“It must be likely that the pint on the table was not his first drink of the day”.
A taxi driver who inherited a passenger’s entire estate has been left with a whopping €55k in legal fees, after a final will was overturned in a UK court.
The unique story began when taxi driver Dean Hughes was transporting 158kg Gary Mendez to various pubs.
Due to Mr Mendez's weight, Mr Hughes was the only driver who would accept him in a taxi. The pair then struck up a friendship during the two year period.
Then, in February 2016, Mr Mendez allegedly phoned Mr Hughes and told him he wanted to leave his entire estate to him in his will. Which included his £160,000 (€179,000) house in Eastbourne in southeast England.
The will was then signed in a London pub in front of witnesses.
However, the new will disinherited Mr Mendez’s long-term partner Hermes Rodrigues, even though the couple had been in a relationship since 2001.
Mr Mendez had originally left his estate to Mr Rodrigues in an earlier will drawn up in 2013.
And after contesting the new 2016 will, Mr Rodrigues successfully manged to have the original 2013 will upheld. The judge ruled that Mr. Mendez had been too affected by alcohol and ill health to fully comprehend his actions.
“Forgetful, confused and irritable”.
When Mr Mendez died in May 2016 at the age of 57, he was obese, had previously had a stroke and was a habitual heavy drinker.
According to Metro, he was also known to be “forgetful, confused and irritable”.
He had been drinking earlier in the day when the updated will was signed and also consumed a pint of beer at the pub with Mr Hughes.
At Central London County Court last week, Judge Eaton Turner finally overturned the second will and said Mr Mendez was likely drunk at the time it was made.
“I have great doubts whether Gary had a proper understanding of the contents and effect of the 2016 will,” Metro quoted the judge as saying.
“It must be likely that the pint on the table was not his first drink of the day.
“In my judgment, Gary, by this time, no longer had a balanced view of the claims and, in particular, had lost sight of his previous promise to leave the house to Hermes.”
He declared the will invalid, which means Mr Rodriguez, 45, will now inherit the house.
Mr Hughes, a 34-year-old father of four, has also been ordered to pay 85 per cent of the court costs associated with the legal battle, estimated to be worth more than £50,000 ($A91,000).
