wills inheritance
What happens when a will conflicts with a new law (a law made after the testator has died)?
<p>What happens when a will conflicts with a new law (a law made after the testator has died)?</p>
<p>Suppose I have been bequeathed the family farm and the testator specified that the farm must be run in accordance with how it was traditionally run (this is also how it was run when the testator was alive). Suppose that I then run the farm accordingly. But, after a few years, a new law is introduced (maybe something to do with waste disposal, living conditions for the animals, etc.)  that conflicts with the deceased's wish that the farm be run traditionally.</p>
<p>What happens in this case? Is the will overridden by the new law?</p>

<p>The will is overridden by the new law. Suppose the owner had not died: then he would have to comply with the change in the law. When a person inherits property, they gain the right to that property which the originally had, and they do not gain any additional immunity to the usual obligation to obey the law.</p>

<p>When there is &quot;dead hand&quot; control of something, the people living in the present have to comply with the law (although some land use regulations and some tax treatments are indeed grandfathered), and the terms of the long term obligation can be &quot;reformed&quot; by a court to be consistent with the new law, if possible.</p>
<p>If the gift is charitable, the doctrine that authorizes this is called the &quot;cy pres&quot; doctrine and the charitable purpose is revised in a manner as consistent with the original intent as feasible. For example, if you make a charitable trust for the Boy Scouts and the Boy Scouts cease to exist, a court authorizes you under this doctrine to substitute another beneficiary with a similar purpose, perhaps, for example, the Boys and Girls Club. What is most similar is based upon testimony about the testator's intent in making the gift, if available.</p>
<p>In the case of an easement or covenant, it is usually just called reformation of the provision. In the farm case, someone might have the trust reformed to state that the farm must be managed with a goal towards maintaining traditional methods to the extent feasible to do so.</p>
<p>If reformation is simply impossible (e.g. a covenant mandating racial discrimination), then the person subject to it can get a declaratory judgment that the provision is void.</p>
<p>And, if there is no longer any purpose for keeping a trust arrangement in place, a trust can be terminated entirely.</p>
<p>The legal process of procedurally carrying out these tasks varies quite a bit from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. The Uniform Trust Code adopted by a number of U.S. states, for example, sets forth a fairly easy standard for reforming trusts, while the common law rules for doing so are more onerous.</p>

<p>It depend on what the law system is in the country where the property is located.</p>
<p>Most countries are in one of three classes:</p>
<ol>
<li>Codex system (civil law system) - all cases are analyzed and new written laws typically overwrite system. Sometimes codex system will deal with future events, for example now the EU has already written in its laws, that combustion engine vehicles will be banned in 2030, and they have written a multi-step transition to those new rules. And usually in codex systems, a ministry, or a government department, or in EU the European Commission, writes exact rules, sowing how to interpret the law against most probable cases.</li>
<li>Precedent system (common law system), in UK/US (and other countries with law derived from this tradition) - all new laws examined by judges, when happen conflict of law and life. And only after Supreme Court decide, created precedent, when law examined against real life case.</li>
<li>Countries which recognize external law system as supreme authority for this class of cases. Examples: Singapore recognizes the  British courts as the supreme authority for civil cases; many countries recognize European Court of Human Rights.</li>
</ol>
<p>So only for the most probable cases does there exist a simple answer about how a new law will work.</p>
<p>All difficult and ambiguous cases, will only got last answer from judge of Supreme Court, and before that happens, other judges may issue some limitations on property.</p>
<p>Sure, a Supreme Court ruling will happen only if there is a subject who will be enough stubborn and enough patient to deal with all the bureaucracy involved. For example, my friend sued against ministry in ECHR, and this took 8 years before the final resolution (positive for friend, but I think you understand, this is not profitable business, even considering, friend is not lawyer, and he wrote all the letters himself, for enjoy).</p>
<p>What mean under limitations, for example in Ukraine works law about heritage, that within 3 years after death of testator, anybody could claim their rights and court will consider it, and probably, will prohibit sale of property, before deciding (you could live there, and teh sales procedure will not work).
After 3 years, case will not open, and no limitations will happen.</p>
