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10 February 2017 / Roderick Ramage
Issue: 7733 / Categories: Features , Wills & Probate
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E-material & testamentary directions

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Roderick Ramage discusses the challenges of will drafting in a paperless world

  • In a paperless world, the administrator has a very demanding task to discover what the deceased owned and owed if the deceased left no accessible records.

  • Computer Misuse Act 1990 and proposed law reform.

A fully committed “citizen of the internet” suffers a fatal heart attack at his keyboard: the match, with which he was about to light a cigarette, drops into the waste bin, and his computer was damaged beyond repair in the ensuing blaze. His business, financial and private lives were conducted on the paperless principle. He died intestate, and the would-be administrator of his estate needs to identify his assets and liabilities. The name Yahoo came into her mind, and someone stumbled across this passage in its 2012 terms of service: “No right of survivorship and non-transferability. You agree that your Yahoo account is non-transferable and any rights to your Yahoo ID or contents within your account terminate upon your death. Upon receipt of a

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Ogier—Martin Livingston

Ogier—Martin Livingston

Martin Livingston joins Ogier in Cayman to strengthen regulatory support

Blake Morgan—47 promotions

Blake Morgan—47 promotions

Blake Morgan announces 47 summer promotions across UK offices

NEWS
Consultant-led law firms should prepare for closer regulatory attention as oversight evolves
Artificial intelligence may draft workplace grievances, but employers cannot treat them any differently from conventional complaints
From dishonest claimants to judicial promotions and procedural skirmishes, the latest legal developments offer plenty for litigators to digest
Fresh guidance is set to influence how courts decide whether hearings take place online or in person
County Court judges remain divided over whether landlords can lawfully force entry to carry out essential safety inspections after tenants ignore access injunctions
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