‘Put Up or Shut Up’ orders
How ‘Put Up or Shut Up’ orders can help charities obtain legacies that are being delayed
Your charity has been left a sizeable legacy, but the executors are not distributing the estate because someone is contesting the Will. To make matters worse, the Claimant is failing to prosecute their claim, leaving the estate in legal limbo. What can you do in this situation to overcome the impasse?
One option you have is to apply to the court for a ‘Put Up or Shut Up’ order. A ‘Put Up or Shut Up’ order, or a Cobden-Ramsay order to give it its correct name, is a court order that requires the Claimant to commence their legal action or drop their claim.
In simple terms it’s a court order that says, either ‘put up’ (and issue your claim) or ‘shut up’ (and drop your claim).
We have wide experience of dealing with these orders and they can be highly effective in breaking the deadlock that sometimes arises.
However, ‘Put Up or Shut Up’ orders do need to be used with care. Because the court is taking action that could result in someone being forced to drop their legal claim, the judiciary is cautious about granting them. In one case that recently came before the court, the judge refused the executors’ application for a Cobden-Ramsay order after the claimant said she hadn’t been given copies of all the relevant documents in the case.
Accordingly, steps should always be taken to make sure that a Claimant’s queries have adequately addressed before an application to the court is made.
If you would like to discuss ‘Put Up or Shut Up’ orders, then please do not hesitate to give us a call or send us an email.
Contact us by emailing [email protected] or phoning us on 0333 888 0439.
