the first grant of representation.
The parties can continue negotiations, consider another form of ADR or proceed with litigation where a court decision is required.
ADR can provide a structured opportunity to resolve inheritance and probate disputes before the costs and uncertainty of litigation increase. Lewis Nedas Law advises on mediation, negotiation, Early Neutral Evaluation, contested Wills, Inheritance Act claims and executor disputes.
Call +44 20 7387 2032 or complete the firm's online contact form to arrange a confidential consultation with our probate dispute resolution lawyers in London.
Call +44 20 7387 2032 Request a ConsultationThis page provides general information about Alternative Dispute Resolution and contentious probate under the law of England and Wales. It does not constitute legal advice. The suitability of ADR, court procedures, deadlines and costs depend on the facts of each dispute.
