Aysel Gencay (right) will not receive any of her mother’s fortune after a failed lawsuit against her brother (left)
A woman has lost a legal battle with her brother over their mother’s £1.1million inheritance fortune.
Aysel Gencay, 72, accused her older brother Dogan Halil, 74, of poisoning their mother’s mind, convincing her to give all of her inheritance solely to him.
Their mum, Dervishe Halill, moved to London from Cyprus with her husband in 1952 and died a rich woman at the age of 94 in 2021.
Within five years, Dervishe made four wills, splitting her £1.1million estate between all her children.
This house in Packington Street, Islington, was the centre of the dispute(Picture: Supplied by Champion News)
But, ultimately, she left all of her fortune to Dogan, excluding her other two children in the final will.
This final decision led to Aysel suing her brother as executor of the estate, claiming her mother would not have knowingly handed everything over to him.
But the judge threw out all her claims, ruling that Dervishe’s last will of 2018 is valid.
In 2015, Aysel received a handwritten note from her mum threatening to cut her out of her will unless she apologised and mended bridges with Dogan and showed her ‘love and respect,’ Central London County Court heard.
The letter, which was addressed to Aysel and her other brother Attila, read: ‘Your actions have destroyed my life and home, your actions towards your brother Dogan are very bad and shameful – we saw nothing but goodness from Dogan to all of us.’
Three years later, Dervishe disinherited Aysel and Attila from her final will saying nothing had changed since the letter.
During the legal battle, Aysel claimed her older brother had ‘worked on’ their mother so that she ‘surrendered her judgment’ and pressured her to sign over all her fortune to him.
She also insisted that the two letters detailing her mother’s reasons were inspired by Dogan.
Latest London news
To get the latest news from the capital visit Metro’s London news hub.
Aysel’s barrister, Peter John, argued that the will should be ruled invalid.
He said: ‘The deceased had always indicated that she would deal with her estate on the basis of equality – informed by her cultural and religious background and her consistent approach towards her children throughout their lives.
‘The deceased’s purported last will – the 2018 will – was, therefore, a shock to the claimant as the deceased’s only daughter, completely at odds with these statements, and also inconsistent with the relationship which she enjoyed with the deceased throughout her life.’
Aysel, who lives in Turkey, was always close to her mother and said the disinheritance goes against all custom and family expectations.
Aysel says she was close with her mother and was surprised at the decision made in the last will (Picture: Champion News)
Giving evidence, she claimed she flew to her mother from Istanbul multiple times a year in the years leading to Dervishe’s death: ‘I remained extremely close to my mother all my life.’
He also argued that the mum would not have been able to write such letters without ‘significant assistance’ and the language was ‘startingly similar’ to that used by Dogan’s correspondence.
However, Dervishe had attended her solicitor on her own and was observed to seem mentally sharp and aware of what she was doing.
She even told her solicitor that the reason for it was because the two did not visit her or show any interest, the court heard.
Despite Aysel’s arguments, Judge Mark Raeside KC said she had become ‘fixated’ with trying to prove her brother’s dishonesty.
The judge described Dogan as a ‘dutiful son’ who had done the best for his ageing mother before her death.
Dogan was described as a ‘dutiful son’ by Judge Mark Raeside KC (Picture: Supplied by Champion News)
‘Aysel said that the side letters could only have come from Dogan, who was behind their untruthfulness,’ said the judge.
He rejected Aysel’s ‘fraudulent calumny’ claim against her brother, saying ‘but the side letters are clear in what they say.
‘Aysel was wrong in her approach. She became fixated on this matter and her conduct was fundamentally wrong.
‘She raised these matters quite wrongly.
‘There was no dishonesty by Dogan. Dogan wasn’t responsible for any suspicion and therefore the case should be dismissed.’
The judge ruled in Dogan’s favour and said the last will written in 2018 is valid.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Arrow
MORE: 10 unmissable Time Out London deals: save 20% on Greek Street’s ‘Brunch to the Beat’
Arrow
MORE: Drivers in London set to pay even more for the congestion charge next year
Arrow
MORE: ‘Run-down’ London area voted most depressing to get £20,000,000 upgrade
Comments
Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google
Add as preferred source
The Diaspora Dish
We’re cooking up something magical… Join the family, and look forward to exclusive interviews and unforgettable recipes.